History
Blue Mountain Eagle
Wednesday, September 28, 2016
C5
Lust for gold leads to the end of a rope
First Canyon City hangings
dredged up by the draw to the area
July 14, 1950
Blue Mountain Eagle
Berry Wey, a man who
murdered his mining part-
ner Galleger to obtain
$80,000 in gold dust, was
the irst man to be hanged in
Canyon City — in 1863.
Some men, discovering the
body of Wey’s victim, reported
to the miners in Canyon City,
and Wey was trailed into Ida-
ho to be captured by a deputy
sheriff.
Wey
was
taken
from the custody of the
deputy and, although given a
temporary respite by the at-
tempts of Ike Hare, who plead-
ed for him, was convicted
in a miners court, sentenced
to hang — and the next day
hanged.
The second man to be
hanged in Canyon City: In
1865, a man named Sullivan
hired a man named Cain to
help him work his placer claim.
Sullivan didn’t know about
mining, it seems — he had
the idea that gold could be
found any place along Can-
yon Creek, and did not real-
ize that unless a pay streak
was hit that he might not ind
anything.
He had told Cain that, when
he cleaned up, Cain would get his
money. When Cain found that
there was no gold to be cleaned
up and that Sullivan couldn’t
pay him, he pulled an old fash-
ioned cap and ball pistol and
shot Sullivan.
Sullivan fell into the lume
carrying Canyon Creek waters
and loated away.
Cain was tried in the circuit
court and, although defended
by four lawyers, among them
Joaquin Miller, the “Poet of
the Sierras,” he was convict-
ed and sentenced to hang.
He was executed Aug. 3,
1865.
Contributed photo/Grant County
Historical Museum
Pat McGinnis. Hanged
on April 2, 1889, after
killing a sheriff’s deputy.
This picture was taken
two hours before his
execution.
Can you name these
items used in years past?
Trivia 1
Contributed photo/Grant County Historical Museum
The Masonic Hall (current day building
housing the Grantville Theater and Canyon City
Community Hall), circa July 1931.
Trivia 2
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WE’VE GOT
COMPANY HISTORY!
Serving Grant County for 59 years.
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LAND TITLE COMPANY
OF GRANT COUNTY
145 NE Dayton, John Day • 541-575-1529
Trivia 3
The
historical
Silvies
School
Trivia 4
www.grantcountypeoplemover.com
Trivia 5
SAVE ON GAS
DIAL-A-RIDE 541-575-2370
John Day, Canyon City, Mt. Vernon, Prairie City areas
M-F 8am - 5pm • Sat. 9am - 4pm
BEND RUN
Mon, Wed, Fri.
WALLA WALL RUN
Every Tuesday
BURNS RUN
1st, 3rd & 5th Thursday
MONUMENT RUN
Every Thursday
Reservations Required
BAKER RUN
2nd & 4th Thursday
Trivia 6
Established 1883
We are proud to be a part of Grant County
and its history. We take pride in caring for
our history, our environment, livestock
and our families.
Silvies, Oregon
www.silviesvalleyranch.com • 1-800-SILVIES
Trivia answers
1.) Palm thimble — worn
while stitching canvas hoses,
which were used for hydraulic
mining.
2.) Calculator — used with a
pencil to move the dials.
3.) Fluting iron — a seam-
stress would use to make deco-
rative edges for cuffs and collars
on clothing.
4.) Director’s baton — This
baton was given to George H.
Cattanach, director of the Can-
yon City Brass Band in 1921.
5.) Gun powder measure —
used to measure gunpowder in
the 1800s.
6.) Leg cuff hobbles — used
in the mid-1800s to restrain a
prisoner’s movement.
Canyon City’s Grant
County Historical Museum
staff provided information on
the items, displayed at the mu-
seum, for the history trivia.
S ILVIES
V ALLEY
R ANCH
We make sure your
loved ones will be taken care of.