Heppner Gazette-Times. Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, February 18, 2004 - SEVEN
Shortly after the city was incorporated, a group o f aggressive citizens prom oted the PATTERSON DRUGSTORE
idea of a railroad com ing up the W illow Creek Valley. H eppner had the reputation o f being a
wool capitol and needed an outlet for wool and wheat. The O regon Railroad and Navigation
A railroad engineer ow ned the Patterson Drug Store. After working for the railroad
Company willingly put in the railroad, and the first train to arrive in Heppner was in Novem ber
for 35 years. John Ancel Patterson purchased the drug store in 1888. He was the first locomotive
of 1888. Henry H eppner kicked o ff a gay celebration, and Jackson M orrow drove in the last
engineer to bring a train to H eppner upon com pletion o f the line. He was bom in 1845 and
spike.
died in 1928. Patterson was a m em ber o f the first graduating class o f Heppner High School.
He said, “T here w ere six o f us.” He attended Pacific U niversity for tw o years, and then
transferred to the U niversity o f Buffalo, graduating in the school o f pharmacy. He m arried
Addie Bean. They both survived the flood.
STONE MASONS KEENEY AND ROBERTS
W hat is now the M urray R exal Drug Store w as built in 1901. Stone m asons were
Keeney and Roberts. It was built out o f blue basalt from a quarry south of the city limits from
the present day O sm in Ranch. It was trim m ed with red sand stone. Cost of the building was
$
10 , 000 .
WILLOWS LODGE IOOF
Adjoining the M urray Building and last to be depicted on the mural is the W illows
Lodge No. 66, IO O F Building. Like the M urray building, it too was described as a massive
building, being built out o f solid blue basalt with a red sandstone front. It was considered ultra
m odem and cost $ 16,(XK).
(L-R): Pat Anderson, Tami Rietmann, Albert and Beverly Wright and Howard Gilliam.
By this tim e, H eppner was a thriving city with m any main street businesses. On the
west side of M ain Street and north o f the Rhea and Welsh General Store, was the Gilliam and
Bisbee Hardware store. Frank Gilliam m oved to eastern Oregon in 1870 and hom esteaded at
Spring Hollow just east of Hardman. Frank Gilliam and Tim Bisbee formed a partnership and
started Gilliam and Bisbee Hardware Store. G illiam served as county com m issioner, county
treasurer, and was m ayor o f H eppner at the tim e o f the 1903 flood. He was also president o f
the First National Bank o f Heppner for a time. Tim Bisbee was a traveler from the beginning.
His younger days were on the east coast o f M aine. He was bitten by the “gold fever” and went
to California to find, not gold, but pain. He traveled to Oregon City but eventually wound up in
M orrow County w here he married Julie W right in 1873. Two children were bom , Louis and
Lillian. Strange as it m ay seem, Effie, the other daughter o f Albert and Julia W right married
Frank Gilliam N ovem ber 1882. Eventually Louis Bisbee would becom e an active partner in
the Gilliam and Bisbee enterprise.
The descendents of Frank Gilliam and Tim Bisbee that are still living in Morrow County
are H ow ard G illiam , A lbert W right and N ed C lark, M att Clark, Bob H ager and Jan H ager
Evans from Irrigon, Rene Devin, Tami Anderson Rietmann, Pat Wright Anderson. Kel wayne
Haguewood and Kevin Haguewood. and Louis Gilliam from Condon.
In the year 1901, in excess of 26 new building projects were constructed; all o f these
just tw o-and-a-half years prior to the devastating flood o f 1903.
In our wish to show more of M orrow County history on the Ag Museum building, we
are in need of more funding. Any size o f donation is appreciated. It only takes $ 10 to paint
another foot. For any donation o f $ 100 or more, a signed and numbered print will be available.
For $200 or more, a fram ed print will be available. Send donations to the Farm Foundation,
P.O. Box 515, H eppner, OR 97836.
The goal is to raise enough m oney to paint at least another 60 feet this year and
eventually 121 feet, which would cover the Riverside Street side of museum. A sketch is now
on the building except for the Krebs Ranch, which was not com pleted due to bad weather.
THOMAS HUMPHREYS
.
In 1892. Thomas Humphreys married Lizzi Rood. Humphreys opened the Humphreys
Drug Store on Main Street. Children of Thom as and Lizzi were Leta, Evelyn and Roland. Leta
Hum phreys carried on the business from her father and eventually moved into what is now the
Murray Rexal Drug Building.
LICHTENTHAL BOOTS AND SHOE STORE
M oving dow n M ain Street we find the Lichtenthal Boot and Shoe Store. M athias
Lichtenthal was bom in Germany. He cam e to H eppner to form a new business. Lichtenthal
spent his first 17 years getting his education in Germany. He then got passage to N ew York
where he becam e a shoemaker. In 1879, he cam e to Heppner and went into the shoe business.
He later enlarged his bus'^ess to include general merchandise. He resided on Baltimore Street.
He was on the city council for three term s and becam e the county treasurer in 1898. He was
a m em ber o f the IO O F Lodge No. 66.
Bob Kilkenny and Butch Laughlin with Veys’ wool wagon.
T.R. HOWARD
T.R. Howard advertised "Good Goods Good Prices.” Groceries, provisions, glassware,
along w ith fine teas and coffee w ere sold. H ow ard cam e from Illinois and was m arried to
R ebecca Long and their fam ily crossed the plains on the O ld O regon Trail. As a young lad,
Howard was playing on a wagon tongue and fell, breaking his jaw bone. He carried the effects
o f that injury all his life. He wore a m oustache to cover the protrusion o f broken bone. The
family settled on Little Butter Creek. They hom esteaded and also farm ed additional ground.
E ventually the Indian W ars forced them into H eppner w here it w as safer. In 1885, when
M orrow County was created, O regon’s governor appointed H ow ard to be county assessor.
He was elected sheriff in 1886, and carried m any distinctions in government. He then formed
a partnership with A.P. Sloan to develop a general provision store. Unfortunately the Howard
home was washed away during the 1903 Hood, killing Thom as, Rebecca and their daughters
Mary, Nellie and M abel.
Shirley Rugg, with Dick and Virginia Wilkinson in front of Wilkinsons' wool wagon.
THOMSON AND SONS DEPARTMENT STORE
Sharon Lewis with Thompsons' wool wagon.
Stam ping G irls visit A ssisted Living
Meredith Thomson Walters
Jam es Thom son cam e to the H eppner area in 1892 with Jack Hynd from Canada. He
eventually opened up a grocery store north o f w hat is now M urray Drug Store. In 1898, he
and his brothers Charlie and George purchased property from Henry Heppner. That property
was the Lichtenthal Boot and Shoe Store as well as the adjoining m usic store. The property
then becam e the famous Thom son and Sons Department Store. Son, Jim Sr. ran the store until
tw o year before his death in 1950. Jim Jr. carried on with the store until 1978. This was 52
years o f providing the H eppner com m unity with groceries. M eredith Thom son Walters. Jim
Jr.’s daughter, currently resides in Heppner.
The
S ta m p e r s
A nonym ous 4-H C lub spent
three m eetings m aking and
stam ping out Valentine treat
b a g s fo r th e re s id e n ts at
W illo w C r e e k T e r ra c e
A ssisted Living. Several 4-
Hers delivered the Valentine
bags on Friday. Feb. 13 and
visited with the residents.
Legion and
Auxiliary to
meet
Those attending were
Kristen VanCleave. W hitney
S m ith . C a s s e y A rb o g a s t,
The American Legion
S a r a h S tillm a n , j u n io r
and
Auxiliary
will be meeting
m e m b e r- C h e ls e a H am s,
on
M
onday.
Feb. 23, at 7
lead er Judie L aughlin and
p.m..
in
the
M
ethodist
Church
assistant Phyllis Piper.
The next meeting will basement in Heppner.
he at the laughlin residence on
M arch 3.
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