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About Wallowa County chieftain. (Enterprise, Wallowa County, Or.) 1943-current | View Entire Issue (July 5, 2017)
Wallowa County Chieftain Community wallowa.com July 5, 2017 A3 Graingrowers build new elevator in Wallowa Compiled by Paul Wahl coming school year –– Miss Bes- sie Conley, Mrs. N. Lines and Mrs. Marion Eddlemon. A new principal will be moving here from Missouri. 100 YEARS AGO 70 YEARS AGO OUT OF THE PAST July 5, 1917 chased the 12,000-acre Lightning Creek Ranch, 20 miles south of Joseph. He built the Indian Lodge Motel, a movie theater and a vari- ety store in Joseph, and visits regu- larly between fi lm roles. July 3, 1947 Rising consumption rates for gasoline are believed to be the cul- prit causing a shortage in Wallowa County. The supply at Standard Oil’s station was exhausted recently and it was not known when the next deliv- ery would be made. Sales of gasoline have doubled year over year for the past two years. Mrs. Jones won the “fat ladies” race and W. S. Strickler won the “fat mans” race at festivities held at Enter- prise’s new city park July 4. Every- where the day was observed in a qui- eter mood than most years because of the war. Dr. J. E. Woodell of La Grande, a chiropractor, has been in Enterprise and is thinking of coming here to locate. He has been looking over the town with W. A. Dunn. Three teachers have been hired by the Flora School District for the Wallowa County Graingrow- ers has begun construction on a new 70,000 bushel grain elevator in Wallowa. According to manager W. S. Strickler, the facility will go a long way toward relieving pres- sure on the Joseph and Enterprise locations. A. O. Dalgleish has been named president of the Lions Club. Morris Knapp will serve as Vice President. The club purchased an incubator for the hospital in the past year. Chieftain file photo Former resident Weldon R. The Cow Belles were a fixture in summer parades around Wallowa County Ralls, now of Walla Walla, Wash., was beaten and robbed in Portland. in years past as this undated photo demonstrates. He lost $120. dion pupils, Ricky Catheart and day and Saturday evenings. Great 50 YEARS AGO Tommy Strickler, to Portland where for dancing! July 4, 1957 they appeared on a television show. Joseph Theater will be showing On invitation from the Young Wallowa Lake Lodge is host- Walter Brennan’s movie, “Tammy Oregonians group in Portland, Law- ing concerts by Winnie Mac on the and the Bachelor” with Debby rence Rowe took two of his accor- Hammond Console organ Wednes- Reynolds. In 1940, Brennan pur- 25 YEARS AGO July 2, 1992 A missing signature on the appli- cation for the planned fi reworks display on Wallowa Lake almost resulted in the cancellation of the Fourth of July event this year. Park- ing will be at a premium, so car- pooling is recommended. The opening of Jerry’s Main Street Market in Joseph by the time Chief Joseph Days Rodeo arrives is very much in doubt. The store was devastated by fi re, which began in a deep fat fryer in March. Performances of the melodrama “Heaven Will Protect the Working Girl” began on an outdoor stage in Joseph. The audience voluntarily sat through a rain storm to fi nd out who- dunit. Brandon Powers, Stuart Ven- cill and Dayne Terry played the lead roles. ‘Tough Enough’ who moved to the remote Ore- gon side of the Snake River in 1951. There they succeeded in establishing a large sheep ranch. They expected to spend the rest of life ranching with By Paul Wahl their three sons. Wallowa County Chieftain Twenty-fi ve years later, they had been forced from When Congress created the their home and privately Hells Canyon National Recre- owned land. For the fi rst time ation Area in 1975, the lives in U.S. history, the U.S. For- of a number of ranch- est Service employed ers in eastern Wal- the law of eminent lowa County changed domain to take pri- forever. vately owned land to The roughly be preserved in its nat- 215,000-acre area, ural state for public which spreads across recreational use. the Snake River into Based on anecdotal Virginia Idaho, meant the end memories recorded Woods of a way of life for by Doris Wilson, the Meyer many. family’s story person- Among them was alizes a tale of change the Wilson family. A couple and the part new federal leg- books about their experience islation, rules and regulations have been written, the most played in shaping the past recent tome “Tough Enough: 60-plus years. 25 Years in Hells Canyon” by The book has been pub- Virginia Woods Meyer. lished in paperback and spans Published in March, it 252 pages. It is divided into focuses on the post-World War three chronological sec- II years when changing pub- tions spanning the years 1950 lic attitudes turned the canyon through the mid-70s. from a little known subsistence She explores with great level ranching community to detail the challenges presented that of the nationally recog- to those living in a remote nized recreation site. wilderness. Four pages are Written as creative nonfi c- devoted to images of the early tion, the book chronicles the days of sheep shearing. tales of the Lem Wilson family The fi nal chapters provide Latest book chronicling Hells Canyon released g vi n n ty S e r a C o u ars ! l l o w Ye Wa o r 100 f Big or Small, One Store Has It All. Everything you need to finish that summer project Lumber * Roofing * Siding Decking * Concrete * Framing Drywall * Insulation * Tools Hardware * Fixtures Locally Owned Monday - Friday 7am - 5pm Saturday 8am - 12pm Sunday Closed M ain S treet J oSeph 541-432-1917 Is it time for your child’s Annual Wellness Check? Keep your child healthy and active with an annual wellness check, and learn what you can do as a parent to help your child establish smart lifestyle habits now! Schedule your child’s wellness check today! 541.426.7900 Mountain View Medical Group 603 Medical Parkway (next to Wallowa Memorial Hospital) Enterprise, Oregon 97828 Joseph Clinic 100 N. East St. | Joseph 541.426.7900 We treat you like family 601 Medical Parkway, Enterprise, OR 97828 • 541-426-3111 • www.wchcd.org Wallowa Memorial Hospital is an equal opportunity employer and provider. insight into the last hurrah for the Wilsons and the fi nal rec- onciliation of their fate. Lem and Doris Wilson were the parents of Ray Wil- son of Ray Wilson Saddlery in Joseph. Ray says he’s read the book and it was “fi ne,” but he prefers the more detailed sto- ries of the books his mother published, “Life in Hells Can- yon: A Private View.” Meyer had known Doris for many years. “When I fi rst read Doris Wilson’s memoir, I was intrigued by the picture she portrayed of a time and loca- tion, which had been a part of both her life and mine,” said Meyer, who lives in Merid- ian, Idaho. “She and I lived in the same community; our sons were school classmates and friends.” Meyer said that in writing her life story, Doris skimmed lightly over a fascinating series of events and anecdotes. “Those tales stirred my imagination,” Meyer said. “As a writer, could I take this background material, embel- lish her stories and turn them into a book that would inform, entertain and encourage read- ers to carefully contemplate the changes that swept through the West in the past 65 years?” Meyer said her interest also was spurred by an editorial that appeared in the Chieftain. “It seemed to me this edi- torial, ‘The Valuable Snake River,’ summarized in an amusing bit of satire the con- troversial nature and political ramifi cations of public opinion that raged through the canyon during this post-World War II era,” she said. The editorial is reproduced in its entirety on Page 178 of the book. The book was published by Gray Dog Press in Spokane, Wash. Contributed photo
