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About The Oregon statesman. (Salem, Or.) 1916-1980 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 28, 1924)
STATTON CITY OF HOMES WHERE EVERY .By V. LYLE McCROSKEY -Trains at West Stayton and Stage bervice Keep Citizens in ! A Substantial TTown-oH 200 People in !KeTamous''N6rthantiam: Valley lte Trade Territory' Extends for Fifteen Miles- A W T " i -i V - - V i I 'Toucn with' World 75,0(H) Acres of tandOJnder Actual Winter, and Water ror; Irrigation When eededan bum- I mer Woolen? Mill, Two Flouring -Mi&Mwe Bringers- Gornbind to'Work1 Upf Raw Material fr6itv Farms,ancr (Lirvev Wntmubusi limploy ment at oooa w ages to , w orkers j t PROSPECT PLEASliS 1 1 '( Stayton. the trading center! of the North Santlam valley, is a progressive little city of 1200 'persons. It' is located about It i miles southeast of Salem, and is - surrounded by a vast productive territory extending for 15 miles ; in all directions. - AUto stages make three trips daily to Salem over a road which 'is entirely paved. "There is daily 'motor truck service to both Sa Jlem ahd Portland. .Stayton's rail road shipping point is" "West Stay ' t6n, ' which, ts 'about ..three miles , lrotn Stayton, 'with V an excellent road, part of which is paved, -between the two towns, it is ex ' petted that the ipaythg tbf J this road will be completed' during the cCnjlng season. y At Stayton has any advantage it at stands out as -predominant, it U her rare, diversity of natural - resources. - Perhaps In no terri tory of equal size with that t'erved by Stayton could be found ' '' uaiu'ral : resources of so great a variety and abundance. In this small valley we find soil fitted fo: ull types, and particularly the lu crative types, of 'agriculture. We find abundant pasturage for shoe? and cattle We find, timber ; thousands of acres of it. We find .water power sufficient to generate thousands of horse power. ' Stayton stands at the entrance 'of: this remarkable valley! and be iiag the most, easily accessible ' i place, from all points, , it has, of t course, become the trading and manufacturing center for this ! treat territory. ; .; .:-.t. ' The Santiam river has been. di verted and brought to Stayton in the form of 'usable water powef, thus giving this town the advan - ! tage of the coveted "whitecoal." ; lsf it ,any wonder that thts com . mnnity is prosperous? " I it any, wonder that it . U making' steady growth; that its citizens have all jthe modern conveniences that are 1 afforded or cities ten times its These resbirces have been' put to use, and most 'successfully, 'by rthe people of- this 'section. - Tli,ere '.are about, 7,000 .acres of Jand ; under actual cultivation lying tri 1 butary to Stayton.' This land is 1 being used to raise grain, hay, berries, fruit and nuts. Many . acres are being used as pasture for dairy cattle And 7sneep. iA combination that has' been found1 to! be excellent -by farmers In this J valley, is tha,i bt Truits and berrje and dairy - cattle. . Jhe berries and fruit prdlnartlr yield a large income .' and call '-for ' InteaeiTe work during a few months In the I itUmmer. Th' ffalry cattle produce V a steady Incomer serving 4 a sort of insurance (gainst total failure in case the fruit crop is light and .-'they demand the least attention during (he summer when .the work with' the fruit and berries t Is heaviest, i " , . . In . the 'opinion "Of persons Who are familiar . with conditions ' In this valleyJ the' cultivation of berries, small fruit and nuts pre- snu the greatest .field tor aucTa- .nTc laresiiavni ' in ints locamyi 'The land, is particularly adapted : to the growing of these crops. "ITiis fact W Attested by ltbe re- "markahle success that has been mettby persons who have already engaged In this type or farming ; flackberries are particularly re- co mm ended for planting, here, for ; the reason that" this -is the home . of the wild blackberry and they consequently, .produce , marvellous , crops under cultivation. They yield heavily, are not hard to cul tivate,' and always haven yeady .'market at a . good1 price, f. Other " berry crops that are not now ex lensiveiy grown, out which are considered good in this locality, aie red raspberries, currants and gooseberries, f Loganberries, of . course, ' have , done exceptionally well here, but there are some ner sons who discourage large1 plant- . Ings in the near future because of ' the fear that the supply will ex- ceed the demand which fs'being . muwij j ; dui sieaauy increasea ."through ;tbe use of advertising by - the growers through their coope rative organizations. J With' any of the crops! returns of $100 an acre net are cdminon. Cleared land not un suitable for berry cultivation may be bad at from $50 to $200 an acre, so it can readily be seen that an for vestment in this industry will pay enormous dividends. j Another crop that has recently been attracting' increasing atten tion in the locality is flax, i Con siderable acreage was grown' here last year and it seems probable that there will be a great deai more grown this ear. The state of Oregon has been buying! the crops of . all the growers for use in its prison flax plant.! and the growers have been able to receive prompt and gratifying returns from this commodity. This par ticular part of the Willamette valley seems to be admirably adapted to the growing i of flax and it is said that the flax grown here compares favorably 'k ith that grown in the most famous flax producing sections of the world. Yields of four tons to the acre have been reported and two tons to the acre seems to be an aver age yield. This straw has been sold to the state for $2f a tou, end it is thought ' by soine that the more efficient methods of handling, and manufacture which arebeing developed will j increase the price that will be paid to the farmer. j Nut culture has recently become very Both popular in walnuts and this vicinity. filberts grow exceptionally well here. Walnuts are the slower , crop, require a little more'" attention and are sub ject to more failures 'than 'f li te rta. i Both crops, however, have their supporters s who vigorously urge the merits of the crop, in which they are interested. Wal nuts come irito bearing in eight years, filberts in four.. Berries can be cultivated between the rows with no damage to the trees during the period before the trees come Into' bearing. Filberts seem ' to be a I particu larly favored crop for the reason that they are practically j immune to-disease, they "do not frost kill. they are easily.handled and picked and yield , enormous crops. Net returns of from $100 to $500 an acre have been reported, and the returns from walnuts are said to be only , slishtly less. This . is. .a. cqmparatlvely .new crop, In. .this siaie out tne ngures presented by the- pioneers in the industry are astounding. '- Undoubtedly the Stayton ter'rltory. has -immense possibilities 'fori nut culture; 'lor the"sdil and climate is admirably adapted to it. fit is th6ftght, that as'. soon as this crop-'has: become more widely advertised the grow ing of nuts will become one of the most important branches of agriculture here. j Prunes, cherries and Btrawber- ries. are being gjown with great sbccV-ss ihere. .Tne growing rof strawberries, like the growing of other types Of berries," is particu larly-profitable here, and increas ing acreage ir being, planted each year. V 'Prunes and cherries, - while subject" to 'some' u'ncertalrities,'' due to the seasons in which theyarf ; harvested, are . almost invariably great money makers. Water for Irrigation The waste water rom the Stayton power ditch is used to iirigate .several thousand of acres Of " land ; lyihg v adjacent to' Stay- ton; and on the railroad. " Advo cates bf , irrigation cla.im that with the ; proper ' application of water to the .land, small fruits and berries -can- be made to yield almost double ' the amount, of products they now do. f The fact that the water does increase the yield of these crops seems to be borne out by actual experiments. une man is Known to have re ceived . a gross income . of $361 from an acre and a 1 quarter b! logahbetTies add blackberries that were irrigated. !the black berries being then in their first. seas6n." . Other, persons' have found that,, by proper cultivation so as to conserve the moisture supplied by nature, these plants can be made to yield sufficiently - e "'" " '' ' f n.l ..' hi. i- , - g , i yi-v Urown-l-ctzct, Luinber Company, tMayton, Orrgon large without irrigation.' Regard less of the merits' of either side of this controversy,': hinge returns can" be had In either caes. and the ' water ' is here ' for 1 nse ; by those who understand and believe In irrigation w and who; prefer that method Of farming. '-Farming is. bf course, the in dustry1 which must form the basis bf -growth of any community In the ,WiUamette valley, - if that growth ' is to ! be - steady - and healthy. 'In ' the ' last analysis, communities in this part bf Ore gon mast look td the solid for the means to attain their full develop ment. The test of the success of a town will usuaily. be foutd to be its" ability to take the products of the soil and,. b application of capital and tabor, turn 1 them to profit.' This is the thing that Etaytdn ia cqhipped to do'and is t doing to the advantage ot tne producer ot the original commo dity as well as. that of the man in 'town. . With the ', phenomenal growth bf fruit farming in this' vicinity during the "past tew -years,'; came the realization that ; it tStay.ton was to derive the .full benefit from her surrounding resources, she "must 'ifequip" herself tossist in the -marketing ' of 'the "fruit produced. Vb3 'n?! ?eul.bf thi8lPany sells the. Jdmber jt. procfUces realization was tne consirucuon oi a cannery' in Stayton. "Its begin ning was small, with a capitaliza tion of only $10,000; but at the end of its second, season it has shown a remarkable and healthy growth and its success, seems as sured. This.1lftle ca'finery'nas al ready saved " the growers' of ' this Vicinity . a. haul f , 20"or"30 miles with their ft ruit. has increased the yearly, payroll of. the town. by several thousands of dollars, and has ' materially increased the ag gregate income ' of Stayton. Its products V have -found ; ready sale afldhave"been'hishly praised' for their excellence. Another industry that has for its purpose the utilization of the products of the soil is the woolen mill, owned and operated by the Santiam' Woolfcn T Mill " company. This is'Stayton's largest Indus trial concern and Is one of which the people . of this community are Justly proud. Having its begin ning in' 1919 with six -employes and 'few . looms and producing then about 1000 pairs of woolen blankets yearly, it has -grown in four years until it now employs ISO people, has an annual payroll of nearly $200,000, and produces 125,000 pairs .of .blankets and 250.009 pounds of wool batts an nually. Nearly three quarters of a million pounds of wool is used by this company, all of which is Oregon wool and a considerable part of which is grown in this vicinity. This company is the largest exclusive manufacturer of woolen blankets and wool- batts :. o the Pacific ast. The power or the Santiam river fs used to operate the machinery of the nilll thus putting another of SUy ton's natural resources to use. It is needless to say that this industry is of tremendous Importance to the town of Stayton. Its growth has been paralleled by that of the town and it has met with such striking success that its growth in thei future seems assured. 'The retire output Of this mill for the past - year' has been sold, and its prdducts are in Increasing de mand so high is their quality. : Its M ' Jj? ' " tV ' itAhU' rr-i? trr.tj first -National Hank, bales amounted to about $500,000 during the past year as contrasted with gross" sales of $37800 during 1919. T(i B.rown-Petzel Lumber.com pany 6perate an Industry In Stay ton, which, while nbtv utilizing products of agrfeUlture,' maks use of one of the greatest of Ore gon's resources, as well as of this locality timberAg Its, 'mill, - also operated by water pdwer from the Santiam, is also a large factor in maintaining the - circulating wealth or thisv coWmiftalfyr This h) ill has' a 'capacity of"?0,000 feet of timber .per day, , It employs an average ot 30 persons with an an nual payroll , of about $35,000. Two to. five million feet of timber are Used each year. ' This v com- in ootn tne wnoiesaie ana retail - .- Snntiam Woolen Mlllst, markets. It maintains its own rtiaii yarus ai oiayion, jeiierson and Gervais. Two flouring mills in Stayton, both usin? the water power of the Santiam," afford a re'ady, con venient market for the wheat grown in the surrounding coun try. Their combined payrblls will, approximate $15,000 annually anA the sale of their product ihcreased the communis circulating wealth by several more thousands yearly. One of these mills makes a pro duct, which in open competition has taken several prizes for its excellence. A chair factory ives employ ment to from five to ten persons. It produces kitchen chairs and miscellaneous furniture, utilizing water power to turn its machin ery. r , - . VI i - J A lisht and ' power '.company owns a modern plant'-with which it converts water power to elec tricity. It supplies : poweY for lighting in and about Stayton, as well as furnishing power for sev eral minor industrial plants of the town. A considerable invest ment is represented in its plant and equipment. Its chief value to the community, of course, lies in the convenience artdi satisfaction furnished the citizens in the form of "dependable and ' cheap elec trical energy. Natural resources and Indus- Stayton. Oregon I tries, of course,, form the founda tion upon , which the economic life of a community is built, but there are other considerations that must bo met In determining the desirability of a town as a place in which to live. Stayton is a distinctly livable town. It has all the urban conveniences with tew t of the disadvantages. Here are found civic improvements sacli as are commonly found only in cities of four or five times its size. The town of Stayton main tains its own municipal water system, furnishing water under pressure to its citizens at an ab surdly low. price. Just recently, in order to com ply with the requirements of the Oregon Insurance Rating bureau, extensive Improvements - were made in the water system and Stayton, Oregon .fire fighting equipment of Stay- ion. A thousand leet of new fire hose of the highest quality has been added to the fire fighting equipment. New pumping ma chinery has been installed and a new fire' proof house has been erected to house the pumping plant. These improvements' .'will lesult In a considerable saving in. insurance rates in Stayton. Bonds, to the amount of $10,000 were issued to take care of the expense of these Improvements and a plan has been worked out whereby the revenue from the water, system is expected to provide funds -for the retirement of these bonds without castjng additional burden on the taxpayers, and without unreason ably increasing the Water rates. Fifteen blocks of Stayton's streets are paved with an excel- lent1 quality of bitlnilithic; pave ment. 'The cost of this improve mentas borne by the abutting property 'owners 'and a consider able portion of it wfes ' paid ' In rash. Bonds ta the extent of $18, 000 were issued for the remainder a part of which have been already paid. This bond issue and the issue of $ 1 0.fJOO ' above, mentioned constitute the" only ' indebtedness bf the town 'and neither of these debts'are to belaid by means of general' taxation. In educational ' facilities, Stay ton Is excelled by none. "A hew II $25,000 school building houses a complete grade school and a high school that is rated by state edu cational authorities as "standard:" Nearly 300 students are in at tendance under the instruction of a corps of 11 teachers. The busi- Lness men of the town recently presented the high school with a complete gymnasium, which is used by " the townspeople for gatherings and recreation a3 well as by the students of the high school. The interest that is mani fested In the schools by the citi zens of Staytdn is , remarkable. An active Parent-Teacher associa tion is functioning admirably, and the spirit of cooperation originat ing here " permeates .the entire community. " The schoolhouse Is often the scene of community gatherings and entertainments. Community sings have' been' fre quently held and greatly enjpyed. So highly are the schools bf Stay ton regarded that many students from outside districts attend school here. The connections with the' families Of ' these students, thus formed, are particularly valu able to the. business and profes sional men of the town. The popular interest in religion found in Stayton, is an' index to the wholesome atmosphere of the place. The Baptist, Catholic, Christian and Methodist churches are represented in Stayton, ' all of them having large memberships and owning their own meeting places Fraternal orders form another powerful factor in the social life of this community. The Catholic Order of Foresters, Masons, Knights of Columbus . and . Odd Fellows have active organizations here. The Masons. Odd Fellows and Foresters have meeting places which they own. The usual wo men's auxiliaries are active in connection with their respective lodges. , A Community club is active in Stayton which has for its purpose the general betterment of all con ditions fn Stayton, civic and so cial, as well as commercial and economic. It draws its member ship from persons in all pursuits, iuciuding those farming in and around Stayton, in order that the organization may work' for the good of the whole community. A tw.w- - - - .'.Mf - ' - O : inn m. in, l y tif ,rf Kmeer r t wiww jui . a 1 X -i- " ' Brown-rctsvl Lumber Company, Stayton, Oregon Women's Community, club has re centlv been organized and it is planned that this organization fhall cooperate with the ' men's club. Another condition that makes Stayton a livable town is the op portunity for outdoor recreation. The town is almost within walk ing distance of the Cascade moun tains, with their numberless op portunities for camping, hunting and fishing. Trout fishing can-be had within ten minutes' walk, pheasant and grouse hunting is plentiful. In short, all the won ders of the Oregon outdoors can be enjoyed here, with the added advantage of having them liter ally at one's door. ...... v', Usually among the ' most active in helping to make a town a de sirable one in which to live, are the merchants, bu sines and pro fessional men of the place, of whom, hitherto in this article, we( have said nothing. In order that we may not leave the impression that these persons arc unimport ant to Stayton, let us say right here, that this class of men is distinctively alive and active in this town. Perhaps the most important of Stayton's non-industrial (a rather ii.accurate' term meaning not ac tually producing material goods) institutions Is its bank. This bank was formed a few years ago by the merger bf the' two battkr that had formerly done business in Stayton.' A charter was taken out under the national banking sys tem and one under the state bank ing system. 'The First' .'National bank now handles the commercial business and the First 'state and Savings bank' takes care of 'the savings department. Both are under one roof and one manage ment and provide a service that is unexcelled. They have a com bined capital of $50,000.00, de posits of $582,000.00, and re sources of $644,000.00. This dual institution has been, and Is, a tremendous factor in the develop ment of the territory tributary' to Stayton. It has been active in al most every undertaking of im portance in this community in recent years. The management of this institution has devoted its energies particularly to a study of the problems' of the farmers with the. result of having materially aided the farming industry in this viclhtty, and of having 'drawn.tn creasingly large numbers of farm ers to Stayton for their trading. It is, of " course,, impossible to describe in detail each of the var ious mercantile enterprises of Stayton or each of the other busi nesses and professions. The fol lowing groupings; will Serve to convey a general idea of Stayton's offerings in this1 respect; " There are four generkl stores in Stayton, all of them handling merchandise of the first class and handling large ' volumes of bus!' hes8. One store handles' hardware and groceries. Another handles naraware and furniture and an other hardware exclusively. Stay- ton has two drug stores,' two meal markets, a men's furnishings store, twoVhbe stores including repair ehops, a variety store, a hotel furnishing both dining serv ice and rooms, two confectionery and lunch establishments, add two pool hatls and tobacco stores. There are two jewelry stores, a moving picture theater, two gar ages, iwo uiacKsmun . snops a gasoline service station, a battery iind auto repair fchop, an electri 1 A a, cat equipment store, a oakery, a ieea store, a proauce nouse. - a . - uv.wjv uuu n vf ccn ij icna' paper having a modern printing piani. uiner uusiness and pro fessions are represented, in Stay ton '. by two doctors, two lawyers, two dentists, a veterinarian, an undertaker, two barbers, four au tomobile salesmen, two real estate brokers, a plumber and three watchmakers. The ownership and manage ment of some of the most promi nent ot the above mentioned es tablishments are as follows: A. P. Speer & Co.. Gehlen Bros, and Doll's Cash Store operate general merchandise and grocery - ;i...nF.:.,..fl;4Hf.N stores; V. Dare Sloper is a phar macist and conducts a drug store; L. C. Bailey owns and operates the Hotel Stayton; J. H. Mosher, a watchmaker, operates a jewelry store; J. F. Mlelke conducts a hardware store; the Lilly Hard ware Co.. a hardware and furni ture store; Lancefield Shoe Co., a shoe store; E.'T. Matthieu and E. S. Pieser conduct 'pool halls ' and tobacco stores; Wourms & Boe- digheimer' and Gehlen Bros, each conduct a meat "market with a modern refrigeration plant; Har ry ..Humphreys .operates the Star f theater, a motion picture theater: j The Winer Produce company are it buyers of farm' produce; I'H. Wright operates a feed store: Dr. C. 'Ward Davis, ' a dentist, con ducts a modern dental office; Walter M. Miller conducts ' the Bon Ton Confectionery and Ttes taurant, and W. A. Weddle.' an undertaker, is the owner of a modern mortuary. , In the way of industrial oppor tunities, little need be said. IThe powej is here, the raw products, are here, labor is plentiful ' and dependable, and transportation presents no difficulty. ' The only thing tnat is awaited is capital in the hands of persons with 4 the vision to see the possibilities arid the ability to develop those possi bilities. One of the greatest needs of this community at pres ent is a means of utilizing the product pf its dairy cattle. Creameries and cheese factories would certainly find here an ex cellent field for. their operations. The dairying Industry is rapidly increasing here and it would seem that a plant to utilize dairy j pro ducts could not help but succeed. - For- the taan..p small means who seeks a home in a place where 'living Is cheap and agree able and "-where every working day in the year can be utilized for profit, Stayton offers an " ex ceptional opportunity. Many families have small tracts of land close to town, where 'they keep a rew. cowsra few chickens an d raise some' small fruits aid berries. During;, the winter months, one or 'more members of the family " find employment In the woolen v mill "or some othet of Stayton's Industrial establish ments. Many who are pursuing this course, are veritably becom ing -wealthy. The Santiam Wool en triill reports that this type bl labor is one of the most satlsfnc'. tory ' and' I"" strongly encourages " such a -course. , . v-; ; SUyfons . position taken from the large viewpoint of its place in the future development ot pre gbn, is' enviable. ,lt is a gene'raOy i accepted fact 4 thkt Oregon . vylll j sometime' have .railroads connect' tog jthe-Jastern part of the stale -with the western. It Is coming, lo be accepted that this time is not far in the future. The fact' that the; Natron extension seemgits sured. ' points to the development ' In this respect that is conilpg 6oh. ?The Sat flam pass through the Cascade mountains is ;con- sidef ed one bf x the best passes I through those mountains that is ' to be ipund anywhere. Witn; ihe development in east and 'west transportation -In Oregon. ! t,hls pass is bound to be used. A,ilne has .-already ; ' been surveyed thr6ugh taytohp the Santiam river, and through the Santiam r pass into eastern Oregon. If Such a. road is. completed, Stayton will biana , ipe gateway of a jast, undeveloped empire and -will,' therefore, be in direct line to'feap the benefits of its' development. : . This"fact coupled with the con ditions that already exist, mark Stayton as the' ideal place for the ? person-who wishes to settle Jn a' prospeHng community, where! the possibilities for further v develoin ment are so great that they, can f ecarcely be Imagined. Stayton oners opportunities for the,; man ( cf small means, for the Wan . of moderate circumstances and ,fof ( the man of independent fortune V who seeks investment. - All that 1 is necessary is the ability to vlsu- tf alize the tremendous future' that -is in store for this already rich community. 1 i '-Ay, i' T1 TV : M I- 4 i i : t v 1 t 1 -