12
AUG. 24�31, 2022
FROM THE SHELF
CHECKING OUT THE
WORLD OF BOOKS
New book explores history of Wallowa Lake
Go! staff
Rita Ehrler and Ellen Morris Bishop
recently published “Stories of Wallowa Lake:
A History of the Lake and Its Communities”
to off er new glimpses at Wallowa County’s
history.
According to a press release, the book
details the competition between an electric
railroad and the more traditional steam line to
serve Wallowa County, the attempt to estab-
lish a national park in the Wallowa Mountains,
and the intriguing stories of Edelweiss Inn,
Wallowa Lake dam, sockeye, elk, geology, the
Wallowa Lake monster and much more.
“I started collecting information for this
book more than 40 years ago,” Ehrler said.
“At that time, I thought I’d write a book just
about time that Joe and I ran our business,
The Matterhorn Swiss Village at Wallowa
Lake. But as I talked with our neighbors,
other people began coming to me with great
stories. And they were saying ‘Look what I
have! I have these pictures, and this hap-
pened, and so forth.’ “
In 1965, Rita Ehrler and her husband
Josef came to Wallowa County. Both were
ski instructors, and the Wallowas remind-
ed them of Joe’s native Switzerland. They
opened the Matterhorn Swiss Village, be-
came leaders in the Wallowa Lake business
community, and fast friends with many other
business owners.
Ehrler was enthralled by stories her
friends told of the hardships they endured
when starting their businesses, and their
persistence until they succeeded. When she
attended the fi rst Fishtrap at the Wallowa
Lake United Methodist Camp, she was
inspired to write a book about her friends’
travails and triumphs.
She recorded interviews with every busi-
ness owner at the Lake, past and present.
Contributed Photo
Rita Ehrler, right, and Ellen Morris Bishop
recently published “Stories of Wallowa Lake:
A History of the Lake and Its Communities.”
She researched courthouse records, dug
through the Wallowa County Museum’s fi les,
and read and scoured the Chieftain and
Observer archives to gather information.
Importantly, she also asked for photographs
that showed the lives and businesses at
Wallowa Lake.
“They were wonderful stories, and very
special pictures that could be found no-
where else,” Ehrler said. “And so I thought
I should add extra to include more import-
ant and very interesting information about
people and businesses at the Lake over
many, many years.”
Ehrler invited local writer Ellen Morris
Bishop to contribute to the book’s chapters
on Wallowa Lake geology, as well as the sto-
ries of the extinction of sockeye salmon, the
reintroduction of elk, the proposed Wallowa
National Park and others.
Together, they tracked down the stories
of the Nez Perce and the early settlers, Old
Chief Joseph and his reburial in 1926, the
stagecoaches that brought visitors to the
lake in the late 1800s, the Wallowa Lake
Monster and more.
“There was a lot of history, like the nation-
al park attempt, the reintroduction of elk and
how the sockeye went extinct that I’d heard
about, but never knew the details,” Bishop
said. “And it was astonishing to learn that in
1905, Frank McCully and others made a very
serious attempt to build an electric railway
from Joseph to Walla Walla. The many histor-
ic photos we found add authenticity and a
real view back in time.”
The book, published by Eagle Cap
Press in Halfway, is available in Wallowa
County at The Bookloft, Copper Creek,
Heidi’s Town Shoppe in Joseph, Heidi’s
Gift Shoppe at the Lake and other stores,
including Betty’s Books in Baker City and
through the Eagle Cap Press website: www.
eaglecappress.com.
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