Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (July 6, 1994)
Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, July 6, 1994 - THREE sto p o n H e p p n e r W illo w C r e e k r u n m a r k s en d o f e r a fo r r a ilr o a d tr a in On train l-r: Lloyd Leathers, operation manager, Charles Clayton, conductor and Gary Con ley, engineer are greeted on their last trip to Heppner by a handful of people including John Edmundson (holding flag) and Mayor Bob Jepsen One hundred and six years o f railroading rolled to a stop when a Union Pacific Railroad train made a final run on the Heppner branch line Thursday. June 30. Lloyd L e a th e rs, o p e ra tio n manager for this branch line dur- ing the past 41 years, accom- panied engineer Gary Conley and conductor Charles Clayton. There were no brass bands to greet engine number 2045 that for the last time pulled two cars and a caboose up the Willow Creek track. Only a tew local residents and railroad fans from Walla Walla were on hand when this train stopped at Kinzua Resources Mill to pick up an empty flat car that once carried lumber from the mill to market. Brakeman Bill Brilcs said that it was inevitable that ' l l . P. aban- don this branch line-due to the steady decline o f rail shipments from the area. However when the Oregon Rail and Navigation Company built this line in 1888 it becam e one lifeline for marketing the area’s agricultural products. Conley said he ws board a steam engine that was us ed to pick up livestock that were loaded in cattle cars from the Heppner stockyards, then located at the west edge o f town. Before that time, ranchers drove cattle and sheep to the stockyards at Arlington, where they could be taken to the Pharmacy & Your Health Boardman Pharmacy & Hardware 202 1st. N. W. P.O. Box 170 Boardman. Oregon 97818 481-9474 481-7351 What to Do About Medicine Side Effects According to a recent review of two publications in the journal American Pharmacy, the most common side effects of prescrip tion medicines purchased in 1992 in the United States included skin rash, nausea and vomiting, diar rhea, dizziness, headache, and stomach pain or cramps. Studies have shown that side effects occur most frequently with pain reliev ers, antacids, arthritis medicines, antibiotics, blood thinners, and blood pressure medicines. The companies that distribute medi cines are required to list side ef fects in the literature they enclose with their medicines. In addition to this information, pharmacists have access to refer ence books and computerized in formation systems that keep them up-to-date about side effects. Some computer systems allow the phar macist to print information that is written for the patient or consumer. One of the most important ways to prevent side effects is to read this and other material. This helps one anticipate the possibility of a reac tion. It is important to know what to do in case a reaction does occur while you are taking a medicine. For example, you should know whether or not to discontinue the medicine. Relieving side effects may involve stopping the medi cine or taking a different medicine. After reading about side effects, discuss them with your pharmacist and your physician. lapp* m m . > Bill Briles and Lloyd Leathers fixing the hitch to connect the last ever railroad car to leave Heppner. W illam ette Valley Thousands of pounds < grain once had to be o f this inland area b} wagon. That same horsepower was used Willow Creek railr pioneers like Betty g re a t-g ra n d fa th e r Eskelson, helped to line, i n November 1888 iron horse, that becam Sagebrush Annie, cl way upgrade alon Creek, residents flock« ner to celebrate the city tion as a railhead. Thi corporated county set prosper as a shipping wool and wheat. Henry Heppner. foi t p w n was named, ar Morrow, the county’s drove the last spike at the Heppner line. ” Lo roll and prosper,” sai M ayor Henry Black speech before about p|e who had gathered casion. accordine to tl Photos by Joyce Hughes Last stop, forever developm ent o f south M o rro w C ounty -an era that is now BMCC GED center closed for summer The GED testing center at Blue Mountain Community College in Pendleton will be closed for one month beginning July 13. The regular Wednesday/Friday testing schedule will resume Wednesday, Aug. 10. at 1 p.m. For more information contact the BMCC admissions and advising office, 503 276-1260. Crushed 3” base rock Clean Fill Material Can be picked up at pit or we will deliver. Pit 6V2 miles up from mouth of Lower Rhea Creek, Brenner Canyon. Contact Roger Britt 676-5096 Gary Conley and brakeman Bill Briles getting ready to roll off their corridors. This lessen ed the number o f incidents when the engine’s “ cow catcher” con nected with wanton animals. H o w e v er, th is m ode o f transportation coped with other h a z ard s. T he 1903 flood destroyed the rail line in several places below Heppner. The lines were soon rebuilt. However the Heppner station agent. J.M . Ker- mans and his wife, were among the flo o d ’s fatalities. They became alarmed when flood swept debris battered the railroad station. They died while attemp ting to reach higher ground. Had they remained at the depot, which remained intact, they would have survived. This rail line built with teams o f horses and slip scrapers, cross ed Willow Creek in several places to avoid m ajor bluffs and obstacles. Wooden bridges were prone to flood damage. At M organ, below lone, a bridge collapsed in May 1917, which killed engineer Sam Hanson and section forman Frank Habelt in the wreck. A worn track was blamed for the derailment o f six railroad cars 10 miles south o f lone in October 1918. This time there were no casualties, but damage to train cars was estimated at $6.000. Also there was an estimated loss of $5.(XX) in wood chips loaded in cars. O ver the years im proved highways and large trucks have taken business away from the railroad. Semi-trucks now carry large loads of wheat to elevators near the Port of M orrow, where grain is shipped by barge. In re cent years, large trucks also carry finished lumber and logs to dis tant markets. Willow Creek valley residents will no longer be alerted by a train’s whistle at crossings. Rails and ties will be removed by a c o n tra c to r. L eath ers said. However older residents will remember that it was the railroads who helped in the settlement of the West and contributed to the ELECTRIC INC rxr m fit. 1 ** 'V Serving Umatilla & Morrow Counties Since 1953 24 Hour Emergency Service • Commercial • Farm • Industrial • Residential For A ll O f Your Electrical Needs! FAX: 567-7312 P.O. Box 25 - 1850 N. 1st Herm iston, OR 97838 CCB #02315 r/T H KVROIET ¡ i * Over the years some things never change at a quality dealership S.H.L. TRUCK REPAIRS, INC “We aim to please the ag-based customer. Complete Service & Maintenance on: ★ Ford Diesel 6.9 & 7.3 Engines. it Dodge Diesel Cummins Engines H O N E S T Y -IN T E G R IT Y -R E S P O N S 1 B ÌU T Y -S E R V IC E Doing business for over 45 years in the same old fashioned wav CHEVROLET We now do repair work on air conditioners and reefer units 200 Oldfield St., Hermiston (Behind Copeland Lumber on Hwy 395) Hermiston, Oregon - - -1 Phone 567-6487
