THURSDAY. SEPTEMBER 17, 1936
THE HERMISTON HERALD, HERMISTON, OREGON.
of the railroad from Umatilla east
Mrs. Alex Malcolm.
in 1883, and the increased settle
ment of Umatilla Meadows. To this
was added the surrounding wheat
lands and the rise of the cattle and
sheep business in the vicinity.
Mr. Koontz, who moved from Uma
UTILLA AGENCY FIRST tilla,
opened a large merchandise
business and built a flouring mill
Tall Rye Grass and Wild which he named Henrietta Mills
from the name of old Fort Henri
Game ; Homesteader«
etta. -previously located on the op
posite side of the river near the
Col. Raley Memories.
farm home of Joseph Cunha. Wheat
growing
increased, milling paid and
Echo was founded by J. K.
Koontz. He bought and platted the Echo prospered many years. It is
land into lots and named the place still a livestock and wheat center,
Echo for his daughter. She later be and some of the largest sheepmen in
came Echo. Miller, wife of Charles Oregon live in and near Echo.
As a part of Echo is the well
Miller of the still known firm name
George & Miller. The town was known valley basin called the Uma
brought about through the building tilla Meadows, where one of the
very earliest settlements of eastern
Oregon was established. The Mea-
dows was then covered with tall
rye grass in which Indians could
THE MODEL
ride and not be seen. It was used
GROCERY
for hay in some instances but the
Meadows was chiefly a great winter
Groceries
range for horses and cattle Grass
and water was always plentiful.
Smoked Meats
A heavy growth of cottonwood,
Fresh Vegetables birch,
elder and willow’s grew on
both banks of the river. There was
In the Dorn Building
a profusion of wild roses, currants,
gooseberries and raspberries, and
Echo
Oregon
wild choke cherries. Heavy bunch
grass was on the
surrounding
plains and came down to the tall
Mrs. Alex Malcolm is a daughter
rye grass in the valley. Many places
on the Meadows were swamped and of the late J. H. Koontz, founder of
MUDGE’S PASTIME
wild water grasses, reeds and tules Echo.
grew on them. This was particular
Confections
ly true of the Dillon, Kaufman, John and Stanfield to such an extent that
McCoy and the John Teagle and it was cut for hay to feed the stage
horses at their stations along the
Congratulates the Herald Courtney places.
On the Courtney place (later old mail routes. Also immense white
on its 30th Anniversary. Houser) was a large spring which sage grew in many places which was
is still flowing. The swamps have strong feed for livestock in winter
seasons. This was before the days
long ago disappeared.
Echo
Oregon
To Col. J. H. Raley of Pendleton when so many range stock, horses
we are indebted for some of the in- and cattle, and later sheep, were
brought in and produced in great
teresting and valuable facts of the
£
numbers on these ranges.
old Umatilla Meadows. His family,
it was a wild animal’s paradise
Jonathan Raley, and that of an
but proved the basis for the great
uncle were among the first settlers fortunes and successes that followed
and his young manhood was spent the first immigrant train of 1843,
amidst the scenes he so vividly de- and the discovery of gold in 1849
scribes. 1 He is now in his early and 1860. To quote Col. Raley:
“Game birds, some of the species
Baths - Laundry Agency eighties and his mind so strong now
practically extinct, were in pro
through the years, is clear in its
fusion everywhere. Thousands of
memories of the days when the old wild ducks, praisie chickens, myri
Echo
Oregon
west was in its making.
ads of curlews, an abundance of
In a lengthy interview he stated sage hens and native pheasants
that bunch grass grew between Echo were to be found on the Meadows.
In the winter time especially the
cottonwood trees would be covered
with great flocks of wild prairie
chickens. Nests of these wild birds
were to be found scattered all over
the Meadow’s. Curlews, sage hens
and prairie chickene, now extinct,
existed in myriads.
RAILROAD CAME
ECHO PROSPERED
41
fur
Echo Barber
Shop
The Echo News
“Wild animals, such as coyotes,
lynx and bob cats were numerous
along the river, and some beaver.
Two kinds of rabbits were in abun
dance—the common cotton tail and
the big white tailed jack rabbit. It
was years after my first recollec-
tion." he says, “of the meadows be-
fore the black tailed rabbit, now so
numerous and destructive, made its
appearance in that vicinity. On oc-
casions, to my memory, wild deer
got as far as the Meadows, and were
killed. Miles northeastward, near
the mouth of the Juniper, ranged a
band of antelope.
— ESTABLISHED MARCH 3, 1879 —
W. H. CRARY, EDITOR,
for the past 20 years
without interruption.
HOME
TOWN
PAPER
Due to excessive pasturing the
bunch grass gave way to sagebrush
and other grasses. The wild rye
grass on the Meadows that grew in
such profusion, yielded to sage
brush and greasewood. He says that
in the early days there was very
little salt grass but that it gradually
extended over most of the area of
the old Meadows. As time passed
and
settlement
proceeded
the
swamps of the Meadows disappeared
and the salt grass was displaced by
rich farms and alfalfa fields.
“Improvements of the first set-
tiers were very meager. Cabins were
built of cottonwood logs; floors were
of split cottonwoods called punch
ings. Roofs were made of poles
covered with rye grass and dirt.
Fireplaces were made from alkali
rock, a substance now practically
unfounded in that district. Strange
as it may seem, fences were con
structed by throwing up sod
Spiralator
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EASY
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WASHER
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the Spark
5
heats the “LIVING ZONE’
of your rooms—NOT the ceiling!
between two ditches three or four
Butter Creek Hounds.
feet high. These sod and ditch
Farmers of Butter Creek during
fences were replaced by the old
worn rail stake and rider fences, the big cattle days kept packs of
which were finally replaced by the bounds for coyote hunting which be-
modern barbed and woven wire came a great sport. Coyotes, as well
fences. A few of the old log cabin
as wild cats and lynx, were numer
homes remained many years as out
ous, and neither state nor govern
buildings.
"There were but few settlers on ment provided bounty or protection.
the Meadows prior to 1870." Col. Young calves, colts, pigs and sheep
Raley said. “They held the lands were often killed by the range var
usually by squatter's rights. some mints.
following later with homesteads.
The only record I find of any lands
SHORTS
patented on the Meadows earlier
than 1869, was a patent to John
The backwater lake at the diver
McCoy, dated December 10, 1864.
The next patents were in 1869 to sion works of the West Extension
Frank Maddock, John Teel, David was named Lake Lane in honor of
Coffman, Burr Johnson. Henry J. Franklin K. Lane, secretary of the
Raley. Eli Short and Stephen A. Interior, who granted the funds for
Trimble, in 1870. Patents were is building the West Extension.
Joe Cunha uses the first jail built
sued to Burr Johnson and Daniel
Simmons to John Bradburn in 1871; in Eastern Oregon as a smokehouse.
and to Thomas Robbins and Jona It is 12x20 feet of heavy hewn logs.
C. F. Morrow of Walla Walla,
than Raley in 1872.
On the east side of the river G. postmaster there 12 years, planted
W. Palmer was located about half 20 acres to orchard in the Westland
a mile south of Echo. No settlement district and grew the trees to ma
existed where the town of Echo turity.
R. Alexander of Pendleton, has
now is located.
served
thirty years as vice president
On the east side J. C. Franklin
located, about one-half mile up the of the First National Bank of Her
river from where Stanfield now miston. He conducted a large gen
stands. The first post office known eral merchandise store in Pendleton
as “The Meadows" was kept by fifty years, and is now vigorous at
86.
Franklin at this point.
W. D. Fletcher, father of Bob
In 1862-63, W. W. Brassfield
Fletcher
of orchestra prominence,
also owned the land now owned by
Joseph Kunha. Next to him was drilled the tunnel In the cliffs south
Louis Tuerman. Where Fred An- of Cold Springs for coal. Instead of
drews now lives, was Ray Geddis, anthracite, it proved to be glass pro
who brought the first flock of sheep duced from ancient geological heat.
to the Meadows.
West of Geddis was H. J. Raley,
Mrs. Fred Hendley.
and then Dr. John Teel, a part of
whose land is still owned by heirs
to the doctor. Another settlement
was E. A. Wilson, a civil engineer,
who later laid out the town of Pen
dleton. William Carter had another
place and owned and operated the
first dairy. His place was bought by
Jonathan Raley and is now owned
by Frank Corea.
Jonathan Raley owned and oper
ated a line of ox freight teams on
the old Oregon trail. N. B. Evans,
another settler, owned and operated
a ferry near Stanfield on the Butter
Creek road through the Meadows.
West of Evans was Hamilton, now
the Mendanhall place and D. Sim
sons homestead, now owned by Harry
Andrews. Farther west was Lucien
Everett, who later became a promi
nent eastern Oregon lawyer. He op
erated a freight train to the mines
of Grant county. The John McCoy,
now Mendanhall place, was the first
patented land on the Meadows. Oth
er settlers were David Coffman and
Alfred Jobe. At the present time
most of these lands are embraced In
the Umatilla ranch.
The first post office on the Mea
dows was conducted by J. C. Frank
lin about a half mile west f Stan Mrs. Fred Hendley is a daughter of
field. The first store was at Twelve the late J. H. Koontz, founder of
Mile house now at Stanfield. The Echo.
first school was 300 yards from the
big spring on the Houser place. The
first brick building was built (also
first in Umatilla county) on the
Carter place and later owned by
Jonathan Raley. The bricks were
burned at the Ten Mile house. The
first physician was Dr. John Teel.
The first lawyer was Lucien Everett.
Pearson Brother’s
GARAGE
Auto Repairing
Accessories - Gas - Oil
E. P. Pearson &
H. E. Pearson, Prop
ECHO MEAT
MARKET
Groceries - Vegetables
Fresh Meats
STORAGE LOCKERS
Swift Cream Station
Agency
—In Business 22 Years—
HI WAY SERVICE
STATION
“Bun” Moore, Prop.
Standard Products
—Lunch Goods
In Umatilla County
55 Years.
Echo
Oregon
TEXACO SERVICE
STATION
E. E. Garner, Manager
Texaco Products
Cold Dring«
Lunch Goods
Confections
Oregon
Echo
2
TOURIST SERVICE
STATION
Shell Products
—Bottled Drinks
—Confections
—Lunch Goods
In Business Nine Years
Echo
Oregon
Echo Flour Mills
The first irrigation ditch was
taken out of the Umatilla river
southwest of Echo near the head of
the Westland canal, by Tom and Al
Flow, and enlarged by Dr. Teel and
Jonathan Raley.
The first settlement in Umatilla
county was at Utilla, just west of
the Echo bridge, where Fort Henri
etta was located in 1851.
— SATISFACTION GUARANTEED —
Flour and Feeds - General Storage
Coal - Building Material
JOS. CUNHA, Sr., Owner - CHAS. REESE. Mgr
Born on Umatilla Meadows
Mrs. Frances Yerxa of Umatilla,
was born on the Umatilla Meadows
in 1864. Her step-father built the
old mill at Umatilla in 1870. Wheat
was brought in by boat and freight
wagon. Her father was Samuel Mar
kham, whose parents crossed the
plains from Michigan in 1851. She
married Dick Yerxa in 1880. He
helped build the O. & W. into Uma
tilla where they lived many years.
ECHO SCHOOL BUILDING
The Spark oil heater discharges cir
culating heat through a front open
ing. instead of at the top, and its
bright, cheerful, fan-shaped flame
. Iso gives you direct, radiant heat
through the front door. These two
Spark features mean that Spark
cives you immediate warmth in the
“living zone” of your rooms, and on
the floors. That spells more com
fort. plus fuel economy.
PAGE FIVP
GEORGE & MILLER CO
ECHO, OREGON
Continued Service in this Territory Since 1906
General Merchandise
• DRY GOODS
MEN’S FURNISHINGS
• LADIES’ READY TO WEAR
LINGERIE
Echo Petroleum Co
J. C. Sam Nye
Phone 302
SHOES
SCHOOL SUPPLIES
Echo, Oregon
5
Echo school building la sufficient fcr grade and high school.
On the
grounds is • large gymnasium and numerous shade trees.
2