REGION
Tuesday, April 27, 2021
Jade McDowell/East Oregonian
A spinning wheel sits in the main room of the Umatilla Mu-
seum.
Umatilla Museum
preparing to reopen
Museum’s grand
reopening slated
for May 8
By JADE MCDOWELL
East Oregonian
UMATILLA — After
more than a year of closure,
the Umatilla Museum is
preparing to reopen.
Unless Umatilla County
gets shut down with addi-
tional COVID-19 restric-
tions, board member Judy
Simmons said, the museum
plans to hold a grand reopen-
ing on Saturday, May 8. The
museum closed during the
initial COVID-19 shutdowns
in spring 2020 and hasn’t
been open to the public since
that time.
Simmons said volunteers
held a cleaning party on
Saturday, April 24, to dust
shelves and do other things
needed to prepare.
The museum used to
have a paid employee, but no
longer does. Simmons said
the Umatilla Historical Soci-
ety, which runs the museum,
is in need of volunteers who
can work shifts during the
museum’s hours, Thurs-
day through Saturday from
10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
“Having an employee here
really helped with getting
volunteers,” she said. “Now
we’re going to solely rely
on volunteers.”
The museum features a
variety of displays, including
sections on the Native Amer-
ican tribes that fi rst settled
the area, the McNary Dam,
the railroad, pioneer house-
hold items and antique farm
equipment. The building was
once the Umatilla city hall
and jail, and Simmons said
the most popular room is the
old jail cells.
“People like that because
they step inside and shut
the door and get a picture of
themselves in jail,” she said.
Staff , students and alumni
of Umatilla School District
are working on a new room,
featuring items from the
school district’s past and a
display about the district’s
robotics teams. The histor-
ical society also filmed
interviews with some of
Umatilla’s oldest residents,
which Simmons said they
plan to show on a television
after the videos are done
being edited.
The Umatilla Museum,
911 Sixth St., has a wheel-
chair-accessible side entrance
for those who aren’t able to
make it up the step to the
main entrance. People inter-
ested in volunteering for the
museum or donating Umatil-
la-specific artifacts can
contact Simmons at 541-571-
8780 or j205simmons@
gmail.com.
Offi cials warn of
conditions in Umatilla
National Forest
East Oregonian
PENDLETON — Offi cials
with the Umatilla National
Forest are warning visitors
looking to adventure into the
forest as spring begins to use
caution or refrain from travel-
ing on forest roads.
Though snow is begin-
ning to recede in the foothills
of the Blue Mountains, most
roads remain impassible due
to snow or mud caused by the
melting snowpack, a press
release from the Umatilla
National Forest said.
“We typically see incidents
this time of year where fami-
lies head up for the day, get
stuck, and end up spending the
night or making a very long
hike out to look for help,” said
Shane Dittlinger, the recre-
ation program manager for
the Umatilla National Forest.
Much of the Blue Moun-
tains also lack cellphone
service, so offi cials are advis-
ing that people looking to
explore the outdoors bring
along extra warm clothing,
food and water in case they
get stuck and have to spend
the night in the forest.
Offi cials are also encour-
aging visitors to “minimize”
their impact on the forest as
the weather warms and snow
melts and roads become more
susceptible to rutting, the
press release said.
“Forest roads are not
constructed to be all-weather
roads, so they can be easily
damaged when wet, especially
during the spring season,”
said Shaun Oliver, Umatilla
National Forest engineer.
“Tire ruts that are just an inch
deep can leave lasting impres-
sions that only grow with rain
and erosion.”
Offi cials said that although
some early-season forest
visitors seek “mudding” or
“mud-bogging” opportuni-
ties, they note that “it is ille-
gal to operate a vehicle on
or off -road in a manner that
damages or unreasonably
disturbs land and vegetation.”
Offi cials are asking people
who see evidence of damage
to report it.
“We encourage forest users
to responsibly enjoy their
National Forest roads and
trails,” said Umatilla National
Forest Supervisor Eric
Watrud. “This will not only
avoid further damage of the
resources, but also ensure that
there are future riding oppor-
tunities across the Forest.”
Despite the early accessi-
bility, some roads are season-
ally closed for wildlife or
resource concerns. Others are
also closed in areas damaged
by the 2020 February and May
fl oods, the press release said.
Maps and updates on
closures and flood repair
activities can be found on the
Forest Service website and
at any Forest Service offi ce.
Closure signs will also be
posted on the ground, the
press release said.
LOCAL BRIEFING
County has fi rst
coronavirus death
since April 7
PEN DLETON
—
Umatilla County recorded a
coronavirus-related death on
Friday, April 23, its fi rst such
instance since April 7.
The man who died was
61, according to a Umatilla
County Public Health release.
He tested positive on Nov. 4,
2020, and died at his home on
April 9.
His death brings the coun-
ty’s total to 84 since testing
began last year.
— EO Media Group
East Oregonian
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