4A • May 22, 2015 | Cannon Beach Gazette | cannonbeachgazette.com
I
When Cannon Beach went to war
t’s hard to imagine the fear that
gripped the Oregon Coast back
in 1942, just after the bombing of
Pearl Harbor by the Imperial Japa-
nese Navy on Dec. 7, 1941, killing
2,403 Americans and wounding
1,178 others.
The bombing signaled Ameri-
ca’s entry into World War II, a war
that was now based on two fronts.
With our involvement, America and
$PHULFDQVIRUWKH¿UVWWLPHEHFDPH
the target of German and Japanese
aggression. Throughout the mid-At-
lantic, Canadian and U.S. coast,
German U-boats wreaked havoc,
hitting targets in New England, New
York, Virginia and North Carolina.
A threat from a different hemi-
sphere loomed in Cannon Beach as
Oregonians found themselves thrust
into the war in an immediate and ter-
rifying way.
Shelling was reported on June
21, 1942 at Astoria’s Fort Stevens
by a Japanese I-25 submarine un-
der order of Lieutenant Commander
Meiji Tagami. While there were no
fatalities, for Oregonians, the reality
of the war took hold, along with a
legitimate fear for life and safety.
Terence O’Donnell writes in
“Cannon Beach: A Place By the Sea”
that guards were placed at the Arch
Cape tunnel, a blackout was enforced
and headlights wired down. Volun-
teers created a “civilian club” to take
care of roadways. Rationing was en-
forced, and residents prepared “grub
ER[HV´ LQ FDVH WKH\ QHHGHG WR ÀHH
At the Library
into the woods for protection. A ci-
vilian defense group called the Guer-
rillas kept lookouts from the top of
Neacomie Mountain, along with the
Tillamook Rangers who patrolled the
beaches with shotguns and .22s. The
Army and then the Coast Guard took
over the Cannon Beach Hotel and the
Warren Hotel, and for the duration of
the war, the Coast Guard patrolled the
beach on foot and horseback. O’Don-
nell writes that they were supple-
mented by aircraft spotters, Cannon
Beach women who were installed
in huts along the beach and provided
with silhouettes of enemy aircraft.
Lt. Tagami’s submarine continued
WRKDUDVVWKH3DFL¿F&RDVWODXQFKLQJ
DÀRDWSODQHWRVWDUWIRUHVW¿UHVRXWVLGH
of Brookings in September 1942, in
what became known as the Lookout
$LU 5DLGV WKH ¿UVW WLPH RXU QDWLRQ
was bombed by an enemy aircraft.
Balloon bombs launched from
Japan were to terrorize the United
6WDWHV IURP WKH 3DFL¿F FRDVW WR EH
yond the Mississippi River, with
9,300 launches in 1944 and 1945.
One such “unarmed missile” claimed
WKHOLYHVRI¿YHFLYLOLDQVDWDFDPS
ground in Bly, an attack that garnered
headlines but whose cause at the time
was withheld from the American
public for security reasons.
Elaine Trucke of the Cannon
Beach Historical Museum curated
the Cannon Beach History Center &
Museum’s exhibit “World War II on
the Oregon Coast,” which marks the
70th anniversary of the end of World
Cannon Shots
By
R.J.
MARX
While there were
no fatalities, for
Oregonians, the
reality of the war
took hold…
War II by exploring the events and
emotions of a state at war. Defending
our nation from these attacks were
the beginning of the region’s civil de-
fense system, leading to long-lasting
consequences and response.
Women asserted new roles in the
workplace, particularly in tradition-
ally male industries as men served
overseas. “It changed the family
dynamic, it changed the women’s
role,” Trucke says.
Changes came to the home-build-
ing industry, which faced new de-
mand from returning GIs and in turn
gave rise to the logging industry.
Technology developed during the war
featured a lighter gas-powered chain
saw, which stimulated the logging
industry, and similar developments in
roads, farming and dam-building had
an immediate regional impact.
“World War II was such a huge
shift in so many ways that it really
did have an impact on the coast,”
says Trucke. “We’re protected in a
lot of ways. This was one of the few
times that war was in our back yard.
It was right here.”
As for the residents of Cannon
Beach in wartime, their mobilization
and volunteerism was to serve as a
model for future generations. “They
had a plan. They took action,” says
Trucke. “They continued about their
life. I try to think what my generation
would do. As much as they like to
think they’re emergency ‘preppers,’
I don’t think it would be the same.”
Remembrances
Remember World War II and our
veterans 11 a.m. May 25, by joining
American Legion Post 168 for a me-
morial ceremony at Fir Street Bridge.
Remember World War II and our
veterans 11 a.m. May 25, by joining
American Legion Post 168 for a me-
morial ceremony at Fir Street Bridge.
The Cannon Beach History Cen-
ter and Museum opens their exhibit,
“World War II on the Oregon Coast,”
tonight, Friday, May 22 and Satur-
day, May 23 at 7 p.m. with two pre-
sentations by local historians, authors
and documentarians. Friday’s pre-
sentation will be given at 7 p.m. by
Alisha Hamel who will speak about
Oregon’s role during World War II.
Hamel is a member of the Oregon
National Guard’s historic outreach
program. She is well-known for her
documentary, “The Jungleers,” about
Oregon’s military role in combat.
Saturday’s presentation will be
given at 7 p.m. by Ellen Eisenberg,
who will be talking about her latest
book, “The First to Cry Down Injus-
tice? Western Jews and Japanese Re-
moval During World War II.” Eisen-
berg has taught history since 1990
and teaches courses in Civil War,
American social history, American
Jewish history, and a research sem-
inar called “History in the Archives.”
Next month, “Oregon Trans-
formed: World War II Legacies on the
Coast” comes to the Cannon Beach
History Center & Museum on Friday,
June 12 at 7 p.m., part of the museum’s
exhibit “World War II on the Oregon
Coast” which observes the 70th anni-
versary of the end of the war. Featured
speakers include Dr. Laura Jane Gif-
ford, a historian of modern American
politics with a special interest in the
unique dynamics of Oregon’s political
landscape; Steve McQuiddy author of
“Here on the Edge,” the story of how a
small group of World War II conscien-
tious objectors plowed the ground for
the social and cultural revolutions of
the 1960s; and Dr. David G. Lewis, an
independent educator, author, and an-
thropology researcher. The program
will take place at the Cannon Beach
History Center & Museum, 1387
South Spruce St.; 503-436-9301.
CARLA O’REILLY
A coworker missed and changes coming to the library
There is a new lonely
space at the heart of Can-
non Beach Library. At a
Wayfarer luncheon on April
29, we honored and bade
farewell to Co-President
Terri Royse. In order to be
closer to family, she and her
husband Don have moved
to the Portland area. We
commend Terri and Don for
WKHLUGLI¿FXOWGHFLVLRQ±EXW
they will be sadly missed by
all of us! Thanks to Don’s
efforts, we transitioned al-
most seamlessly to comput-
erization a few years ago.
And for at least a decade,
Terri has been a library vol-
unteer, having served since
2012 as co-president along-
side Judy Wood. We will
miss your cheerful face and
unfailing warmth and kind-
ness, Terri!
But not all changes at the
library are sad ones! We are
very fortunate Kathe Leduc
has agreed to join Judy at
the helm as co-president.
Kathe, also a long-time li-
brary volunteer, is well fa-
miliar with all aspects of
library operations and will
be a great addition to the
group.
Jeremy Randolph and
Sharon Stewart are also
Boac’s Bird Notes
gently working on our new
interactive website, which
should be up and running
by June 1, if not before.
And on our new Library
eBooks program that will
launched by July 1. More
details will be forthcom-
ing.
June 12 to August 24,
we will be holding our sec-
ond annual summertime
CARLA O’REILLY
reading contest, called
“Catch a Dragon by the
Tale.” Our young people
leaving the Library Board,
will be competing at their
QHFHVVLWDWLQJ WKH ¿OOLQJ RI
own age levels — chil-
two vacant positions by And more changes
2I¿FH PDQDJHU %XGGLH dren, tweens, and teens.
the nominating commit-
tee. We’re pleased to an- Anderson has been dili- We will track their prog-
nounce that Cannon Beach
residents Ken Quarles and
Rance Babb have agreed
to join the board. All this
EHFDPH RI¿FLDO DW RXU
membership meeting on
Wednesday, May 6, when
RI¿FHUV DQG QHZ ERDUG
members were voted in.
Warm thanks to Terri, Don,
Jeremy, and Sharon for
long-standing service to the
Cannon Beach Library, as
ZHOODVWRRXUQHZRI¿FHUV
and board members.
ress, award prizes during
the course of the summer,
and award a grand prize
winner from each of the
age levels at the end of the
summer. For further in-
formation, ask at the front
desk.
Finally, Jean Furchner
of the pricing committee
strongly encourages locals
and visitors alike to bring
in Fourth of July book do-
nations sooner rather than
later. The sooner the books
are brought in, the sooner
the committee can sort and
price them. Tax donation
forms are available.
SUSAN BOAC
Th ree life birds make for a diff erent kind of spring
In the last three weeks,
I haven’t been to the
ocean, or the South Jet-
ty or the Cannon Beach
lagoons, but I have been
to the Pelton Regulating
Dam in Warm Springs,
the Mid-Columbia River
shores and the orchards
of Hood River. And I
have 11 FOYs (first of
year) and included in that
number, three life birds. I
have had an unexpectedly
longer stay in the Hood
River area due to arrang-
ing hospice care for my
father and supporting my
mother.
I saw one of these life
birds during my yearly
Mother’s Day bird walk;
or was it my weekly Sun-
day morning bird walk
or was it my daily bird
walk? I was enjoying
the stretch on the Indi-
an Creek Trail I had left
to explore. I walked and
saw many species of birds
American Legion
to host Memorial
Day ceremony
On Memorial Day, May
25, at 11 a.m., join Ameri-
can Legion Post 168 for a
memorial ceremony at Fir
Street Bridge. Command-
er of American Legion Post
168 in Cannon
Established in 1948,
American Legion Post 168
is a community center that
strives to give back to past,
present, and future genera-
tions.
The post invites Cannon
Beach to observe Memori-
al Day during a ceremony
at Fir Creek Bridge, which
crosses Ecola Creek on the
north side of town. The
ceremony will begin at 11
a.m.
During the annual cer-
emony, a color guard with
ÀDJV IURP HDFK VHUYLFH
branch plays homage to
veterans past and present
with the playing of taps and
SUHVHQWDWLRQRIÀRZHUV
There are also short
speeches and an invoca-
tion.
Post 168 also partici-
pates in a wreath-laying
ceremony at the Manzani-
ta cemetery. The wreaths,
handmade from poppies
by the American Legion
Auxiliary, are laid on vet-
eran’s graves. Each grave
LVPDUNHGZLWKÀDJVSODFHG
there by the Boys Scouts of
America.
Commander Beach Dan
O’Reilly served in the U.S.
Navy from 1959 to 1990.
His years of service took
him around the world on
a variety of ships to a va-
riety of ports. The Cannon
Beach American Legion is
heavily involved in local
events and charities. Those
include annual food and
toy drives during the hol-
iday season, a Red Cross
blood drive and a schol-
arship program for local
students. The legion also
hosts Casino Game Night,
a fundraiser for the Cannon
Beach Preschool and Chil-
dren’s Center.
Memorial Day, how-
ever, is a special time for
Post 168. It is the day the
members share with Can-
non Beach the heartache of
brothers and sisters lost.
SUSAN BOAC
during my three hour
walk. And then, in the last
15 minutes I saw a lark
sparrow gathering nest-
ing material in the short
grass next to the forest.
It was an amazing bird to
see, with its very defined
head markings. I spied it
hopping around first on
the ground and then in
the low branches of the
brush nearby. This is the
millionth time I saw an
amazing bird on the way
just before I reached my
car.
The other 10 birds
were black-billed mag-
pie, Say’s phoebe, house
wren, western kingbird,
western tanager, calliope
hummingbird, MacGilli-
vary’s warbler, mourning
warbler,
black-headed
grosbeak and Bullock’s
oriole. Each with a story
to tell, but that will have
to wait for another time.
Note: For those of you
who follow my column, I
have a new car, the UBM
(ultimate birding ma-
chine), which is a Prius
that I justified as being
better at sneaking up on
birds under electric pow-
er.
Susan has taken up
birding as a passion,
to the mixed emotions
of her husband Scott.
The Boacs reside on
the Neawanna Creek
in Seaside where their
backyard is a birder’s
paradise.
Hands across Cannon Beach
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Cannon Beach Hands Across the Sand event on Saturday, May 16. Kristen Allsop led the group in a 15 minute silent
meditation in favor of clean energy. Th is was a world-wide event