J
RAILROADS WILL SOON MAKE RESOURCES OF COOS COUNTY ACCESSIBLE
- . " aCvJ I
"When the good ship Captain Lincoln
was wrecked on -the'-almost unknown
shore of the western' coast of the Unit
ed States, more than 'SO years ago, at
the middle of night and In the dead of
"Winter, there was jjrobably not; one
among the survivors dashed upon the
beach by angry waves .who Imagined
himself fortunate to escape the sea. It
Was known to the United States dra-
goons landed In that 111 circumstance
that savage Indians inhabited the,
coast of the Oregon Country, and that
In but few localities had the white man
set up his abode to any degree. Two
anen are still residents of Coos County,
fn the vicinity of Coos Bay. who land
ed In' that unexpected and certainly not
agreeable fashion, and their pride In
the advancement that has been com
passed and in which they have shared
is Justified. Philip Brack and H. H.
Baldwin are the two men, whose con
tinued health in old age bears testi
mony to the healthfulness of the cli
mate. Announcement that the Southern Pa
cific will build a branch to Coos Bay
from Drain by way of Gardiner, thence
along the coast, utilizing the only
water-grade pasB through the Coast
Range Mountains, has aroused wide
spread interest in the county. There
have been railroad projects mort nu
merous than one could enumerate on
the fingers of both hands to connect
Coos Bay, the finest harbor between
the Columbia River and San FranclBco
Bay, with the outside world by rail
communication, but this Is the first In
which a responsible, strong transcon
tinental system is the principal. Ac
cording to the announcod purpose,
trains should be operating between
Portland and Coos Bay points during
1906.
Towns or Coos County.
The principal harbor on the coast of
Coos County is Coos Bay, but lighter
draught vessels enter the Coquille River-
The United States Government has
expended about 5800,000 on the im
provement of the Coos Bay bar and
about $250,000 at the mouth of the Co
quille River, which, with the recent ap
propriation of $55,000 to be expended
on the bar and river this year, it Is
thought will Insure a good channel of
not less than 15 feet of water on the
liar at low tide, and will thus enable
light-draught coasting schooners to
navigate the river as far up as the
City of Coquille, the county seat. It is
estimated that an additional expendi
ture of 5250,000 will insure a bar chan
nel 1500 feet wide and 30 feet . deep.
The tributaries of Coos Bay are North,
South, "Willanche, Pony, Coal Bank,
Isthmus and Catching Sloughs, or in
lets, and Coos River, all of which are
navigable and are Important water
ways leading Into the main bay.
The United States observatory at
Bapdon,vat the mouth of the Coquille
River, has the most equable tempera
tue of any of the observation stations
In the United States, as shown by the
civil service reports: The temperature
in January ranges from 49 to 70 -degrees.
The mean temperature for the
year Is about 52.2 degrees.
Cqos County has .475 miles" of wagon
roads, 77 .school, districts, 26 postoffices,
31 road districts, 59 voting precincts,
5000 voters, 15,000 people, 17 creamer-
Its and cheese factories, 4 salmon can-
nerles, 14 sawmills, 27.000.000,000 feet
of timber. 450 square miles of coal, 5 (
coal mines in operation, 3 shipyards,
beautiful scenery, the finest in the !
world, fresh-water lakes and water- J
falls, 20,000 acres of rich bottom land
to be reclaimed, the balance of trade
always In her favor, nearly every
product that It consumes, great gold
belt through the southern end, fine
country for hunting and fishing. The
county has sash and door factory, two
furniture and box factories, five shin
gle mills, three Iron foundries, nine
newspapers, one daily; two woolen
mills, brickyard and plant, some 200
steam and gasoline boats and crafts of
various kinds. The 2C postofflces are
the following, of which the first 10 are
money order offices and the first three
are international: Marshfleld, Coquille,
Myrtle Point, Alleganey, Arago', Ban
don. Bullards. Empire. North Bend,
Templeton, Bancroft, Bridge, Dora. '
Etolka. Palrview, Gravel Ford, Lee,
McKlnley, Maxwell, Norway, Parkers
burg. Prosper, Remote, Rural, Sitkum
and Sumner.
Ocean Beach Resorts.
Coos County will be famed as a
Summer resort. Its beaches are already
celebrated far and wide. They are
Bandon Beach, Sunset Bay, Big Creek
Bay and South Bay. One can bathe in
the tmrf at these resorts or Indulge in
the sport of deep-sea fishing. The Sev
en Devils country, south of Cape Ara
go lighthouse, gives one most pictur
esque coast scenery. Ideal camping
grounds can be found on any of the
many beautiful streams and lakes that
go to make up Coos County's system of
waterways. North of Coos Bay, In
what is known as the sand hills, is the
hunting ground for wild geese and
duck's, which collect In large numbers
around the numerous fresh-water
lakes that nestle among the sand hills.
Here nature requires but a modicum
of effort to gain a livelihood. Oregon
Is the greatest berry country in the
"West. Nearly all the domesticated ber
ries of the Eastern States grow wild in
the woods of Coos County strawber
ries, raspberries, dewberries, thimble
berries, salal berries, Logan berries,
salmon berries, blueberries, blackber
ries and huckleberries. The Summer is
the dry season, and the conditions
make life for several months ideal.
Timber and Lumber Products.
Twenty-seven billion "feet is the es
timate of the merchantable timber in
Coos County. The timber growth, con
sists of fir (Oregon pine) of three spe
cies, red, yellow and-white;- red and
white cedar, spruce, hemlock, yew,
"myrtle, maple, ash, white andJive oak,
alder, dogwood, madrone. chlttam and
numerous smaller growths, principally
crabapple and willow. The' relative
percentage of the timber is, approx
imately, as follows: Fir, 75 per cent;
white cedar, 10 per cent; spruce, 10 per
oent, and hardwood, B per- cent! The
white cedar Is valuablo wood for fin
ishing purposes and for shipbuilding.
It Is exclusively used on this coast for
the manufacture of matches. The main
body Is -found only In Coos, Curry,
Douglas and a portion of Josephine
Counties. The myrtle is. a fine-grained
wood used in the manufacture of fur
niture, is beautifully grained and su-
m
sEn
wotv -wrE. WARD.
ceptlblo of a very fine polish. It wears
smooth and does not splinter, -and is,
therefore, used In shipbuilding for
windlass stocks, bits, chock Jaws,
chats, fender rails, etc
Mines, Minerals and Stone.
Four hundred and Jifty square- miles
of Coos County's area Is underlaid with
a superior quality of lignite coal. Only
about two square miles have been
mined. In many places three and four
strata, from throe to six feet thick,
overlay each other. There are two
largo mines in extensive operation. "but
several others are in progress of de
velopment. In 1865-6 a boulder was found weigh
ing about 200 pounds which yielded
about 52700 In gold. In 1S96 a surface
pocket yielded over 52000, and sev
eral finds of less value have since been
made. Prospecting is difficult, owing
to the dense growth of timber and
brush. Ledges have been discovered
assaying from 54 to 5750 per ton, but
everyone is looking for the source of
the rich boulders. There Is much bass
ore, and specimens of nearly pure cop
per have been found in considerable
quantities in beach placers. The beach
deposits, when first discovered, were
Immensely .rich. They wero discov
ered in 1S52, and have been worked
about every year .since, being replen
ished by the action of the surf, pan
ning out the slides from the bluffs.
- Dairying and Stockr&lslng.
The mild climate of this region, the
abundant rainfall and the unsurpassed
richness of the soil, make Coos County
especially adapted to dairying and
stockraislng. There are 17 public
creameries in Coos County, and all are
doing a profitable business. This in
dustry, which has been the chief one,
will greatly expand as the country is
settled up, as there Is only about one
twentieth of the county that has been
reduced to' cultivation. On the tide
and marsh lands the grass grows lux
uriantly the year round, so that stock
usually needs no other feed. Butter
and cheese of the best quality are made
here, and find a. ready market at good
i ToT&csorcoosTmtz.
I f- MIL ES UP S T5EA
irOM COOS &AYZ
I
prices. One dairyman receives an an
nual income of from 51600 to 51S00
from 31 cows.
' Horticulture.
No section of the Pacific Coast 13
hotter adapted to general horticulture
than Coos County. The fruit industry,
although yet In Its infancy. Is des
tined to become ono of our greatest
resources. C003 County fruit has es
tablished a reputation for Itself In San
Francisco, where most of the products
are shipped. The annual production is
yet small, and consists principally of
apples, pears, plums, prunes and cher
ries. The low rolling hills and benches
are found to be ideal fruit land.
Another important branch of hortl
tulture which promises to become a
great industry In Coos County Is the
raising of cranberries. Though the
amount of land now devoted to the
culture of these berries Is small. It 13
sufficient to thoroughly demonstrate
the adaptability of the sandhill swales,
where wild cranberries .grow In abun
dance, to the culture of these berries.
A new industry that Is attracting much
attention is hopralslng. J. B. Moomaw.'
of Arago, planted about nine acres two
years ago as an experiment, And the sec
ond year harvested 12.667 po-Mda. which
sold readily In the market, f.id were rated
as old hops, bringing 29 cc.f. Mr. Moo
maw has (ut out 40,000 plants, and others
In the neighborhood will also put out
large tracts next season.
Coos Bay Salmon Fisheries.
Salmon fishing Is one of Coos County's
Tery Important Industries. Coos Bay and
the Coquille River have an excellent run
of chlnook, silvcrslde and steelhead sal
mon of excellent quality; and the Gov
ernment hatcheries, which have been es
tablished on South Csos River aad the
Coquille River, insure the continuance of
good runs, and the preservation of that
kind and class of fish. There are at pres
ent four( canneries and two cold-storage
plants handling the fish In 'their seasons.
Large quantities of steelhead are also
shipped to Coos Bay from the Urapqua
and Rogue Rivers and packed by the Coos
Bay cold-storage plant at Marshfleld.
Clam and crab-fishing promise to become
each quite an Industry on the lower Co
quille and Coos Bay.
Cities and Towns.
On the Coquille River thero. are Bandon,
at its mouth, with a population of ener
getic and up-to-date- business men, who
eparo no pains to build up their town on
a substantial basis. They have a woolen
mill, broom-handle factory, match fac
tory. Iron foundry and machine shops,
two sawmills, two shingle mills. United
States Government? works, lighthouse,
life-saving station, a bank duly Incorpor
ated under the laws" of the State of Ore
gon, two regular ocean-going vessels to
Ban Fraijclaco, a gravity water system,
public school?, churches and societies. It Is
one of the most famous and favored Sum
mer resorts on the Coast, Its beaches be
ing scenic and adapted to bathing and the
usual sports and amusements of such
places, and Is the distributing point and
headquarters for freight and storage for
all of Northern Curry County having
large warehouses built expressly ior this
purpose.
Coquille, Scat of County.
Is the county scat of Coos County, has
a population of 1300 or 1200. Incorporated.
It has two Methodist churches, one Epis
copal church, one Presbyterian church,
one Disciple's church, three hotels, ten
general stores, two hardware stores, two
livery and feed stables, three meat mar
kets, one meat-packing house, and other
lines of business,
Coquille City is beautifully situated im
mediately upon the north bank of the
Coquille River, high enough to be above
the highest raise of water, and is sup
plied with electric lights; telephone, pub
lic water works, and other modem appli
ances. It is Iff miles -from the ocean, in
a direct line, close enough to have all the
benefit of the sea breeze, and yet dis
tant enough to escape the direct sea
winds.
Other Trade Centers.
Myrtle Point, on the same river. Is nbout
ten miles above Coquille. at the head of
navigation for steamers on tho river, 13 a
hustling town of about 1100 Inhabitants,
toward which the fertile lands of the
North. East and Middle Forks of the
river converge and. make this town a dis
tributing point for these wealthy farming
districts. It Is also the headquarters and
distributing point for the rich gold mining
districts of the South Fork, tho combined
payroll and output of which amounts to
many thousand dollars each month. Tho
city owns Its own water system, which Is
new, and Is also lighted by electricity,
with its main street well paved with rock.
It 13 very beautifully located and Is one of
the most busy trading points In the
county.
On Coos Bay is Empire City, the oldest
town In the county, formerly the county
seat, and a place of great historical in
terest to the pioneers of this section of
tho country; It has been for many years
and is now the location of the United
States Cus.tom-House for Coos County.
It also has one of the largest sawmill
plants on the coast, owned by the South
ern Oregon Company, but which has been
Idle for several years. This dreamy little
town was once a busy mart, but is now
notable principally for Its historical inci
dents, which cling to the memory walls of
our pioneers. Across the bay and farther
down toward the bar Is the Cape Arago
life-saving station, and on the cape south
of tho mouth of tho bay Is Cape Arago
lighthouse.
Industries at Xorth Bend.
This Is the next town In order as one
comes Into tho bay from the sea, after
passing Empire City. This is a new
town, but without doubt the old adage
about tho new broom will apply to this
new town of almost marvelous growth,
and which, for the age of It, is without a
precedent on the Oregon coast, for thrift,
enterprise and rapid growth and develop
ment, and the prophecy so commonly
heard of late that the entire peninsula
from Marshfleld to "Tar Heel Point" will
be one great city In the no distant future
is within the range of possibilities.
This place Is only two years and a few
months old and claims a population of
1500 people, so the following figures will
give a more definite Idea of what founda
tion It has:
Men em- Yearly.
Plants. ployed. Capital, output.
Simpson Lumb. Co.. 160 51.000.0CO 5350,000
Shingle mill 25 10.000 27.000
Sash and door fact'y 50 50.000 144.000
Machine shops 12 10.000 25,000
No. .Bend ship yard3 60 10,000 75,000
Woolen mills 123 200.000 150,000
Furniture factory. 150 50.000 200.000
Milk condensery. 20 25.000 50,000
Total3 .602 51.355,000 51,031.000
Besides these It has two newspapers, va
rious mercantile establishments, a hos
pital and an elegant school building, elec
tric lights, and the various professions
are well represented.
Marshfleld, Metropolis of Coos.
Marshfleld claims the distinction of
being the largest and chief commercial
town, of Coos County. Its population num
bers about. 2500. It has three weekly
newspapers and one dally. Local and
long-distance telephone, .excellent water
system, two banks, a volunteer flro "de
partment, car shops and roundhouse of
the C. B. R. & E. R. R. & N. Co., ship
yards. Iron foundry, cold storage plant,
large sawmills, brewery, coal bunkers for
the shipment of the coal product by sea
going vessels, has a fine school building,
which is the homo of an excellent graded
and High School, wholesalo houses and
various mercantile establishments, a good
representation of professional men. Is at
the head of navigation on tho bay for
ocean-going traffic, and Is a general dis
tributing point for the rich farming dis
tricts, logging camps and mines on the
different branches of the Coos River and
the bay, and Is an all-round, up-to-date,
modern Western city.
Besides these, there are various other
towns, smaller and of not so much Im
portance, such as Bullards. Prosper.
Aberdeen. Randolph. Parkersburg. Lampa.
Creek. Arago. Norway and Bridge, on tha
Coquille. with their coal mines at the
latter, together with tho sawmills and
dairy ranches and creameries, form their
principal source of revenue. On the bay
side are Llbby and Beaver Hill, tho two
largest coal mining towns In the county,
with.Coquillo next.
Alleganey, at the forks of North Coos
River, Is a busy country trading point
and postoffico. and Sumner, at the head
of Catching Slough, and on the Coos Bay
wagon road. Is a beautiful little, country
village.
This section may be reached by any of
the many steamers that are regularly
plying between Portland or San Francisco
to Coos Bay and tho Coquille River.
There aro also three stage lines one from
Drain to Coos Bay. from Roseburg ta
Coos Bay, and from Roseburg to Coquille.
Xot to Blamo for Accident.
PORTLAND, Aug. 5. (To the Edi
tor.) The Item In The Oregorilan of
this morning In regard to an auto
truck running Into a cart and endanger
ing the lives of the occupants, does
us an injustice as It Is not In accord
ance with the facts. One of our trucks
loaded with trees for -Pllklngton's
nursery was crossing Burnslde bridge
some distance behind the cart which
was damaged. In this cart were two
men, ono of whom was driving the
single horse attached to the cart and
tho other was leading another horse.
The latter horse became frightened at
something, reared up and Jumped, land
ing with its forofeet in the cart, over
turning it. Tho man who was driving
retained hold of the lines and pulled to
such an extent that the horse backed
tho cart Into our truck which had
stopped still the Instant the accident
occurred, about 20 feet distant. Mr.
PUklngton was on the truck at the
time and telephones us to this effect,
confirming in every particular the re
port made by our driver. Immediately
on his return to the station. We wero
In no way to blame for the accident -or
any damage resulting therefrom.
OREGON AUTO-DESPATCH.
BUSINESS ITEMS.
If Baby la Cuttrnsr Teeth
Be sure and use-that old And well-tried rem
edy. Mrs. WlnsloWs Soothing Syrup, for chil
dren, teething. It soothes the child, softens
tha sums, allays all pala. cures wind colic
and diarrhoea.