Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (June 13, 1968)
Story of Flood Told in Rhyme (Editors Note: The following poem, written by tho late Charles J. Dcvln, was furnished to Tito Giurlti'-Tlmin by Clair I 11. fox of CorvullU, who obtained it from the widow of the author. It U printed In commemoration of tho tkiih. anniversary of the lieppner Hood. In Mipplvtng It to the paper. Mr. Cox Mutes, "My Impression Ik thut Mr. uevin was a brother to lieppner lute city in archill, r. iM'vln. and an uncle to llurlnn Uevin. a leading Ion- don mercantile owner and exlleppner lad. Harlan wan a classmate of Judge Jones, Terrel Bengo and myself, as well as others In the liC'U lit ppner High class). MT HOME TOWN I have a storv I want to tell, Of lieppner, mv home town, and how It once fell It wax June the Mill, the Year of 1U03. That awful picture 1 still can see It wns a Sundar evening, Just about six. The skies were darkened with clouds black and thick There was thunder and lightning, rain and hail poured down. A terrible flood swept thru the town Trees were uprooted, bridges went out. Buildings destroyed and scattered about Where the cloudburst fell on the uplund farms, It took out fences, sheds, and barns Rome of the things that happened In my home town So in the month of July, VX2, I fully decided that Is what 1 would do So UiU is my story lor those who didn't see, The lieppner Flood In 1903 In !Mi3 1 was twenty-four, Now I can add fifty more So you see I am getting old. And now I am clad my story U told. CIIAS. DEVIN Margaret Marks Writes Of Visit to Fon Compound All kinds of debris came floating down, Lodging in various parts of the town Many kinds of wreckage piled high and wide, All around on every side I am telling you It was an awful spill, The water spread from hill to hill One thousand eight hundred people composed the town, About three hundred of them went down Injuries were sustained to many more. Who miraculously ecsaped death, and floated ashore Matlock and Kelly, two Heppnerites Made a. daring ride that very night They were highly commended for not being slow, To think of tho danger to the people below They saddled their horses and took out around, To warn the people In the neighboring town They beat the flood to the city line, Warning the people In plenty of time They quickly responded to the call, But the water had receded and their loss was small Perhaps it's hard for those to understand, Who don't know the lay of the land Willow Creek curves thru the town, That is where the main flood followed down The west part of town is not so low, The homes out there didn't go But most of those along the stream, It wiped them out, slick and clean We gathered up a little crew, There were so many things we would have to do Soon when the main flood passed thru, We started out with our little crew We made It over to the creek, The sight we saw would make you sick I took one look and at a glance, I knew my friends and schoolmates had no chance Fathers and mothers, husbands and wives, Looking for dear ones who had lost their lives Dead animals lying around. Where human bodies were being found Some soaked with water all spattered with mud, Clothes torn to pieces and covered with blood Others in wreckage jammed in tight, Covered all over and out of sight Some so badly beaten, crushed and bruised, Their identification was quite confused It was hard for relatives sometimes to tell, Only by clothing, or marks they knew so well Personal belongings here and there, Lots of jewelry and silverware I mentioned before our crew was small, But volunteers soon answered our call The following day just about ten, They poured into town both women and men They brought their equipment, tents and supplies, And were working next morning before sunrise When they got their tents all staked down, It would make you think of an army town Farmers came in and brought their teams, ' To tear down wreckage and heavy beams Around the morgue was a heart rendering sight, Crowds of people day and night Watching for a lost one, shedding tears, Over someone, they had loved for years For the worker in the morgue it was a mess, So many bodies to clean and dress The carpenters, too, had quite a task, Bodies were being picked up so fast It kept them busy night and day, Making boxes to lay them away The crew at the cemetery worked very hard, But never complained of being tired The hacks and hearses were on the go, From the morgue to the cemetery, to and fro The sheriff was busy night and day, Keeping the looters scared away Doctors and nurses were on the run, Rendering aid to the injured ones There are so many miracles a flood can do, I can hardly explain them all to you It would pick up buildings large and tall, Break them to pieces and let them fall And some of the small ones close around, It never moved them off the ground There was one big drift we tore down, Lodged against the depot, at the North end of town I will mention some of the things in there we found, Scattered all through, from the top to the ground There lay a Chinaman with a broken neck We climbed on top to make a check, We pulled off some boards and part of a floor, And under them lay two bodies more I can't recall how many bodies we found, As I remember, three in the drift and two on the ground Household furniture of most every kind, From top to bottom now and then we would find Farm machinery, both old and new, Some good, and some broken in two A saddle and harness all tied in a knot, Nails and staples washed down from a hardware lot Money boxes and kiddies' banks, In broken up furniture and under planks Lots of dead chickens, mice and rats, A couple of dogs and several cats Two barrels of bottled beer had floated down, From a wrecked saloon in the main part of town That was a miracle how it got through, Not a single bottle broken in two The beer was cold and looked very good, But the boss shook his head and we all understood Lots of miscellaneous articles large and small, Just toe many, to name them all I think I have surely said enough, So you can see a flood doesn't bluff As I recall it was about a week, Before the main search for bodies had reached its peak Still there were a few around, Somewhere yet to be found Now with ail the wreckage torn down, There was lots of work to clean the town It certainly was an awful scene, It took months to get it clean The work was slow with team and men, There were no trucks and tractors then Now just before I end. Those volunteers I do commend So 1 often thought I would write down. ltd. Note: This is another In a series of articles written by Margaret Marks, Heppner High school graduate, who has been with her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Lcs Marks, In Cam eroon, Africa). By MARGARET MARKS One of the most interesting visits that I have made since being In Cameroon was when I visited the Fon of Mankon's compound, Mankon. Bamenda A Fon In this country can be compared to a feudal king of a past century. He has hundreds of subieets, owns a great deal of land, wealth, and power. This particular Fon even has his own representative in Parliament. When we arrived at the com pound we were disappointed to hear that the Fon was away but we were welcomed by his chief clerk. Charles. In the inner courtyard were flowers and rock gardens, not quite what one would expect. The first formal ity was to be introduced to the Fon's mother, a gracious worn an in ceremonial dress. Her garb was a long blue robe and around her neck she wore two strings of the porcelain slave beads, which are a symbol of the past. She kept repeating the word "Welcome," as she doesn't sneak English only her native Man kon language. Then we were taken to the Council Room where the elders were seated. Four of them were in their native dress of hand- embroidered robes, with necklaces- which symbolized their place in the community. Tho other threi were in slacks and white shirts. They were discuss ing in Mankon and drinking calm wine from native cuds which are hollow cattle horns. If there are problems to be settled in the compound they are brought betore the elders. II the elders deem it important enough to be presented to the Fon, then the person who brought the problem may gain an audience with the Fon upon presentation or a calabash or palm wine. Later we were given a tour of Physical Exams Due for Incoming 1st, 9th Graders Oregon School Law requires all incoming first and ninth grade students to have a pre school physical and dental ex amination, and to present the completed forms at school at the beginning of the school year, ac cording to Mrs. Lowell Chally, R. N., Morrow County Health Department. Parents are asked to have the required physical and dental ex amination done promptly, thus allowing ample time for any cor rective work, if indicated, be fore school begins on Spetember 3. The Oregon Pupil Medical Record of "Goldenrod" forms will be distributed to each school where possible to kindergarten children and eighth graders. forms will also be available in physicians' offices and the Mor row County Health Department. Birth certificates are required oi nrst graders. Application forms are available in the local health department office and will be mailed upon request. Telephone .676-9911 between 8:00 a.m. and 12:00 noon dailv for lurther information. - Marine Corporal Serves in Vietnam Marine Lance Corooral ' Don. aid D. Troxell. Jr.. son of Mr. and Mrs. Donald Troxell of bpray, ore., is serving with force Logistic Command, head quartered at Camp Books, eight miles northwest of Danang, vieinam. He is helping to provide lo gistic support for the 80,000 marines ana otner inendly for ces fighting in the five north ernmost provinces of South Vietnam. POWER CONTROL ELECTRIC MOTOR SERVICE WE REPAIR: Electric Motors Power Tools Hydraulic Jacks Alemite Equipment 421 S. E. 4th Pendleton Phone 27S-5862 the remainder of the compound. The Fon's Palace was out-of-bounds but Charles told us of its history. The palace which stands 15 feet high was constructed In 1918. It Is made of bamlsoo with rafia palm mats for the inner walls. The roof Is made of grass and It is the only part ot the building that has been added to since its original construc tion. New layers of grass are added every few years and the roof Is now over four feet thick. The outer courtyard has the wives hou.ves. Below them is the fish pond, the plantation, a huge vegetable garden, and a uiir farm. Plans are now in progress to start a chicken farm also. The I-on has over 100 wives who do all the work In the compound However, only the head wives are allowed to prepare his food enter his palace, and they make the everyday decision of run ning the compound. The head wives even decide which wife will sleep with the Fon. This particular Fon is prog ressive in that he tries to send most of his children at least to primary school and the boys on to secondary school. He has started a library in the com pound which is comprised of all American books. The Fon personally invited our family to come and stay in the guest house on the com pound for a week-end. I am looking forward to living in that atmosphere for three days. THE " HEPPNER GAZETTE-TIMES Heppner, Oregon 97836, Thursday, June 13, 1968 Sec. 2 Many Residents Entertain Guests By FRANCES ROSE WILSON (Held over from last week) IRRIGON Mr. and Mrs. WII nam Craybcal drove to Walla Walla last Wednesday and visit ed their son-in-law and dauuh ter. Mr. and Mrs. Dale Shingle decker, Ricky and Randy. Mr. Gravbeal remained In Walla Walla while Mrs. Grnybeal went on to Salem to visit another son-in-law and daughter. Mr. and Mrs, Bill Allen, Larry, Lin da ana uayie. The Aliens ure former Irrigon residents. While in Salem, Mrs. Graybeal attend ed Larry Jr.'s high school grad uatlon. Miss Ruth Miller, a mission nrv nurse from Durbln, South Africa, was an overnight guest of the W. F. Coy family. Miss Miller has been In missionary wont ior i years. Mr. and Mrs. Gene Berg hnd Ronnie of Vancouver. Wash.. were guests of Mr. and Mrs. Al bert Part low and Sherrill sever al days the past week. Mrs. Allyn Hobbs of Rancho Cordova, Calif., visited at the Floyd Hobbs home. While here she attended graduation exercis es which included Byron Hobbs. On Sunday the family traveled to Tho Dalles where Mrs. Hobbs remained to visit an aunt. The Little League parents are planning a smorgasbord dinner on June J3, at b p.m. at the A. C. Houghton cafetorium. Pric es will be S1.25 for adults, 75c for students and 50c for pro school children, or $4.00 a fam ily. There will be a game ihat day between the Braves and the Indians. The score for Saturday's game was the Braves 26 and the Yankees 8. A game is schedul ed for each Saturday. i Mr. and Mrs. David Rand, they Janet and Nancy were guests of his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Balle Kami, recently, Tho Rands live in Portland. Guests In the home of Mayor and Mrs. Chester Wilson recent ly Included their son and fam ily. Mr. and Mm. John Wilson Tommy and Jerri of Seattle. They were en route to Boise. Idaho, to spend several days with her parents. Mr. and Mrs. Earl Wittell. Others visiting were a broth er. Joe Wilson with his wife Phyllis and son Steve of port. land, and Mrs Lois Land. Kelll Snyder and Leon Wil son of Irrigon and Ronald Ba ker and Rick Partlow of Board man received scholarships to 4-H Summer School at Orepnn State University at Corvallis this year. They will meet the lieppner bus near Boardman ni June 10 and make the trip with other Morrow county young peo ple to Corvallis. The Summer school will be the week of June 10-16. Mr. and Mrs. Donald Arl.nrw and family took a vacation trip to Long Beach. Wash., where dujr elnms. They traveled on to Government Mineral Springs, Wash. They encounter ed rain at both places. They then toured Horsethlef Lake and visited relatives In The Dalles. Mr. and Mrs. Tom Jones and Tammy of Prineville visited the Pete Richards family. Mrs. Daniel Creamer Joined her husband at Sacramento Calif., this week where she will seek living quarters for tho fam ily in preparation to movlno there In the near future. SPECIAL Combination Pickup Tool and Gas Tank Boxes for Narrow and Wido Box PICKUPS Northrop Steel Fabricating Co. Hermlston McNary Hwy. Phono 567-S757 NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN That the co-partnership known as Red Cloud Lawn and Tree Service has been dissolved. -LELAND W. ROSS Box 429 Burns, Oregon r , K.V-v.-,r : m ESI (3L Make the change to cool comfort. It's time to stop suffering through sticky, hot days and breathless nights. Now for pennies a day, your Electric Air Conditioner will keep the hot, humid weather outside while you work or relax in cool comfort inside. Visit your Electric appliance dealer today. He has an Electric Air Conditioner to meet your needs and budget. While you're there, ask him about the many advantages of an Electric Dehumidifier too . . . the perfect companion to Electric Air Conditioning. And remember: Do it Better, for Less Electrically . ' :fK . '.":"'... I p I NRECA .Glum bia 1 asiii Electric Co-op 'Serving Morrow Wheeler and Gilliam Counties"
