THURSDAY. MAY 9, 1940
ILLINOIS VALLEY NEWS
PAGE 3
HARRY FLOYD’S STORE AND HOLLAND HOTEL
COUNTING NOSES
is keeping Uncle Sam
busy these days....
but we bet we will be as proud and pleased as
you are when the figures tell the tale of the growth
of the busy
ILLINOIS VALLEY
and the
ILLINOIS VALLEY NEWS
One of the largest, if not the largest, store in the valley is the Harry R.
Floyd general merchandise finn at Holland. Across the street is the Holland
Hotel, owned and operated by Mr. and Mrs. J. M. Smock, noted for its homely
atmosphere and excellent dining room.
Holland Was
Founded in 1898
By J. M. Smock
Holland, Oregon, was founded in
July, 1898, by J. M. Smock, when he
built a small store at the cross roads.
Mrs. Saidee Smock, nee Ranzau, came
as a bride in October of the same
year. To this union was born one
daughter, Mrs. Harry R. Floyd, who
is one of the few native born people
of the area.
This store had a great deal to do
with the settlement of the southeast
portion of the Illinois Valley. While
the old time settlers were on the land,
the store was a great convenience to
them and especially to the miners in
the hills.
Since 1923 Mr. and Mrs Harry
Floyd have owned the store, leasing
the building from Mr. Smock. This
enterprising business has been in the
family since its inception, except for
short periods when the stock was
leased.
The present building was built in
the summer of 1935, on the same lo­
cation as the old building. The store
building has housed both the Holland
postoffice and the J. M. Smock Tel­
ephone company since 1899.
The following persons have served
as postmasters at Holland: J. M.
Smock. Bert Lewis, Saidee Smock,
W. R. Burner, Ed Lawler, Charles
McClay. and the present postmaster.
Harry R. Floyd.
The numerous
changes were due to the change in
managership of the store. Holland
received its name from the Postmas­
ter General at Washington and was
chosen from a list of names sent to
him. The town was named after a
local resident, J. E. Holland.
Holland, while not taking on a me­
tropolitan air, has been a scene of
great local interest ever since its
establishment, and has made a con­
structive growth with the new store
building, with perhaps the largest
stock of merchandise in the valley,
carrying everything the residents and
miners need.
The Holland hotel was built in
1904 by Mr. and Mrs. Smock, and
while it has been leased several times
for short durations, it is now under
the management of the owners, Mr.
and Mrs. Smock. In this hostelry,
miners have found a home when the
seasons were poor and water scarce,
and for years it has been the mecca
for a large number of miners, guests
of Mr. and Mrs. Smock for Thanks­
giving and Christmas.
The fame of the cuisine at the
Holland hotel has travelled far and
near, and many travelers make it a
point to stop for dinner at this pop­
ular dining room whenever they are
in the valley.
-------------- o--------------
Best Wishes to both from the—
Grants Pass Daily Courier
*
Moving <• Storage
LOCAL AND LONG DISTANCE MOVING
Serving ALL POINTS in
• CALIFORNIA
OREGON
WASHINGTON
DOOR TO DOOR SERVICE
Smock Telephone Co.
Oldest Public Utility
Serving the Valley
The Illinois Valley is still a pio­
neering area as is borne out by the
fact that there are many farms and
business houses that do not have tele­
phones. But the valley does have
access to this service and has had
for a good number of years since it
was in 1899 that J. M. Smock and
James Dailey, brother of Edward
Dailey of Kerby, started the Smock
and Dailey Telephone company.
Later the Dailey interests were
purchased by Mr. Smock and addi­
tional lines were run to make the
system larger and give accommoda­
tion to more people; with this pur­
chase the name of the company was
changed to the J. M. Smock Tele­
phone Co.
The company started with only a
ground circuit from Kerby to Hol­
land ; then a line was installed to the
Mountain Ranch, three miles south
for communication with George Por­
ter, a local packer at that time; later
a line was extended to old Brown­
town. Since then more than 100
miles of line has been built through­
out the valley, most of which has re­
cently been metalicized.
The system connects Cave Junc­
tion, Kerby, Takilma, Oregon Caves,
and Holland. It has also a connec­
tion with the United States Forest
Service at the Redwood Ranger Sta­
tion and Camp Oregon Caves, as well
as having direct connections with
the Pacific Telephone and Telegraph
system with a central at Kerby.
It will not take many more tele­
phone installations to make it neces­
sary for the owner to install a new
central with 24 hour service some
place in the valley.
•
LOWEST RATES
PACKING
SHIPPING
FIREPROOF STORAGE
FULLY INSURED
Phone or Write for FREE ESTIMATE
PHONES
146-J or 146-L
TRHriSPORTRTIOn
701 South Sixth Street
GRANTS PASS, OREGON
More Power to You !
We’re interested in the growth
of the Illinois Valley and wish
to congratulate you upon the
gains you have shown in the
past year.
We Suggest You Eat More Candy—It Sweetens
Y'our Disposition.
Candy Co.
WHOLESALE