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About The Oregon statesman. (Salem, Or.) 1916-1980 | View Entire Issue (March 28, 1931)
Page Twenty ; '; 80th Anniversary Edition The Oregon Statesman -. . I . . Umvfirsitv Mem ..hiM or IV lission Roots of School Go Back 97 Years; Instruction to Indian Ghilpren Gives Way to Teaching of Whites; Jason Lee Forbear o f School Today; 5 Students Enrblljin 1 344 THE history of , Willamette university offers a wealth of rtmantic and sacrificial incident to the chronicler, while the sociological historian finds it a perfect institu tional "cross-section". study of Pacific northwestern history. The school had its origin as a direct result of the work of the first American settlers on the Pacific, coast and it has enjoyed a continuous .existence .to the present time. Its span of life is 97 years if we dat!e its genesis with the mis sion school of which It is an out growth; or 89 years if we start the chronicle with its organization ; or 87 years if we take the date of tbe actual open-o ing oi the school doors. During all of these years the university has developed with th9 country of which it is such an essential fac tor. The ocuool is the child ,ot the Oregon Mission of the Methodist church. The Indian God-seekers' call that brought this mission to the Oregon country is so touched with romance and idealistic faith that the modern historians of cyn ical tendency squirm painfully because they can not discredit Its historic foundations; but they find enough bitter reality and. dis appointment in the after story; of the mission to satisfy even their savage love of realism. Jason Lee and his comrades in the great quest found not the Godseekers of their dreams but the plague afflicted remnants of the Willam ette valley tribes, and burned but their hearts, and lives in an heroic effort to save a doomed race. On the banks of the Willamette fiv er, about 10 miles below where Salem is now located, they bulld ed their'log cabin in the late fall of 1834. In early winter the first orphan children of the neighbor ing tribes were received into the mission which from the first -was an orphanage and school. Lee Erected Building Later to be Institute Mission reinforcements in 1840 made it ( possible for Lee to at tempt his greatest project, an en ual arts to Indian youths gather ed from all parts of the Pacific northwest. Re selected a site on what is now the Willamette cam pus and in 1840-41 he erected a large threestory frame building In which the school was to oper ate. On February 1, 1841, at a pub lic meeting held at the Old Mis sion House on the Willamette, the Oregon Institute was organ ized and its first announcement declared that "as soon as the re sources of the institution shall Justify it, that it will become a university." "The trustees of the- institute planned to erect a echo a few miles north of where SaTem now stands, and to 4lat a town-about It in the hope that inconjing set tlers would make thei hordes nearby and create a village. How ever, before the new building was 4 .. Statesman linked With State j Julius L. Meier Governor of Oregon behalf of the State of Oregon, I v-J in extending congratulations to Statesman on the occasion sary of its foundation. Before Oregon was admitted into the family of states, The Oregon Statesman, un der thefggxridance of its j brilliant and aggressive pio neer editor, was exercising a forceful influence on the life of our commonwealth. Throughout the entire history bf the Statfe of Oregon, The Statesman has been identified with the: life of the capital city. "Eighty years is a long period of consecutive service in our western world where the wilderness is only a century in the past. The Statesman is indeed to be congratulated on a record that few existing western institutions can equal." ready for use Jason Lee's suc cessor determined to close the In dian school for which he could see no future. He offered it to the trustees of the institute for the nominal sum of $4000, be cause the new school like the In dian school was (he child of the same mission family. Fond Hopes Center In jOregon Institute On August 13, 1844, the Ore gon Institute opened with five students. Around this school cen tered the fondest hopes of the Mission group as we term the pio neers who came to Oregon in tbe Mission, even though at This time many of them were no" longer of ficially connected with it. The distant Mission Board also was interested; although not official ly sponsoring the new school, the board in the annual repofl for 1847 said. "It is ardently hoped that this institution is destined to wield a powerful influence in molding the mind and heart of the medley mass with which, the valley of the Columbia is so rap idly filling up"." i Students Young; Older Children Had to Work - From the first the school was principally a 'boarding school, for the settlement close at hand was too limited to furnish many stu dents, and the lack of roads made it impossible for students at any distance to be day pupils and live at home. In 1845 there were about 15 families living near the institute; these constituted the total population of the newly plat-, ted town of Salem. In the early years of the 'school most of the students were young, because the pioneer conditions tended to keep the older boys and girls in other occupations. The opening of new lands demanded the labor of all the family. The laws permitting a married man to take up 640 acres of land, and the absence of laws regulating the age of those who could be married encouraged mere children to marry and main tain, households. Naturally such a school was concerned .primarily with the. elementary subjects, al though the more advanced "clas sical", subjects were offered as older and more advanced students came seeking them. Reports from visitors to the school during these years of its beginnings had only take pleasure The Oresron of the eightieth anniver farorable words to say concern ing It. expressing their; firm con viction that its work would com pare favorably with the work be ing done in the -eastern . acadt emies. " . ' j Changes Often Made In Early Teaching Staff , The teaching staff changed rather constantly befora 18 53. We find Joseph S. Smith, James H. Wilbur, Cushing C. Eells, Nehe mlah Doaue, Francis S. Iloyt and many others listed among those who taught at the institute for : ,. -. i , THE OCEAN WAS THERE THEN V ' jm PICTURE OP SAtjEM PROWD AT FIELD GLASSES IS Jl'DE" 11LRSETT; POI,E,ISJUDGE BINGHAM. : i , , varying periods of time.: Some the purpose of taking up the came from the east primarily for work, some took part in it until they made other adjustments in the pioneer community. But the struggling ' condition of the Old Oregon Institute, its constantly changing teaching force, the im possibility of having more than two or three teachers at any one time, need not surprise us. 'An undivided Pacific north west witnessed .the transforma tion of the Oregon Institute into Willamette university in January, 1853. Washington, Idaho and Oregon were still under the same territorial government. The dis tances were magnificent, hut apalling when they had to be cov ered afoot, on horseback, by In dian canoe, or at best by slow, puffing river boat, which made it necessary, later, for the settle ments on Puget sound and Wil lamette valley to separate. It was not altogether clear whether the institute had been absorbed by the new university or if it had merely consented to add college classes to its curricu lum, and even the trustee min utes use the terms Oregon Insti tute and 'Willamette university in terchangeably during the early years. The organization of the pioneer university naturally reflected the undeveloped conditions of the country. The by-laws directedthat the collegiate department be un der tbe control of a president who was also- to be the professor of "mental and moral philosophy." In addition. to his teaching and ex ecutive work in the collegiate de partment he was to act as princi pal of the academical department and to "give such instruction, not inconsistent with his duties as a professor in the collegiate depart ment, as the wants, of the institu tion require ". For these duties he was to receive an annual salary of $J(M)0. The other members of the faculty were to consist of a professor of "ancient and modern languages" and st piofessor of natural and exact sciences." Pro fessorial friaries were fixed at ?90. ' : 4 ' ' I In 1850, thh Rev. Krancia p. Hoyt came to regora as principal of the institutl and assumed tie added burdensfof the president's tak when tire university wk chattered.;! He jteontlnued in thjls office until 18f0,when he resign cd l:o join the faculty of Ohio Wj leyait universif.'His were tin hard years of desperate effort lo maintain the wery existence of the pioneer school, i . I .... For years Alyin F. Waller serir ed as university s agent seeking funds to keep its doors open ajid Vovrrzht ! -iirtev Cronit Rtuiii BEACTf. TUB (iKNjl.KMAN WITH TH AND IHE ONE tlTH THE riSHIN i J to huijd the "iew College ball' which we now aU "old" Wallei. So zealous was? he in this wort: that ftnen, unwfiling to face his pleading, not infrequently urne4 other ways whfin they saw hi coming. The drafts he receive' during his late years in paymen for his services were all saved u cashed and uppn his death-be! he turnecL.themiver to the school as his parting rift. ': ,r - $ ' The outstanding accomplish!- inent : of these!- years we novr chronicle was the building of Wal ler hall. The od institute, buildl ing had served beyond its use fulness and! a new structure was imperative, j Th . faithful agent, Waller, and others worked togeth er without ceasing to secure the needed funds ttt some 1 4 0,000 from the pionee community and during the dark years it seemed that only failurt could be theirs. But heroic effort prevailed and high faith and great love made possible the gift needed and the new 'structure jwas started,, the cornerstone being laid on July 24, 1864.?;' Y'. v j Brick CampusMade From Excavated Clay The brick Were made on the campus from clay excavated for foundation? bd basement, and the walls- weref builded so well Patton's Book m i ft y 1 1 . .4 opened for business in its present location, 340 State Rt when the building was completed in 1869, being one of Salem's oldest business structures still in use. The location was Occupied in the early O's as a book store bjr! II. D. Boone. . Purchased in 1886 by the late T. McF. Patton. as a going concern for his two boys. E. Cooke Patton and Hal D. Patton.; Th firm being known then as T. McFi, Sons. The Ifather died in changed to he present title, cooke Patton passed away in December 1929, and Hal D. Patton has kjnee been manager of the business. This busi ness .has passed, through the coal oil light period; was the first etore IrJ Salem to-install illuminating ; gas and likewise was. the firf business houoe to install electricity fori light ing,' fThoma( Holman wired and installed ! the lighting sys tem; One oi the first phones installed lit Salem was in Pat ton's Book Store as was the first cash? register., i Patton's were, in business before the advent of the fountain pen, the writing tabhft and the kodak. In early days Patton's car- iicu a. uue i IMHIJOS. OTKanS. eyiaence ,anc me store remained open till 10 P. IM i Anon naK waicned saiem grow from a village j of souls to the present population of more than 26.000. that they stand despite the lati that twice fire has burned away the Interior1 structure. A half-ccn-tury; failed to.s erase from the memories of thosejwho first went proudly Into their new junlversity hall the thill they experienced on that memorable occasion. One of these students wrote, "Well do 1 remember the day. All was ex citement among both young and older students, and although daily admonished by our teachers to re member bur station in life, that of young ladies and gentlemen, and to act accordingly; yet. so great was our enthusiasm that 'to spectators, we no doubt appeared aa children, 'casting off the old shoes, foij a pair of new-ones.' To us. the younger ones. It was a gala day.i Up early in the morn ing, in .preparation for the hour, we donned our best clothes and bled us to our accustomed rooms, eager to be placed In line for the Wonderful event i the grand march across the jcampus to the new building the new Willam ette university.' Mrs. Duniway ,took the floor and in a caustic speech contended for "rights! -of herself and co-delegates to teats upon the floor as association members.- 1 8 7 3. W. II. HOBSON, STAYTON . (Continued from Page 15) man by- tl)e ; name ' of Goodman living where the . Conrad Neibert place now is, wanted oxen to go to eastern Oregon, so Rev. Jeter atod he had "a little argument in making a trade.. ' j Mrs. Stayton had a fine Indian pony as a young girl, which she always rode to town. It gave her many a thrill. One day It Jumped on top or. a pile of lumber near the Spajilol flour mill. Mr. Span- iol, seeing her plight, came; and held the bony until she ' could dismount. Much could be written about her. trip along the old Im migrant tfall. There were -i 160 wagons in the "train until it reached the divide, where many took" the road to California. , She married Drury Stayton, Jr., a son of the man, for whom the town was named and has made ! her home In Stayton since 1872. There were only six or seven families here at the time, and Mr. Mobson was a boarder in the Stayton home. About 837 ! Mrs. Stayton realized the need of a millinery store here and started a shop. She was left a widow with four chil dren in 1899 so continued with lier millinery work later in com pany with; her daughter, Mrs. Imilda Robertson until about 1916. Today she is more active and better company than many Women half her age.' ) " Store . . . Patton ic name was Store. E. 1892 and the firm Patton Bros. Book etc. . A wnnI hiirna. a . Was dally. 3,000