SECTION 3, PACE 10
Significant
Continued from Page 9
some of the leading citizens
of the town formed a joint
stock company and came to
his relief, thus Insuring the
success of the venture.
On Dec. 2. 1891 the S.P.
Carrlgues' planing mill was
destroyed by Are. The ci
tizens, by forming a bucket
brigade, saved the lumber
yard and surrounding build
ings. The city council, In
Jan. 1892, determined to con
struct three cisterns on Main
street to give protection to
the business district-but this
project was never carried
out.
The Gazette reported many
indications of great pros
perity in Morrow County In
1891. "Some2,325,000pouods
of wool were received by the
Morrow County Loan and
Trust Co.'s warehouse alone,
600,000 pounds of which were
graded and packed for direct
eastern shipment. It was es
timated that 65,000 bead of
sheep were driven out of the
county and sold, but that the
total number of sheep in the
county was not thereby di
minished as the exported an-
s Hgddv Birthday Old
Mel tyye
lmals were replaced numer
ically by the Increase. The
cattle raising industry was
extended considerably, en
couraged by the prevailing
high prices, but the rearing
of horses was allowed to pass
into comparative neglect
owing to the depressed con
dition of the horse market.
Fifteen thousand acres of
homestead land were added
to the taxable domain of the
county by the making of final
proofs, and the Indebtedness
was reduced some 390,000."
Many other statistics were
given such as a long listing
of those who paid taxes on
one thousand dollars or over
for the year.
Of course (be agricultural
prosperity was reflected in
the businesses in the towns;
merchants built up their
stocks, citizens improved
their properties.
Crops of 1892 were rather
light, owing no doubt partly
to the tact that the land needed
rest after the heavy yields
of the two previous, but more
especially to a drouth. A
heavy rain came to Heppner
Sept. 6th which flooded the
town as water poured in from
the bills. 1893 was also very
dry through most of the
Gar Aviation
growing season, and on July
3rd citizens around Heppner
and at Eight Mile tried to
Induce rain by heavy firing
however, their efforts failed.
THE 1893 DEPRESSION
There was a general fi
nancial panic throughout the
country that year. Business
went to a cash basis. Mr.
Schiach writes, "It may be
confidently asserted that the
burden of financial stringency
did not weigh as heavily upon
the people of Eastern Oregon
as in many of the older com
munities, and failures in bus
iness were few, but here as
elsewhere, an effectual check
was put upon almost all pro
gress and retrogression be
came the order of the day."
Citizens of Liberty and Hard
man assembled and passed
resolutions asking that their
creditors be as lenient as
possible. This depression
lasted for four difficult years.
Four Portland banks bad to
suspend payments that year.
HEPPNER SCHOOL FIRE
Heppner s fine five-room
school held 244 pupils In its
ten grades In the year 1890-91.
In 1892 that building on Gale
Street was destroyed by
fire and a new school was
built on the bill east of tow n
an Imposing structure with
eight class rooms. (The first
high school graduation was
the class of 1893 with five
Timer! !
s
989-8422 5
S
8
members: Ben Patterson,
Effie (Fields) Rhea. Frank
jones, Jay W. Shipley and
Roy Glasscock.)
In the early spring of 1892
Heppner purchased a great
deal of flre-flghting equip
ment for freight prepaid,
about $1000. This equipment
in the bands of an enthu
siastic volunteer fire com
pany was valuable, but a bet
ter water system was urgen
tly needed. Toe town con
contracted with H.V. Gates
of Hlllsboro for a water sys
tem and electric light plant.
He successfully utilized the
old well which bad been bored
years back and at last Hep
pner got "The best, most
effective, permanent and sat
isfactory light and water plant
of all cities of like size in
the Northwest" (Schiach, Pg.
299). A corporation known as
the Heppner Light and Wa
ter Company took over from
Mr. Gates and operated the
new systems.
SEVERAL POLITICAL
MANEUVERING
Morrow County's political
leadership was eager to pro
mote growth. Back in 1889
there was an almost success
ful attempt to extend the
southern boundary of the court'
ty to the John Day River and
take in fifteen of the nor
thern townships of Grant
County, Hon. T.E. Fell in
troduced the bill in the state
legislature and it passed in
the house but failed to reach
the senate in time to be con
sidered before adjournment.
The people in the territory
involved were greatly in favor
of the change.
In 1893 the state decided to
locate a branch asylum for
the insane in Eastern Oregon.
Heppner's leaders felt they
could get it for their town as
the new water and light sys
tem favored expansion. In
Jan. 1894 the decision was
reached after careful Inspec
tion of Baker, North Powder,
La Grande, Union, Echo, Pen
dleton, Milton, Heppner, and
The Dalles, to award the hos
pital to Union, presumably on
Great Grandmother made
and wore her knuckles raw as
washboard.
Try the new in 1972
Heppner Laundromat
Clean, Cool, and Comfortable
fbppncf is a true tod of
Homesteads bd Heritages
W.V.Wcatherford
account ot the toot lake and
spring in its vicinity.
(Schlacb. Pg. 300).
PROSPERITY RETURNS
The years 1893-4-5-6 were
weary and discouraging. Most
of the products of the county
had to be sold tor less than
the cost of their production.
Wheat In 1894 sold as low
as 15 cents per bushel, lambs
for 75 cents per bead and
wool and cattle for prices pro
portionately low. In 1897
prosperity returned in earn
est. The fall crops brought
good prices; wages rose In
proportion; debts were paid;
mortgages cleared; con
fidence and credit re-established.
Judge A.G. Barth
olomew succeeded in clearing
up a school lands purchase
mess making considerable
land salable which did much
to brighten Morrow fi
nancially. OREGON'S MOST PROSPER
OUS YEAR
The Oregonian summarized
the year of 1898 thus: "The
year ending Dec. 31. 1898,
was the most prosperous year
Oregon has ever known.
Every line of trade reports
a large increase in business,
except for a few lines, such
as soap, coffee, tea and spi
ces. Some lines, notably ag
ricultural Implements and
certain kinds of building ma
terial, increased from 50 to
75 per cent. Most of the
increase was cash business."
The year 1899 did not seem
quite as good, but 1900 brought
better crops. It was un
usually favorable for the pro
duction of mutton, the av
erage increase being over
100 per cent, or about 20
per cent higher than that of
any former year. This must
lave brought great Joy to the
Irish shepherds who had come
into Morrow in considerable
numbers in the years from
1870 through the lego's.
A Gazette supplement
states that the shipments over
the O.R. It N. from Heppner
during 1900 were: Wheat and
C ontinued Page II
her own soap, boiled clothes,
she rubbed each piece on her
Lexington, uregon