Stagecoach to Jet Planes
Mules Were First Engines; Steamboats had
Colorful History; Railroads' Heyday Dramatic
When Eugene produced in 1926
the first of several pageants cele
brating development of transporta
tion and business in this region, the
show was called the "Trail to
Rail" pageant. The trail had been
one of two highways of the moun
tain men and the trappers of the
1830's and earlier. The other had
been the river, and the men of
those early days used three modes
ol transportation their own feet,
their animals, and their canoes.
Most of the early settlement of
the Oregon country was along the
rivers, which furnished handy ave
nues of travel with a minimum of
trouble. The age of steam had not
arrived in Oregon in those pre
statehood days, and the first light
draft passenger and freight
carrying craft were propelled by
ciews of Indians; the boats were
rigged for sailing, but dependable
manpower was still essential. Two
of the earliest of these boats were
the Mogul and the Ben Franklin,
operating in the Willamette river
in 1848. Soon the number was
heavily increased.
First Steamboat in 1X50
After the California gold rush,
trading vessels moved up the
Coast and into the Columbia and
the Willamette. The first steamboat
to ply Oregon streams was the
Columbus, built at Astoria in 1850.
July 3 of that year it set out for
Oregon City, then still the metro
polis as well as the capital of ter
ritorial Oregon. The next day Ore
ton City was the scene of a com
bined Fourth of July and marine
transportation celebration. The
Columbia was a slow and somewhat
awkward craft, a double-e n d e r
siaewheeler, in the general shape
of the modern car-ferry. It was 90
feet long, 16 feet beam, 4 feet
deep. It had a good engine.
Six months later along came the
Lot Whitcomb, owned by and
named for the enterprising pro
moter of Milwaukie, an early rival
of Portland. This vessel was not on
ly larger but faster than the Co
lumbia, with 600 tons displacment;
it was 160 feet long, with a 24-foot
beam, and 5 feet 8 inches deep. It
was launched at Milwaukie Christ
mas Day 1850, with speeches by
Territorial Governor John P.
Gaines and by Mayor Kilbom of
Oiegon City. In charge of the
craft was Capt. J. C. Ainsworth,
who achieved fame and fortune in
Oregon transportation and general
business. Another famous steam
boat was the Jennie Clark, the first
ProgressPlanned
Economic Development of State
Is Main Task of Department
Oregon has between 70 and 75
per cent of its non-agricultural
employment in non-manufacturing
industries; and as the standard of
living goes up due principally to
innovations, new discoveries and
improved technology there will be
more leisure time and additional
services.
' Oregon has geographic advan
tages for a number of trade and
services industries.
Oregon will progress faster in
the next few years than it has re
cently. Growth is not a uniform
process and there are bound to
be ups and downs; however, the
trend is up and the future is bright
for Oregon.
These comments and opinions
were expressed this week by the
Oregon Department of Planning
and Development which is under
the direct supervision of Governor
Mark Hatfield. Julius R. Jensen is
director of the department.
First Action In 19411
The first evidence of the taking
o( specific action by the State of
Oiegon in the field of economic de
velopment occurred in 1943, with
the creation of a Post War Read
justment and Development Com
mission. Fears that a great de
pression would follow World War II
hud much to do with the creation
ot this Commission. This agency
limited its work primarily to the
compilation of fundamental econo
mic statistics and to proposals to
tin? Governor on economic prob
lems. It was followed in February.
1950, by a Governor's Advisory
Council on Employment, the pur
pose of which was to help promote
employment opportunities in Ore
gon. This Council was succeeded in
July, 1951, by a nine-man Oregon
Committee for Industrial Develop
ment, charged with the responsi
stern-wheeler in the Northwest; it
was built at Milwaukie by Jacob
Kamm, whose name also is famous
in Oregon transportation annals.
The first iron vessel constructed in
this area was the Belle of Oregon
City, built, in her namesake town,
of Oregon-smelted iron. In his very
readable book, "Steamboats on the
River," Randall V. Mills, late
University of Oregon professor of
English, quoted a poetic bit written
by Elizabeth Markham, rhapsodiz
ing over the Lot Whitcomb, one of
ihe best-remembered of the Wil
lamette river boats. Mrs. Markham
was the mother of Edwin Mark
ham, famous author of "The Man
With the Hoe." Probably her poetic
outburst could be rated as "n o t
bad." Here's a brief excerpt, in
which, the rhythm is rather r i p -pling:
"Success to the Steamer, her
captain and crew. She has our
best wishes attained. Oh that she
. may never while running this river
fall back on the sandbar again!"
It surprises most residents along
the Willamette to learn that up
to about the turn of the century
steamboats carried freight and
passengers every now and then
all the way up the stream to
Eugene. Shoals in the river and the
inroads of land competition long
ago ended all that.
.Mules Pulled First Rail Cars
Oregon's first railroad dates back
to the year of statehood; but on the
first little line, mules were the
first "locomotives" used, t h e
tracks were of wood, and the line,
between what are now Cascade
Locks and Bonneville, was merely
a portage adjunct to water trans
portation. It became a steam rail
road three years later when t h e
Oregon Pony, first locomotive on
the Pacific Coast, displaced the
mulepower.
The first railroad of any consid
erable importance in Oregon was
the Oregon Central, built along the
east bank of the Willamette by Ben
Holladay and associates. The line
was completed to New Era, 20
miles south of Portland, the day
before Christmas in 1869, seven
months after the driving of the
golden spike on the Union Pacific,
first of America's transcontinental
lines.
It took three years, in those dif
ficult financial times, to get the
line as far south as Roseburg, a
bout 320 miles south of Portland.
Connection with San Francisco was
not established until 1887, after the
bility of advising the Governor how
to obtain more defense contracts
for Oregon industry.
Of more lasting importance was
tne part this committee played in
drawing up long-range plans for
the economic development of the
state. It recommended a perma
nent state development agency to
be created by the Legislature and
supported from the general fund.
Development Commission
As a result of this recommenda
tion, t h e Oregon Development
Commission was created by the
1953 Oregon Legislature. Its func
tions were set forth as follows:
"For the purposes of broadening
the economic base of state and lo
cal communities, for developing
community employment, sustaining
payrolls and creating additional
ones, and for the purpose of co-ordinating
the efforts of the existing
agencies of the state government
and insuring proper statistical con
tributions toward these industries,
there hereby is created an Oregon
Development Commission. ..."
The Department of Planning and
Development came into existence
in July, 1957, succeeding to the
Oiegon Development Commission,
as a result of the action of the 1957
Oiegon Legislative Assembly. Ex
perience in other states had indica
ted that departments under the di
rect supervision of the chief execu
tive seemed to have more impact
than did those operating under the
commission form. Also, it seemed
to give greater prestige and im
portance in securing the necessary
intormation to do a selling job to
present prospective industry.
The overall area of activity of
the department has changed ma
terially from that assigned to the
former Oregon Development Com
mission and has enabled the de-
Southern Pacific had taken over
the line.
Forty years later the long-planned
Natron cut-off line was finish
ed, running from Eugene along the
cast side of the Cascade Mountains
to Black Butte, near Weed, Calif.,
by way of Klamath Falls.
That was the last large railraod
extension put through in Oregon.
Several other lines, independently
built, were acquired by the South
ern Pacific. An important excep
tion is the Oregon Electric railroad
serving a wide area with Willam
ette valley, owned by the Great
Northern and Northern Pacific, it
is still doing a considerable freight
business after 48 years, though re
tired from handling passengers
since 1934.
The first quarter of the twen
tieth century was the era of the
railroads, which had already put
the steamers virtually off the Ore
gon rivers. The same type of fate,
possibly not far away, appears to
be facing the railroads' passenger
traffic, as more popular methods of
passenger transportation invade the
field. The railroads appear safe
lor the foreseeable future in the
lield of the heavy freight haul.
" Passenger traffic for the rail
roads found a stiffening competi
tion from overland buses in the
1920's. Meanwhile, too, the indivi
dual passenger automobile was
cutting deeply into short-haul pas
senger business. Improved high
ways are a heavy cause and a
somewhat less considerable effect
on the busses' heavy inroads into
the passenger traffic.
Airplanes Serve the State
Latest, and apparently most ef
fective, of the railroads' competi
tors for the passengers is the air
plane. One doesn't have to be a
graybeareded patriarch to recall
the Wright brothers' first flights at
Kitty Hawk, N. C. Dec. 17, 1903.
The longest of their four flights
that day was one-sixth of a mile,
made in just one second less than
a minute which means speed of
about ten miles an hour made by
that little pioneer biplane. In less
thar 15 years the airplane was
used, to a considerable extent, in
the first of the World Wars. These
days the jets go about as far in a
second as the Wrights were able
to go In a minute. Now Oregon has
few localities more than an hour
from an airport, . and more and
more Oregon people do. their travel
ing in the air.
partment to expand these pro
grams as well as to initiate addi
tionar activities.
Advisory ComnUtee
Although the state's economic de
velopment agency is no longer a
commission, there is an advisory
committee of the department, chos
en by the Governor from leaders
of business, industry, and labor.
Sub-committees have been created
with members of the Advisory Com
mittee as chairman to study the
following subjects: taxation, trans
poration, agriculture, timber, min
erals, roads and highways, fishing
power, storage waters, industrial
ciedit authorities, and advertising.
These sub-committees have receiv
ed the cooperation of the approp
riate state departments, serving as
consulants.
The Department has published
the following:
1. "GROW With Oregon" - a
monthly periodical of the Depart
ment giving information about Ore
gon's economy and industry
2. Industrial fact brochures
a. Oregon Fact Summary
b. Agricultural Facts
c. Timber Facts
d. Facts of Oregon's Water and
Fuel Resources
e. Mineral Facts
f Transportation Facts
g. Power Resources
h. Research and Education Re
sources 3. A non-partisan Oregon tax sur
vey, released in three parts, by Dr.
John F. Sly, Princeton Surveys,
Inc.
4. "Questions and Answers on
Small Business Investment Act of
1958"
5. "Industrial Financing," t h e
report of the study made for the
Department.
6. The Sandwell Area Studies re
porting on the feasibility of expand
ii.g pulp and paper production in
Oregon
7. "Why Business Firms Locat
ed in Oregon, 1948-1957." the find
ings of a study made for the De
partment by the Bureau of Busi
ness Research of the University of
Oregon
Other activities of the depart
ment have been: national advertis-
asafocfe.
t A U
at :m
M.
l nr.CDC MCIM AYPfi AMI")
2
feiyfiifi . A
WWWill 1 J . . . . V ' ' ' .. f.-- .vw - " - - - "
century ago were happy to rest and pose for the photographer.
"Action" is the by-word today and the crew using an Oregon
made power chain kept working while the lower picture was
taken recently. The two-man crew was falling a prime Douglas
Fir, 430 years old and 283 feet tall, from which a 40 foot sction
has been moved to Portland to be displayed at the Oregon Cen
tennial Exposition.
ing, participation in exhibitions
and trade shows; radio and tele
vision programs; speaking appear
ances; federal-state cooperation ac
tivities; industrial prospect calls;
community service and coopera
tion; and providing requested in
formation. A major task which the
department is just completing is
the production of a current "Ore
gon Manufacturers' Directory and
Buyers' Guide." It is expected to
be published by May 1.
Two Growth Factor
There are two strong factors
working toward t h e economic
growth of Oregon. One is techno
logical advances that will make
possible the higher degree of utili
zation of raw materials. Not only
does the department a n t i c i -pete
continued growth in the non
lumber wood products, such as
plywood, chipboard, wood chemi
cals and paper, but it foresees
the rapid development of new agri
cultural processes and by-products
of importance in the- state.
The other favorable factor is the
growth of local and regional mar
kets, which will make possible
expansion of some of the industries
now representing only a small por
tion of the Oregon economy. The
Department of Planning and De
velopment is conducting research
to enable it to demonstrate in ob
jective terms what Oregon has
in raw materials and markets. At
the same time it has geared i t s
activities toward promoting the
giowth of the "scientific" indus
tires oriented neither toward raw
materials nor markets.
9.
n j um rv
A hjinri.nnratH taw over a half-
Like Cut Gems
Port Umpqua Courirer, Reedsport:
" 'The GREAT city is that which
has the finest men and women. If
it be but a collection of ragged
huts, it would still be the greatest
city in the world!' - Walt Whit
man. There would be no metro
politan Portland if Oregon were not
studded with scores of little cities
each like a star in the sky with a
lustre, a distinction of its own. The
worth of a man is not measured by
his bulk or brawn, nor is the worth
of a city by its size and fame. Not
always but often, a small city is
like a beautifully cut gem-famed
for quality of its accomplishments."
Thank You
100 Oregon Weekly Newspapers
join this week to present this Ore
gon Centennial supplement to their
combined 220,000 readers. It has
been produced under the direction
of the Advertising Service Depart
ment of the Oregon Newspaper
Publishers: Association.
Our appreciation Is expressed to
the following for permission to use
photographs printed herein: Old
time scenes are from the Lee
Moorehouse collection of photo
graphic negatives now housed in
the I'niversity of Oregon Library.
Oregon State Highway Conunis
sion; West Coast Iuniliennan's As
sociation; Caterpillar Tractor Com
pany; Oregon State College; Phil
Wolcott; (iile's; Union Pacific
Kail road; and several participat
ing newspapers.