Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 24, 1972)
Mildred CIOWW Neatest nurse ever" New Hospital is Goal of Community a recent visit with Miss Mildred Clory in the neat-as-afun Heppner apartment was so delightful and so edu cational. Her sparkling eyes and lively manner mike it hard to believe that she was S3 years old in June of this Newspapers in Morrow County Cont. from page 10 first, The Bunchgrass Blade was being published during 1885, the year of Lexington s birth and its tremendous com petition for the County Seat. The name of its operator is not recorded, and it is doubt ful if copies of it exist-it died soon after Heppner was awarded the county seat Two yearslater The Weekly Budget Has being put out by Mr. Snow and Mr. Whitson, and was probably printed on the same type used for the first paper. The Budget ran for three years, and then was sold to the Morrow bounty Record edited by JohnCoffey. Some historians say tnis pa per was called The Heppner Record and it is also titled The Farmer's Alliance. It must have been sold both in Lexington and Heppner, and competed with the Gaz ette during Otis Patterson's ow nershop. According to Yesteryears of Morrow, the last Lexing ton newspaper was the Wh eatfield run by S.S. Thomas, but no dates are given for it. THE 10NE POST lane's first and most fa mous paper The Post was qu ite well established by 1900. It was edited by Miss Vir ginia Deaton. There could have been two papers coming out at once in Ione--dates for them are hard to find. Following Miss Dea ton' s editorship, Les Hallon, Mr. Ward, L.E. Acherman and Rev. W.W. Head are list ed as editors. W.W. Head edited the lone Independent. THE OREGON IRRIGATOR Although it did not exist very long, Addison Bennett's Oregon Irrigator attracted considerable attention. He was hired as Irrigon's post master about the second year of that post office's existe nce. Frank Holbrook being listed as the original post master in lyus. Mr. Bennett soon started a weekly news paper in one end of the lit tle postoffice building. He called it the Oregon Irrigator, but changed it later to the Irrigon Irrigator. He had worked on newspapers inKan sas. He is given credit for originating the name Irrigon by taking the first four let ters of irrigation and combin ing them with the last three letters of Oregon. Mr. Ben nett's paper was" full of droll wit, some homespun philos ophy, but not much adver tising." He left Irrigon and worked as a roving corres pondent for the Oregonian, and his little paper died in 1912. Boardman had a paper for a few years in the 1920" s but little has been recorded about it. year. Of Irish descent, this out standing R.N. received her training at St. Joseph's Hos pital in Tacoma Wa. and was first employed right there. The sisters there soon recommended that she accept a position at Vaidez, Alaska with Dr. Dalton-she traveled 7 days by ship to reach Val dez where she was the only R.N. in the area during her service there. AN ARMY NURSE From Valdet she came to St. Vincent's Hospital in Portland where she was em ployed as a night supervi sor. Then came Worl d War After many years of hop ing and planning, Heppner's fine Pioneer Memorial Hospi tal was officially dedicated on June 11, 1950, by Judge Garnet Barratt who had donat ed the land on which It was erected. Many citizens had been most generous in contri buting time, money and equip ment; In fact, no tax funds were used for equipment as all of it was bought with personal subscription funds. The hospital's commanding position on the East Hep pner Hill, Us present lovely landscaping, and its view of 1, and she became an army l' "r T nurse on duty at Fort Lewis, - Wa. When the war ended, . JT;;? civilian hospital desperately na!!!w12!l needed nurses to cope with -2"? the flu epidemic, and Miss jt Clowry was one of 22 who j" J-frJC resigned to work with civi- W3l-' lians. She came to Heppner -JX' Cm ; VI mm- . k ..... .V , in the fall of 1919 to work at the Heppner Sanitorium which was located on Main St. where the Northwestern Motel is now. Doctors Win nard, McMurdo, and Bean of Heppner, and Dr. Chick, then at lone, were practicing there. There was a stove and woodbox in each room; the operating room was up stairs, and it was often ne cessary to run next door to get Blacksmith Tom Brennan to help carry patients up or down the stairs. Tne sani torium closed about 1921. HEPPNER HOSPITAL Heppner had no real hospi tal then until 1927 when Dr. McMurdo bought a house on Quaid St., just above where Elaine George lives now, and enlarged and rebuilt it. In the years between 1921 and 1927 Mrs. Jim Gentry, now Mrs. Walter Rood (Mattie) had a home hospital in the downstairs room of her home, where the Eddie Gundersons live now. There were also several maternity homes op erated by midwives and prac tical nurses. Mattie Rood is still quick to praise Mildred Clowry as" A bout the greatest nurse ever, so efficient, such wonderful help." With the opening of the Heppner Hospital on Quaid St., Nurse Clowry moved in and was given charge. Part of her twenty years there her Aunt, Mrs. Annie Clowry, a practical nurse, helped her there. Miss Clowry remembers many years of long, busy days. She did the buying, kept the place immaculate, and one big day when Dr. Mc Murdo was away at a medi cal meeting, she delivered four babies. A very special little companion for 17 of her 20 years at the Heppner Hospital was her fox terrier, Dixie. Dixie often went hunting with Dr. McMurdo, who would tuck her in a pock et of his hunting coat. After Miss Clowry left in 1948 several persons tried to run the hospital, but found too many problems. Mrs. Mc Murdo says that Miss Clowry was . such a fine manager, IS! A r 6 V , Mildred Clowry, R.N. at the cornerstone of St. Pat rick's church in 1959 while she was working with Dr. McMurdo. was always a wise purchaser of supplies, was so superior to others who tried to carry out similar duties. The usual room charge of Heppner Hos pital was $3 a day. SHE LEAVES AND RETURNS In 1948 Mildred Clowry went to Fort Collins, Co. to stay with and help her aunt, Mrs. Annie Clowry. In 1956 when Doctor's sister-in-law Lulu Hager, who had worked in Dr. McMurdo s office for about 25 years became ill, Miss Clowry came back to Heppner. She lived in the little house near Nora Ras mus' home on Center St. In 1968 Miss Clowryretiredand moved to Pendleton where she lived for a short time at St. Anthony's hospital and found many ways to be help ful there. However, she miss ed Heppner and her church, St. Patrick's and her many friends here, so she returned and moved into the upstairs apartment at Mrs. Bailey's home on Water St. the beautiful summer sunsets add to its practical and scien tific service to the Morrow County area. ADDITIONS In 1955, 20 more beds, in cluding 4 pediatric beds, were added; bringing the total cost of the hospital to approximat ely one half million dollars, financed Jointly through con tributions, tax levies and Fe deral Hill-Burton funds. In 1958 various improvem ents were added; an automa tic ice machine was donated; the laundry was installed; the County Health Nurse quar ters were remodeled Into two wards (adding S more beds and a recreation room; front parking area was widened and Improved." A helpful Hospi tal Auxiliary was Inaugurated in 1958 with providing trans portation one of its services.) ADMINISTRATION The hospital is governed by a Board of Trustees consist ing of S members appointed by the County Court w ho serve without pay and have control over management, maintenance and operation of the institution. This Board Cont. on page 12 1 ? v I I MM m The Quaid Heppner Hospital on St. about 1929 when Miss Clowry lived there and managed it. Like Heppner, I Progress is Important j to Us i 1 tU",UH' f ml THE HOSPITAL AS IT APPEARED SHORTLY AFTER THE NEW WING WAS BUILT ON IN 1954. Pioneer Memorial Hospital llene Wyman, Administrator 676-9133 Heppner