Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 31, 1964)
HCPfNCI CArmX-TlMtS. ThurdY. Dcmbf 31. Ui the ssr utrrwisu GAZETTE-TIMES morbow couirm wrwspArti Th Heppner Gazette etablUhed March ."M, 1SK.1 The Ilrrpner Time rMablbhed November IS. 1WJT. loruioltdaied February 13, 1912. ZTTT IVIfAVII rf iiimiti ASSOCIATION I NATIONAL I0ITO1IAI WES LIT A. SHERMAN Editor and fubUht HtLEN C SHE1MAN Aociat Publisher Subscription Rate: $450 Year. Single Copy 10 Cent. PublLhed Every Thursday and Entered at the lt Office at Heppner. Oregon. aa Second Clas Matter. THE FLOOD OF DECEMBER, 1964 Control Projects Needed It U pretty well established that the fVxxi of December. 1964. la the worst In the Mate' history from the landpo'nt of the general devastation done. Ai Its resident recover from the stag terlnR blow and start period of recovery, this Is the best time to think about control for the future. Became of it severity, the flooding laid out a blueprint of trouble spots and showed very well where control Is needed. This Is true in Morrow county. We know that whenever a flood of any proportion comes from surface water. lone Is liable to suffer. It took a severe blow In August, 19G1, when a water spout sent waters cascading down Rietmann canyon, and this flood from melting snow repeated the damage with equal or greater loss. lone must have some relief. Army Engineers made some sur vcy of the canyon In connection with the Willow Creek project but nothing has come of It It may be possible that a series of landfill dams in the canyon could check the runoff. A substan tial ditch or spillway might be created to carry water down to Willow Creek. Possibility of aid for such a project should be Investigated now before another flood comes and lone residents find their city covered with muck and silt again. Congressman Al Unman has sent a telegram to the county offering cooperation and any assistance he can give. Perhaps he will be able to see what might be done towards checking the perennial trouble spot of Riet mann canyon. Oddly enough. Willow Creek behaved itself in the upper reaches on this flood, probably because snows in the mountains, from which it is fed, did not melt as fast as they did on the foothills. The Willow Creek dam would help in controlling such a flood as this because it could check the waters of upper Willow Creek and those coming down Balm Fork. While Willow wasn't flooding over its banks, it did contribute a substantial volume to that rampaging towards the Columbia. It would not control Shobe canyon flooding nor that of Hinton creek, although some steps might be considered for the control of these waters. Rhea Creek's flooding was devastating, and the project now under consideration for a dam on this creek certainly should be pressed. Where Rhea and Willow creeks came together was a virtual sea of water at the height of the flood. A channel clearance project on the creeks would be helpful. If there were any way to get the Job done. Ione's second blow came from the over-flowing Willow creek, thus getting the dam age from both sides. Maybe there would be a possibility for fed eral aid on such a stream deepening and widening project: This type of flood, coming principally from snow melt, found Heppner strangely secure and this is the town that is conceded to be vulnerable to floods. It now seems that Heppner is threatened not so much by a flood of this type as it is by the water spout or cloudburst variety, and we well know how dev astating these can be. Pay lUer H.hhI oul. t tvn by the time the rtet reached the bridge, Without an englnerr Wmmtrlj.-e la guide u. lu would cent logical. Hut what about the tr.trtim? It Mat an "Art t;l." all rlirht. but ahouldn't thi bridge have U-en detuned l. Hithktan.t thi Ait tf 1 ;! Ttie c-nrr-ni'a lnrlli'Min hnul. prove Inli-i. imij lx f the bildj; hat wrrd to hake the public's roiifutetu In the Invincibility tif such tru.turc. Neither Snow, Nor Rain . . Traditional to the potal M-rvloe U the quotation, "Neither snow, nif rain. nr heat, nor gUmnt pf rUht Maya thim url-r from the sulft completion of Ihvir apiMtited rouii.U" Well, the flood put a dent In the indomitable reputation of the puttal srrvU-e, and like many parts f the ataie. Marrow county was without mall service for four day. Put no one I going to taunt the department about It for their record U ad mirable. Probably mt of our residents can never recall a previous tingle day In I heir lives when the mall did not arrive at Its destination, except on holidays and Sundays. Our pot office crew did a fine lob trying to crt the mail out and In, with t matter Prlcoll making many phone rail trying to find route and ways and means of living up to the old quotatloa When the mall finally arrived, the tff worked through the niht to get out the big load and kept windows open through the day Sunday until 3 p.m. to serve the public. DrUcoll avt that the public n very cooperatve and un complaining. Thi. then. 1 apparently a tory of god cooperation on both side and how that the public, prone to make an Uaue of some minor Irritation, can stand major mUfortuncs w ith lesser complaint. Better Information Needed A has been pointed out by several source, thi flood tory was one of the biggest news atorles of all time, since every community, every area, had a major story of Its own to tell. It taxed newspapers, radio and television to tell the ttory ade quately. It seems to point up a real need for consideration, too the need to provide an official report, free from rumor, not to tell of the drama and tragic aspects of the flood but to give the public the information It vitally needs. It seem to u that the state might have designated a particular time on a particular television or radio station to bring to the public official re- porta on roads, communications systems, when? supplies could be obtained, what dangers may be encountered, and what should be done. News of the flood has been on a catch as -catch-can basl. and people caught In the holiday time have been endeavoring to grope their way across the state with only vague highway reports to go on. It would have been a big help to all. Including those trying to make restorations, it there were a central information agency set up In various areas to provide otuciai imormation. and ir a daily telecast and radio program had been provided for authentic information. This would have saved a great many people who were try ing to do vital work In the emergency, a great deal of harassment The Good Neighbor Helps Out This Is the sort of crisis that brines out the real rooWi In people, and it is heartwarming to realize how rood neirhbor spring to the task to help a fellow man in trouble. The story of the AI Bunch elevator loss Is a good case in point Friends and neighbors gave up their Christmas eve celebrations to come out In the wet and cold to help salvace eraln. Thev worked rlrht 1 through Christmas, and instead of eatlnjr turkev. ate cold tand. wiches. Probably there were more persons, snui? In their hnmM who would have been glad to fall to and help. If they had known how to go about it May the bright star sparkle above the hparfs rf th wvt I neighbors. Didn't they best exemplify the true spirit of Christ. masT Chaff .nd Chatter Wes Sherman rM'IW put a rilmp In family iluouiM pun lor many, out human Ingenuity find wt ( felting hiiti; done If the Will U ttiorig enough. It ap'ared a if Itmiiy iv!ii'i.i fcluU.iil Would be kept away from their holiday homi-otming, but tttoM of ihent made It here detplte all the road closure. Some manned to fly o IVitJIrlon. others took irv uitout route through Wakhlng ton. some were luk en route for a while but managed to g't through later, and some got home via normal route Just hi ad of the storm. Hill Wctvr, coming from th U of O, toped by IIoihIou iktwl on tiie ;nn .Hjntiam fur a time and then trove to Heppner via the Spray road. He lust made It through when Impact of the storm hit. No Doubt About Levy Need There were doubts In some residents' minds about the need for a county road serial levy obviously at the time of the Novem ber general election since it was voted down then, but there Is no doubt of the dire need for it now. Virtually every section of the county took heavy damage on roads in the flood, and it is going to take considerable money to restore them to make them usable and safe. The current serial levy will carry the current needs until July of 1965 but at that time more money will be needed to continue programs. When the matter comes up again, as it surely will, it should be passed with a very strong vote. Governor Hatfield Was Right When the last legislature cut the proposed Civil Defense budget to a token amount, Governor Hatfield strongly protested, but the legislature's action stood. The governor went ahead and held together an emergency organization on what was available. He established an emergency center in the basement of the capitol building which brought some undercover taunts and jibes. The current emergency should be enough to bring a few red faces among the legislature's opponents of Civil Defense. The emergency command post in the basement has been a real nerve center in this crisis, which well emphasizes the need for an effective Civil Defense organization. Control Dams Helped As the awful damage of the flood is considered in the areas where the monetary loss was the greatest, we might pause to think what it might have been if the Willamette River flood control projects had not been in place Hill3 Creek and Lookout Point on the Middle Fork of the Willamette; Cougar on the Mc Kenzie; and Detroit on the Santiam. Without these dams, the Army Corps of Engineers has pointed out. Eugene, Albany, Salem, Oregon City and Portland, would have taken terrific damage. The dams cut 15 feet off the crest of the flood at Eugene, seven feet off the crest at Albany, 10 feet off at Oregon City and 4.5 feet off at Portland. They said that without the Willamette dams, all Portland bridges would have been carried away but the St. Johns bridge and that water would have flooded up to S. W. 5th Avenue. Ore gon City's main business section would have been covered, Salem flooding would have been close to the 1861 record, and large residential areas of Eugene would have been lost. This is food for thought for any who may oppose such flood control projects. What About the John Day Bridge? The most stunning single aspect of this flood was the almost unbelievable loss of the John Day River bridge on the Colum bia River highway. The layman has almost a blind faith in the skill of the engineers who design such structures and the men who construct them. They assume that the bridges are sound and secure against all hazards. The John Day bridge did not prove to be invulnerable to the onslaughts of Old Mother Nature, and the first reaction from official sources was that its loss was an "Act of God." Tendency was for the public to accept this at first until pic tures revealed the old highway bridge and the two railroad bridges to be still standing and relatively undamaged. One conjecture has it that the bridge was designed for slack water on the theory that the rising pool of the John Day dam would surround its pillars. Thus, onrushing waters from a John Boardman Schools Present Annual Public Program By MABT LEE MARLOW Boardman "Isle of Christ- mas Dreams" was presented bv the Boardman Grade school at the annual Christmas proeram at the school last Tuesday night There were about 40 children who participated as characters in the play, with 50 other dudIIs taking parts as the pajama children. The Riverside Hie-h school chorus sane Christmas carols and Mrs. LaCombe and Mrs. La Vern Partlow sang "O Holy Night." Following the program, everv- one was given a sack of treats. "Sons from Heaven" was thp theme of the Christmas proeram at the Boardman Community tnurcn sunaay mgnt it was the story or the origin of the song, "Silent Night." Special numbers were presented also. Each person present received a sack of treats. Cemetery Meeting Set The annual meetine of the eoaraman Kiverview Cemetery Maintenance Association will be neid at the citv hall Mondav. January 4', at 2:00 p.m. for the purpose of nominating one direc- tor. There will be a New Year's Eve Watch service at the Board man Community church, start ing at 9 p.m. and lastinc until midnight. Everyone Is invited. Holiday visitors at the horn nt Mr. and Mrs. Leo Potts were their sons-in-law and daughters. Mr. and Mrs. Howard Bundy of Arco, Idaho, and Mr. and Mrs. Delhprr Houston and children Lea, Ar lene and Donald of La Grande. Mr. and Mrs. Gene Allen anH children Stacie. Stuart and Stephanie of Walla Walla wpre Christmas visitors at the home of Alien s parents, Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Allen. Mrs. Marie Golden of Port. land has been a visitor the past tw0 weeks at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Roy Partlow. Visitors at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Harold Kress on Christmas were their sons-in-law and daughters, Mr. and Mrs. Del Rob ertson and son Kevin of Walla Walla, and Mr. and Mrs. Frank lin Ball and daughters Barbara and Karen of Hermiston. and their son and daughter-in-law. Mr. and Mrs. Ivan Kress and children Brian and Dee Ann of La Grande. The latter also visit ed at the home of Mrs. Kress' mother, Mrs. LaVern Partlow. Mr. and Mrs. Delbert Carpen ter had as guests Christmas their sons and daughters-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. Larrv Carpenter and children Cindy, Larry and Lyle of Renton. Wash., and Mr. and Mrs. Marvin Carpenter and chil- dren Annie and Johnnie of Uma tilla. Students home for the holi- Flood Cripples Monument Area n Homes, Fields By MARTHA MATTtSON MONUMENT Monument rancher were hard hit by hlk'h water which flooded the field, basement, reliant, wathtne out bridge and fill up and down the river. A few people have not been able to get to town, some have had to walk In mud to the hills then Into town. Mr. and Mr. Lonnie Harris came up the river, walking up the track tie to town. The water was up to the roadside between Past Time and the Smith houiM. ran In some at Owen Smiths house, filling the basement. It filled the Leo Flower yard and into the house of Lonnie Harris. The Harold Cork ranh fields were flooded almost to the road. There was no trafflec at the Rex Dick corner: power was off and Christmas eve was spent with use of candles and kerosene lamps. Dayvllle was isolated with bridges out and the gorge overflowing. Rain came down each day for 4 or 5 days and snowed again Saturday. D. L. Matteson came in from Enterprise Thursday for Christ mas week end with hi folks, , Mr. and Mrs. Elmer Matteson. and his brother-in-law and sister and family. Mr. and Mrs. Mary Llppert drove to John Day on Monday. On Tuesday the flood started so school was turned out at noon. Mrs. Jim Crocker drove to John Day last Tuesday, got caught In Mt Vernon by high water on Birch creek and Dayvllle bridge out and had to stay until Wednes day evening before coming home. Ernie Johnson and Mr. and Mrs. Harold Llppert and three sons were Christmas dinner guests of Mrs. Francis Noland and children. Mr. and Mrs. Marvin Howell and two sons of Spray were here Sunday to visit his folks, Mr. and Mrs. Frank Howell. Guests Christmas day and eve ning at the Jack Cavender fam ily home were Mr. and Mrs. Rex Dick, Maynard Hamilton. Mr. and Mrs. Buzz Moran and child ren and Dick George. and the Ninth jUntUm htchway tufft-trd koine ni)'r wanhouU. to figure days from college included: Chloe McQuaw. Pacific University at Forest Grove; Larry West. Port land State: Keith Gronoulst University of Portland; rat Part low. Johnnie Partlow and Sharon Donovan. E.O.C La Grande: Pat Miller. Marylhurst College; Jim .wnier ana tueen Kly, Blue Mountain College. Pendleton. Jim and Ted Hoffman. Clark Col lege, Vancouver, and Leonard Bedford. E. O. C Mr. and Mrs. Richard Mulhol- and and children Josie. Gerl and Don of Wichita Falls. Texas, are spending the holidays at the home of Mrs. Mulholand's oar- ents. Mr. and Mrs. Donald Baker. Mr. and Mrs. Mike Hibbard of Boise. Idaho are spending the holidays at the home of their son and daughter-in-law. Mr. and Mrs. Forrest Hibbard. ii I . Hiirx ivira. r. 1 m t'r liiMnir nr . , rn m w- a ' di .,.. . r v.: , livirs. r.urii wuore, mr. arm ivirs. Richland, were holiday visitors bi.i... . .Mu.n. i for Now famllle have Hit bow to get the tvllrfc'ian bail, to fchoul. but It wont be uulle Die Uk II M to ii I Uo tii hum. Condition wrm to b get Unit tit back low aid noimal every My. Tlin FRANK ANPFItSONI ml rd out on a scheduled Irlp o Hawaii when tht storm kepi them from getting to I'ot'land Ut week. They got raiiL'ht out of Arlington with the John Pay ptliiife down. Jim Mot. he, o ir faithful 7.4-llert'ih ar ac. man. got t aught there, too, aUtng with another family. The .hre got acqualntrd. and ufrilng the tame plight, drove up a driveway at rctMeno out of Arlington and the born owner Invited them In. II fed them a fin supper, put them up fr the night and cav them a hearty breakfast In the morning, Nent da, Frank led Moli on a baokroads route via Olex to Flghtmil country that made It J nimble fir McGe to gel to leppnerr. HI cuMotnerr her thought he must be a ghiml be rause no on thought It pmuttble at that lime for a person to get through from The lalle. Al this point, w don't know how Jim ever mad It bark to Tb Dalle in time for Christmas. One Idea he mii coiutlderlng was that bis wile mlL'ht orlne their motor boat up the river and pick him up. but that might have been tough, loo. BOD IVSPAIN got hi bread truck through lo Hi Dalles late last week, crossing the river and (hen coming bark over and finally proceeding via ome rim- striatum road. F.n route home he wasn't bothered with any traffic lrause everything waa KUptxised to be closed. A sur prised slat policeman top-d him a Bob was homeward bound and asked, "Where the heck do you think you're Bob replied calmly, "I'm going to Arlington." "Oh. no you're not!" the cop exclaimed. But that just what Bob did. He was In Heppner next day putting bread In the grocery stores. FOLKS SHOWED an Indomitable Christmas spirit despite the bad weather. Homes had beaut iful holiday decorations that look a lot of doing In bitter cold and rainy days to Install. Those wno did such a good Job deserve real congratulations because It helped to brighten a rather mis erable holiday season. Surely would have been dismal had Christmas come and gone with out some gay bright lights to hi In i beer In lh fa of lh iti'iiu. Not many rntetrd lb rtlesl but her wele some dandy job of deotiatliig i:vef)oi la always thinking up Idea for lh J)i-vr a pt JvU. but we think If would b hio If " lively gioup Ilk this would try to get rveiy il dent lo do soot t hrlkima light Ing. i-ven If lust on or two coT oled bulb. Ileppner txtuld al lain fame as a t'lulklma card tow i. and atttaot bundled of lUltof What a beautiful kighl It would ! la rsnne down lb Condon highway bill and th coloied light all over lh town WE ARE mot ordain than ever now that Gartte Time ad rrtlsing !)- Our Chevy ai a hubcap last week In lh deep snow, and w put a "loaf ad in lh (latklfled section. On t'htUt ma day (Hlln Huston railed a M sld be bad found It. II later brought II down to u and wouldn't lak a rent of reward W certainly appreciate hi klndnewi, and If b ever o anything, we'll that h get free advrrtUIng to recover It THEY SAY (rgon Slat doesn't have mui h chanc In the Ko Bowl tomorrow, but there's an old Kuhl that say a war I never over until the last battle, la fought. v ran h way out on a limb, but we truly think the Beaver have th stuff lo put It over Lr all concentrate on an victory, especially out of loyalty lo our native on. Dlok Kuhl. and mayb lhy ran ovr own lh dojH-strr Jut a they did against Syracuse. AS WE boot lh old man with the scythe out th door with lh leaky rain ran In hi band and th Icicles In hi beard, w ay to you, "Happy New Year!" N COMMUNITY I ) BILLBOARD V vwr . - JLx the son of Mr. and Mrs. Clifford Howell of Wall Creek near Monument Mrs. Katie Enrlght and two sons. Joanie Miller, Clifford How ell and son Sam drove to John Day on business last Tuesday where they got caught at Mt. Vernon ofter the roads were closed by high water and bridges washed out. Thev were able to get home Wednesday night MAT WmmS. .nd children JjZSVh SrV7vSdpiSSK had as Christmas Day guests JC'" 1 i h tyiJTI o m pi ion Mr inX Mr. drove to Portland December 9 fE.ftf "Wlnia.XlMr- ?d Mrs, Page Dulaney and and daughter, Mr. and Mrs. Milt carron. Mr. and Mrs. Gary Linton and daughter. Lori. returned to their home in Bandon after spending Christmas week visiting at the home of Mrs. Linton's parents, Mr. and Mrs. N. C. Anderson. Mr. Linton is a teacher in the Bandon schools. Mr. Dulaney's mother from Mis souri, and Mr. and Mrs. Mead Oilman. Couple Weds In John Day Miss Joanie Miller and Sam Howell were united In marriage at the Canyon City courthouse in John Day last Thursday. De cember 24. The bride Is the dau ghter of Mr. and Mr Mil lor on 'the W-4 Ranch. The croom is BATTERY TROUBLE? SEE FORD TIRE SERVICE FOR ALL YOUR Farm and Commercial BATTERY NEEDS We Have The All New HEAVY DUTY ARMOR PLATE Truck and Tractor Commercial Battery GROUP 1-H.D.A.P. (145 amp) I6.75 a rew days. Mrs. torrest stayed at McMinnvlllc to be close to her husband who Is In the hospital at Salem. Mrs. Elmer Ashcr went to Arizona to visit her sister for two weeks. ' Coming Events HEPPNER HIGH BASKETBALL Tuesday, January 4 Heppner at Condon Friday. January 8 Heppner at lllot Rock Jayvee came. 6:.T0 p.m. Varsity game. 8:00 p.m. :upport the Mustangs! HEPPNER PTA Regular meeting Wednesday. n. u. p m. High School Multipurjoe room. PUBLIC CARD PARTY Holly Hetx-kah Lodg. Lexing ton IUOF Mali. Saturday, Jan. 2. 8 p.m. Bridge and Ilnochle. 4 II LEADER'S BANQUET .. Wednesday, Jan. 27, 6:.T0 p.m. Episcopal Parish hall HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ONE AND ALL! SPONSORED AS A PUBLIC SERVICE BY C. A. RUGGLES Insurance Agency P. O. Box 247 PH. 676-9625 Happoav now, see why they call it the beautiful brute NEW( AS LOW AS CORE EXCHANGE N. Main Most All Sizes In Stock FORD S TIRE SERVICE PH 676-9481 Heppner ,'JEEP' GLADIATOR Designed and built for 4-wheel drive. That's why the Gladiator is so tough. And that same toughness is now available In 2-wheel drive tool It's powered by the Tornado-OHC OverHead Cam engine. Has a single lever for 4WD. Comfortable ride. Wide cab. Comes in 120" or 126' wheelbase. 7' or 8' pick up boxes. Stake or pickup bodies. Single or dual rear wheels. GVW's to 8600 lbs. See your 'Jeep' Dealer todayl i f KAimmm Jmj commomATtONMm t, on Farley Motor Co. HEPPNER, OREGON
