Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 16, 1976)
3 H H 1 I i i i A i 4 i THE GAZETTE-TIMES. Heppner. OR, Thursday, Dec. 1. 17, Psg 3 ik. " r 1 1 .tl. ' . w iV. li uil5-- J ,1 L- ii - . ' - - - tall " - Nof many have seen Heppner from this viewpoint. e f ft Kg r r 0m n V A I 1 i IS" r . f ( Old Man Time alive & ticking in Heppner Since 1!K)2, one way or another, the Scth Thomas clock In the Morrow County Courthouse has told the time. As time would tell, the clock has been transferred from its original weight type motion to electricity. But she still keeps ticking and tolling its bell. The clock has a somewhat sketchy history and even many of the long time residents of the area don't recall where or how. But most can remember when, since three huge clock faces, facing all but south, tell the time, all the time. Even at night. A street light has been installed in the clock tower, the highest of the three stages of the clock which bears a gold plate and the date, November 1902. on it. It hasn't ticked continuously. For a time, when it was changed over to electricity, the hands stopped. And during a big wind in 19M, two of the faces blew out and had to be replaced. And in I9f5, bullets forced more glass replacement. Tall tales always seem to follow Father Time and the Morrow County Courthouse clock is no exception. Though details are pretty thin, one report said that during the big flood of 1903. a year after this clock was born, that it struck funny. Something like 13 chimes or something to that effect came with the destruction of Heppner. It's had its fair share of upkeep, even if the fair share came a fair shake late at times. More years ago than most can remember, Cliff Aldrich of lone was hired by lone's Lion's Club to do some work on the clock that included scraping and painting and overall clean up. Ray Hoyce. who was Lion's Club president then in lone, said that Heppner people didn't exactly know what to think when the lone Lions vowed that they were going to come over "and clean their clock." But the job got done. Two motors move the six hands of the three faced timepiece. One motor works to run the clock and the other works the bell. To gel lo the clock is no easy chore, even for Kverett Kiethly . the clock's caretaker since 1972. Kiethly has to climb three flights of ladders to gel to the clock and oil about every 30 days. The first door into the tower starts next to the Justice of the Peace's office. The closet there has a step ladder, built who knows when. It leads to the attic of the courthouse. Through a big door leads to the motors for this overgrown pocket watch. Then, up another ladder, through a sliding door In the ceiling to the belfry. A huge white bell with a large hammer piece, hooked to one of the motors, sends sharp toll that reportedly can be heard ten miles away on a clear night. Then. H i over a railing and up another short ladder lo the actual clock faces Inside that four sided room are the remains of many old good limes and bad ones. too. The bad ones are for the starlings and other birds that Journeyed into the housing some way and never escaped Bui the good ones are all the names that have been Inscribed and written on Ihe Inside walls. haling back to the early lx. many of the names will still ring a bell, so lo speak, with locals In the area Aldrich said he has a souvenir from his work In the lower ln years ago He found a shingle lhal had been carved into a knife with the name "Doc Sherer" inscribed on II K.ng any bells with thai name? Try these others: Bessie Dexter. May 14. I. Kllis K. Williams. 19.17. Dutch I'lrtch. April 77. IM3. Kvefcn M Fearln. September l, IMJ, J L Jenkins, June 14, Margaret Doolittle, I9W. Karen Nelson. 9X. Bed Hicks. Jut 14. IU. Hetty Lnvgren. IMO. Ceorge Peck, January . 1914 Bert Blratman. 1W. tactile McDuffy. IWI; F.arl Bryant. 1941; Merle Leathers. Jack Howard. I9I. Brownelle Pratt. iU. or Brian Wright. I9IJ Some of Ihose name are significant. Ked Hicks, though this writer rte nol know for sure, could have been related lo nr evenTIIK A II llicka. who at one lime ran this newspaper. J.ihn Jenkins was written aUml In Cites French's JMieslrads ami Heritages About John Jenkins. French wrote of a boy and a girl, about IS years old. who could have been J L. Jenkins Of rmirse. the lnvgren name Is still familiar and still living In thee part So Is the Peck name and (Wwg peck w as one of the county's father commissioners. George Bleakman was also a commissioner and upon closer inspection of the old graphite in the wood, Bert Bleatman could be Bert Bleakman. Lucille McDuffee was no doubt a relation to CD. McDuffee. who in the early 190Cs made a name for himself by shooting a would be train robber in La Grande and later became a sheriff's deputy. Speaking of sheriffs, reports say that Earl Bryant, one of the signers in the tower, was in fact a county sheriff here a few years back. The names just add a little more to a growing history of a great county and a great state. As long as the graphite doesn't bother anyone and it remains, it alone will be a lasting bit of history in Heppner. The old courthouse clock is ticking still today. Let's hope it continues to. It s what you might call a 'timely' piece of Morrow County history. And let's hope time won't tell when it stops. f "i i mm 1 i" .11 I i. J Time has forced Everett Klethley to resign In January but the clock will keep on working. Story, photos by Wil C. Phinnoy 1 1 . ,saufc Ever wonder about the inside of a clock. Everett Klethley knows what makes this one tick. He oils it every 30 days. :'(:' -v.;MriiiiiMy!ji, The machine's plaque sayS made by Seth Thomas Clock Co., Thomaston, Conn. U. S. A. The date is Nov. 20, 1902 f I m t f ,rv 111 fl TLM i m m -.h ' 1 If ' I , I I I I ill ' . , a V1 1 !h Inli! 'nihn1'!!!: ; ,,rV I i i l s 1 1 1 I II ' ,i: M , t r z 1 r : " v v-! 1 f '-'W , r :-y si!1! I! H They fust don't make'em like they use to. A two part machine works clock arms and bell. 1 ! 8jrrsraM
