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THE ASTORIAN • TUESDAY, MAY 18, 2021
THE ASTORIAN
• TUESDAY, MAY 18, 2021
•
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WATER UNDER
THE BRIDGE
COMPILED BY BOB DUKE
From the pages of Astoria’s daily newspapers
10 years ago
this week — 2011
I
t’s the Cinderella story of the art world: part-time
painter’s works become sought after by museums and
collectors.
Sometimes the fairy tale comes true.
The works of one of those “amateur” painters are on dis-
play at the Columbia River Maritime Museum in an exhibit
opening Friday.
Featured artist Cleveland Rockwell had a successful
19th-century career in the military and the federal Coast
Survey. But it was his after-hours hobby of painting the
landscapes he scouted so intensely for his employers that
brought him to renown and still keeps his name alive in art
collectors’ circles.
As part of the Astoria bicentennial celebration, the
Columbia River Maritime Museum is presenting an exhi-
bition of Rockwell’s paintings — 36 oils and watercolors
depicting the coastline of the Astoria area and the ships and
people that plied the waters there more than a century ago.
“We wanted to do something special as our part for the
bicentennial,” said Jeff Smith, the museum’s curator. “This
was appropriate for us, and signifi cant for the celebration.”
The Wildlife Center of the North Coast has
released a group of brown pelicans back into the wild.
Some of the pelicans had gotten tangled in fi sh-
ing lines and suff ered frostbite and wing injuries.
One pelican was rescued by volunteers while it
was seeking shelter in the Hallmark Resort pool
during a snow storm with gale force winds.
The brown pelican was removed from the fed-
eral endangered species list in 2009. But the Wild-
life Center of the North Coast has been keeping
population counts since 2007.
The Newport and Astoria baseball teams came into Sat-
urday’s game at Ernie Aiken Field tied for second in the lat-
est 4A coaches poll.
When it was over, the Fishermen looked a lot more sec-
ond-ranked than the Cubs.
Astoria got even for their last loss — and embarrassed
the Cubs in the process — and geared up for the postsea-
son as the Fishermen pounded Newport 12-2 to close out
the regular season.
And now Astoria looks ready to make another state title
run, which would make it four straight trips to Volcanoes
Stadium.
‘Off Columbia River Bar,’ an 1884 oil on canvas by Cleveland Rockwell, appeared in the Columbia River Maritime Museum’s
exhibit in 2011 for the Astoria bicentennial.
‘Scow Schooners on Youngs River,’ an 1868 watercolor on
paper by Rockwell.
Long Beach Peninsula, was held in Long Beach pavil-
ion Saturday night with the usual large crowd including
many out-of-town visitors.
All cottages were fi lled, taverns ran out of beer early
in the evening and the Astoria-North Beach Ferry Co.
had to run two ferries all day Sunday to carry people
back home after the festivities.
The crowd for the weekend, however, was not quite
as large as it was two weeks ago when the last good
clam tides of the season occurred.
50 years ago — 1971
A “Weird and unpredictable” wind early Sunday tum-
bled a pier at 50th Street in Astoria, sinking a gillnet boat
and beaching others at the Bumble Bee Seafoods facility.
Bill Keiner, an Astoria fi sherman, lost his boat early
Sunday morning when the century-old pier collapsed, sink-
ing the boat.
Waves were reported to have crossed the railroad tracks at
the entrance to the pier area, lifting the pier and collapsing it.
Among the air stations which the U.S. Navy
proposes to declare surplus in fi scal year 1947
is the Astoria station, according to United Press
dispatches from Washington, D.C.
The Port of Astoria Commission recently
adopted a resolution that it would sponsor the
airport when it is declared surplus by the Navy
and when local interests indicate a desire that
it be utilized.
In the meantime, the Port Commission will
take no action toward having it declared sur-
plus by the Navy.
Johnny Parsons, 12, was on the observation
deck of the Astoria Column Saturday for longer
than he wanted.
While taking in the breathtaking view, a gust
of wind slammed the door shut, locking it. Then
Lonnie Dillon, of Salem, coming to the rescue,
took the door off by its hinges, rescued the boy,
and put the door back.
The Columbia River lightship station in Astoria was the
fi rst on the West Coast and within a few years probably will
be the last guiding mariners to American ports. The U.S.
Coast Guard maintains 13 lightships, but they are being
phased out and replaced by automated buoys and manned
light stands.
But the Coast Guard says weather and tide conditions at
the mouth of the Columbia — one of the most treacherous
ship passages in the world — will preclude deactivation of
that station for several years.
Standing guard at the Columbia passage is the WLV
604-Columbia, the sixth vessel to serve the station since it
was established in 1892.
Coast Guard records show the fi rst Columbia was a 112
foot steel and wood ship equipped with a mineral oil-fi red
beacon light.
By comparison, the new Columbia, built in 1960, car-
ries a 600,000 candlepower light and a radio beacon with a
beam that reaches out 100 miles.
Its principal mission is to guide ships into the river for
passage to ports in Astoria, Vancouver and Portland.
But in addition to their “sentinel” duties, the men of
the Columbia collect meteorological data for the National
Weather Service, display storm warnings and provide sea
temperature and salinity readings for the University of Cal-
ifornia and Oregon State University.
What is duty like on the Columbia?
‘Early Morning View of Tongue Point from Astoria,’ an
1881 watercolor on paper by Rockwell.
Idle rail cars in Astoria in 1971.
Although constantly in motion, either going up a wave
or down one, the ship rides fairly well. The anchor usually
holds the vessel into the waves, and its draft of 11 feet keeps
it steady. And 12,000 gallons of water and 42,000 of fuel
provide good ballast.
“Nobody gets sick out here, and they all have good
appetites,” reports cook Thomas E. Lee, of Idaho.
The Columbia crew spends four weeks at sea and two
weeks ashore on a rotating basis.
Business continued near normal in the Astoria
area as the nationwide rail strike moved into its
second day. But this normalcy will deteriorate if
the strike lasts any longer. No train came in from
Portland today.
75 years ago — 1946
LONG BEACH, Wash. — The annual Tourist Ball,
the offi cial opening event of the tourist season on the
Planked Columbia River spring Chinook salmon
was the principal item on the menu of the San Fran-
cisco Press Club at a recent dinner meeting. And it
was all because Dr. Arthur Van Dusen set himself to
prove to Californians that there is no fi sh the peer of
that taken from the waters in front of his native city. On
his return from Palm Springs, California, he stopped at
San Francisco, where he and his wife were guests of
Ron Wagoner, of the United Press, who is president of
the San Francisco Press Club. On his return he had a
large spring Chinook iced and sent to Wagoner, who
served it at a press club dinner at which Jack Benny
was the special guest. Van Dusen has just received an
autographed photograph of the salmon being viewed by
Wagoner and Benny who testify to the reputation the
doctor gave it.
There can be no question any more that
opossums, the small animals traditionally asso-
ciated with the deep south, have migrated to the
Northwest and eventually found their way into
various sections of Clatsop County. Too many
have been killed or captured here recently to
leave any further doubt as to their presence.
They have been reported as having been
caught or killed near Warrenton, Gearhart
and Youngs River.
The city dump will be no safe salvaging ground any-
more because of presence of a deadly rat poison there,
according to arrangements completed today between
Astoria, Delbert R. Vaughn, Clatsop County sanitarian,
and Albert H. Swain, rodent control offi cial for the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service.
Swain has brought some of a newly-developed poi-
son, known as formula 1080, which, although still in
experimental stage, has had deadly eff ect on rats. It is
also dangerous to dogs, cats and humans.
Marc Gallegos had three hits in Astoria’s 12-2 win over Newport, which closed out the regular season in 2011.
The worst strike in its history staggered the
nation today.
From New York to Chicago to San Francisco
to Peoria, Illinois, the impact of the strike of
railroad engineers and trainmen disrupted the
lives of millions of persons and, in some way,
reached into almost every American home.
Normal railroad service will be main-
tained here today even though the strike is
called. Future operation of trains is uncertain,
although railroad offi cials indicated that main
line trains may run with pickup crews. This
emergency service may not extend to branch
lines like those in Astoria.