Page 6 September 11,1981
September 11,1981 Page 7
If
only
walls could talk
This old house once knew my children
This old house once knew my wife
This old house was home and comfort
As we fought the storms of life
A cozy parlor-1905
It’s e ari y life as »h o m e
At one time, the ferry was the only means of crossing the Deschutes river at Mecca. The now demolished house stands
sturdy here.
The sounds of living echo
through the walls of any house.
But a very old house has
absorbed, through time, the
vibrations of many people and
many times. The walls have
become a storehouse of words
and memories. “If only the
walls could talk,” says Faye
Waheneka.
For fourteen years Faye and
her family occupied just such
an old house. But now it is
being torn down in the name of
p ro g re ss and b ecau se
restoration would not be
economical due to extensive
dry-rot damage. The skeleton
of the vintage home is slowly
becoming exposed as, little by
little, its outer covering is
removed. The beams of the
roof can easily be seen from
highway26.
Although the antique house
sits cozily in a hollow off the
highway, looking as though it’s
always been there, the house
was actually built three miles
down the Deschutes River at
the river crossing known in
bygone years as Mecca. It was
built along with the Mecca
Trading Company by Ed and
Marne Chalapka. The house
then occupied a spot next to the
store.
The stately home was
situated on the east side, of the
river when the Deschutes was
crossed by ferry. And it was still
there when a bridge replaced,
the ferry. Now the house, the
store and the bridge no longer
ex ist a t th a t lo c a tio n .
Mecca seems a little remote
now but at one time it was the
only place the river could be
crossed in this area. A road
joined Warm Springs to
Madras via this route and the
Mecca Trading 'Company
received business from Warm
Springs customers as well as
from farmers li' 'ng on the
plains.
Wife of Chala, i ’s nephew,
Helen See, a long-time resident
of this area says, “It was closer
to Mecca than to Madras for
some of the farmers. They came
down an awful era'v road to
get to the store.”
The house and sto re
remained at Mecca until
around 1924 when H.E.
Massey purchased them and
moved the building to Warnr
Springs. Recalling stories of
moving Helen See says, “Mr.
Earl Massey brought the house
and store. He proceeded then,
to move both structure to
Warm Springs because there
was more business there.” The
house had to be moved in four
parts, she recollects.
Ancestor of the current
Macy’s store is the .Mecca
Trading Company. A section
of the original store flooring
can still be seen. The store has
been enlarged considerably,
however, since it sat next to the
Deschutes River at Mecca.
Dan Macy purchased the
store in 1955 but the house was
purchased by the Tribe from
Massey. The last residents
w e re , o f c o u r s e ,! th e
Wahenekas. They reluctantly
moved from their home of
fourteen years.
Out of necessity Faye
recently purchased a: new
Greeley Heights home but she
comments about the house,
“My heart is not here. This
house isn’t made the same. I
love old houses. I’ve loved that
old house as far back as I can
remember.” She reminisces
about many warm moments
spent in th at timeworn
structure. “It’ll take me a long
time to accept reality,” that of
having moved from the old
house, Faye says. She even
started to go home to the old
house just recently, she says.
There are no plans for jhe lot
which will be left vacant after
the house has been completely
torn down, according to Ed
torn down, according to
community services manager
or former enterprise manager,
Ed Manion. Someone will
eventually make use of the
space. And in a few years the
old house that used to stand
there will be forgotten.
A few people will pass by
that spot and recall times gone
by, when the old house used to
sit down in the hollow. They
may even recall its history, its
origins in Mecca and its being
moved in tour parts to warm
Springs. Faye Waheneka will
be one of those people.
kccess to the house next to the Mecca Trading Company was easy after the bridge was built
Text by Marsha Shewczyk
Standing stately just before the end
Old photos from the album o f Helen See
aom e people aian t Dottier using either the ferry or the bridge when crossing the river to arrive at Mecca Trading
Company. This was a familiar site from the residence next to the store.