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THE DAILY ASTORIAN • FRIDAY, ApRIL 19, 2019
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IN ONE EAR • ELLEDA WILSON
A CHECKERED CAREER
A UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY
‘T
hursday, April 11, we responded to a striped
dolphin (Stenella coeruleoalba) which was
washing ashore just north of Ocean Park,
Washington,” Keith Chandler of the Seaside Aquarium
wrote. “The female dolphin was nearly full grown at 6.5
feet — males can reach lengths of around 8.5 feet. Though
sad, it gives us a unique opportunity to learn more about
this animal and its activities along the Oregon coast.” His
photo of the dolphin is shown.
“Striped dolphins prefer warmer waters and are typi-
cally found in the offshore waters off of California and
Baja,” he explained. “Though they are uncommon to the
area, it is not the first time a striped dolphin has washed
ashore. Their sharp teeth are used for snatching up small
fish such as herring or cod; squid also make up a majority
of their diet. Striped dolphins occur either individually or
in small schools.”
HELPING PEOPLE IN NEED
G
irl Scout Ella Zilli, an eighth-grader who lives
in Astoria, has chosen running a Peanut Butter
and Jelly Food Drive for her Girl Scout Silver
Award Project, which entails doing something to make
your community better.
“I am doing the drive in eight schools in Clatsop County
and one school in Tillamook County, as well,” she wrote.
“All the jars of peanut butter and jelly that I collect at the
schools will be donated to local food banks to benefit peo-
ple in need.
“The schools that I am doing the drive in are: Asto-
ria High School, Astoria Middle School, Lewis and Clark
Elementary School, Astor Elementary School, Broadway
Middle School, Seaside Heights Elementary School, Gear-
hart Elementary School, Hilda Lahti Elementary School
and Garibaldi Grade School.” The school drive ends April
26, so you still have time to donate.
She’s also doing a Peanut Butter and Jelly Drive in the
Tillamook, Seaside and Astoria Safeways from morning
till afternoon on Saturday. There will be a Girl Scout table
at the entry of each Safeway, and collection bins nearby.
“I will personally be at the Seaside drive in the morning
and the Astoria drive in the afternoon on Saturday,” Ella
added, “so please visit your local Safeway during the day
to find the Girl Scout table.”
‘WE HAVE TO SHOOT THIS TOWN’
‘S
uperfan” Curtis Templeton of “Beyond the
Backlot” (pictured right, in a screen shot)
filmed “On Location: The Goonies” in Asto-
ria recently.
But before arriving, he interviewed the movie’s direc-
tor, Richard Donner (inset), and asked why he picked
Astoria for the film’s location. After driving up the coast
from San Francisco, Donner explained, “when we first
drove through Astoria, my reaction was: we have to shoot
this town … “
Then Mac Burns (left) of the Clatsop County Histori-
cal Society took Templeton for a ride in the Goonies Jeep,
they sang, and laughed and ate crackers .... until the jeep
started smoking on Eighth Street.
The episode ended with a visit to the Goonie House
porch. Templeton, sighing over the view, concluded,
“sometimes it’s worth the extra effort to go beyond the
backlot.”
F
rom the Friday, April 19, 1901 edition of The
Morning Astorian:
• The steamer Nahcotta will leave Astoria Sun-
day, April 21, at 9:30 a.m. for Fort Canby. This excursion
is … an opportunity to view the lightship (LV50, pictured)
as she is being moved from MacKenzie Head to Baker’s
Bay. Those who have seen her as she now lies in her cradle
pronounce it to be a rare and unique sight. The owner of a
Kodak or camera should not miss this opportunity to get a
snapshot of old No. 50 …
Note: According to the U.S. Coast Guard Lightship
Sailors Association International Inc., LV50 was built in
1892 in San Francisco, and moved to Astoria the same
year, where she had a rather rocky career.
As early as the summer 1894, the lightship was with-
drawn from duty for repairs, then again in 1897 and 1899.
Then in November 1899, she broke loose in a 74 mph gale,
and stood offshore under sail.
When attempts were made to tow her, she ran aground
just east of Cape Disappointment, where she was stranded
on the beach for 16 months while unsuccessful efforts
were made to refloat her.
Finally, a marine railway was built, and the hapless
lightship put on a cradle (the one mentioned in the newspa-
per story), and moved 700 yards overland to be relaunched
at Bakers Bay.
But that wasn’t the end of the saga. She was repaired at
Bakers Bay, then towed to Portland for even more repairs,
and did not return to her lightship duties until August 1901.
There were several other repair issues, and she slipped
her chain a few more times before she was finally with-
drawn from duty permanently in 1909.
The noble lightship wound up with a rather ignomin-
ious fate: Condemned in 1915, she was sold at a public
auction that same year. She eventually became a freighter
in Alaska for the rest of her seafaring career, and was
registered as San Cosmo & Margaret until 1935. (bit.ly/
LightLV50)
‘A LOVELY LITTLE SPOT’
BIRD’S EYE VIEW
I
t’s that time of year again, and the Raptor Research
Program’s Decorah (Iowa) and snowy Decorah
North eagle cams are up and running, so you can lit-
erally have a bird’s-eye view of the weeks-old chicks and
their doting parents.
At this point, the chicks are in the stumbling-around-
the-nest phase — they will start to fledge in mid- to late
June. A dinnertime screen shot from the Decorah North
nest is shown. You can learn anything you might ever want
to know about bald eagles, and watch the little families
here: tinyurl.com/iowaeagles (click on “Watch Birds”).
Pull up a chair and check it out.
WE REALLY LOVE YOU
‘S
o, fans of the Portland Trail Blazers contacted
me asking ways they could reach out to injured
center Jusuf Nurkic, who suffered compound
leg fractures during the March 25 game against the Brook-
lyn Nets,” Dave Nelson of KMUN wrote.
“I knew of one fan in Portland,” Dave explained, “who
was asking for donations of shirts to make a quilt for
the ‘Bosnian Beast.’ I also heard a fan was setting up a
GoFundMe account, to raise funds for a ‘We love you’
billboard near the Moda Center in Portland.
“I even received calls at KMUN wondering how to find
the fundraising website so they could contribute them-
selves. However, a few didn’t want to brave the Portland
traffic to see the final results.
“Of course, there’s no way to broadcast a picture on the
radio, and one fan, Steve Willis, emailed Elleda to see if it
could be published in her In One Ear column.” And, thanks
to Dave, here it is, in all its glory. His photo is shown.
“For the record,” Dave added, “Nurkic tweeted ‘Love’
in response to it.”
WEAR ORANGE FOR JACKSON
F
rom the April 19, 1987 edition of The Daily Morn-
ing Astorian, an anonymous letter about a trip to
the town of McGowan, Washington:
“(I) landed at the dock of P. J. McGowan & Sons‘ can-
nery at Chinook point, and was met by Mr. McGowan,
senior, and invited to a look about the cannery and grounds.
“The interior of the cannery is being whitewashed,
and the machinery put in order for the season. Upstairs
can-making is going on; in another part nets and seines are
being made and repaired. Back of the cannery are thou-
sands of feet of wire netting for fish traps …
“They have several traps below their place, in Baker’s
Bay, and their seining ground is on the beach in front of
the cannery, extending up the river two miles. The cannery
is built on solid ground some 200 feet from high-water
mark, which looks odd to one accustomed to seeing can-
neries on piles.
“There is a large sewer under the cannery, which carries
off all refuse matter; water is supplied from a large spring
on the hill about seven hundred yards from the cannery.
“There is a wharf 800 feet long, leading from the can-
nery to deep water, where there is a small building which
answers for a storehouse in shipping their salmon and
receiving supplies.
“After having enjoyed half an hour’s stroll about the
place, which is a lovely little spot, I boarded the steamer
again …”
Note: This cannery, built in the mid-1880s by Patrick
James McGowan (who also owned three other canneries),
evolved into the small town of McGowan, which included
St. Mary’s Catholic Church, a store, a school, residences
(including McGowan’s), a large dormitory/mess hall for
cannery workers, and a good-sized vegetable garden.
The town began to fade when the railroad tunnel went
through in the early 1900s, and it was easier to get to Chi-
nook and Ilwaco. By 1911, there was no longer a cannery,
and the once-thriving town slowly faded into obscurity.
Now, all that remains of McGowan is St. Mary’s, stand-
ing sentinel near the Chinook tunnel. (bit.ly/jpmcgowan)
‘M
eet 7-year-old Coastie Kid Jackson,” a
post on The Coastie Voice announced on
an “I Wear Orange for Jackson T-Shirt
Fundraiser” page (bit.ly/CGjackson). “On Thursday,
March 28, he was air lifted out of an Astoria, Oregon,
emergency room to Doernbecher Children’s Hospital in
Portland at 5:30 p.m., and by 8:30 that night, he was diag-
nosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.”
Jackson Humpal is pictured, inset, and with his Coast
Guard family, his father, Petty Officer First Class Christo-
pher Humpal, his mother, Ashley, and younger brother,
Wyatt.
“We are selling T-shirts to help Jackson’s family,” the
post continues, “to offset the cost of treatments, travel
and overnight stays while he undergoes chemotherapy.”
He is currently located at the Ronald McDonald House in
Portland.
To place a T-shirt order, go to bit.ly/CGjackson2. Email
the completed form to USCGMSOY2015.StaceyBen-
son@gmail.com. The deadline is 3 p.m. April 26. At that
time, the shirt orders will be placed, and will take seven to
10 business days to complete. To drop off an order form, or
for information, call Benson at 401-302-7909.
“Jackson started his first round of chemotherapy on
March 29, and took it like a champ!” The Coastie Voice
added. “We do not know exactly how long he and his fam-
ily will be in Portland for treatment, but we do know that
he has a long road ahead.”
COMMUNITY NOTES
SATURDAY
Seaside Duplicate Bridge
— 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., Mary
Blake Playhouse, 1215 Broad-
way, Seaside. Come with a
partner or call ahead for one
at 503-791-9745.
Clatsop County Genea-
logical Society — 11 a.m. to
12:30 p.m., Clatsop County
Heritage Museum, 1618
Exchange St. Speaker is Karen
Martin.
Sit & Stitch — 11 a.m. to
1 p.m., Homespun Quilts &
Yarn, 108 10th St. Bring knit-
ting, crochet or other nee-
dlework projects to this com-
munity stitching time. All skill
levels welcome.
Columbia Northwestern
Model Railroading Club —
1 p.m., in Hammond. Group
runs trains on HO-scale layout.
For information, call Don Car-
ter at 503-325-0757.
Spinning Circle — 1 to
3 p.m., Astoria Fiber Arts Stu-
dio, 1296 Duane St. Bring a
spinning wheel. For informa-
tion, call 503-325-5598 or go
to astoriafiberarts.org
SUNDAY
Seniors Breakfast —
9 a.m. to noon, Astoria Moose
Lodge, 420 17th St. Cooked
to order from menu, includes
coffee. Cost is $5 for seniors
62 and older, $7.50 for those
younger than 62. Breakfasts
are open to the public. Pro-
ceeds after expenses help sup-
port local and other charities.
Cannon Beach Ameri-
can Legion Women’s Auxil-
iary Breakfast — 9 to 11 a.m.,
American Legion, 1216 S.
Hemlock St., Cannon Beach.
Line Dancing — 5:30 to
8 p.m., Seaside American
Legion, 1315 Broadway. For
information, call 503-738-
5111. No cost; suggested $5
tip to the instructor.
MONDAY
Chair
Exercises
for
Seniors — 9 to 9:45 a.m.,
Astoria Senior Center, 1111
See Notes, page B3