Medford mail tribune., August 31, 1958, Image 10

10 MAIL TRIBUNE, Medford, Origan, Sunday, August 31, 193S
nlod
On
Posses
siir Coir:
Km
Interesting Part
Of History Noted
For Entire Area
(Edilor'i note: Following
Is a re-creation of a ialk
giren by Dr. Francis D.
Hainei, Jr., at the dedica
tion of a plaque at the site
of the old Rogue River
Valley Railroad station in
Medford. The plaque was
dedicated Saturday at the
Crater Lake Motors build
ing on Main rU where part
of the tracks still are visi
ble. The following is not
the text of Dr. Haines talk,
but a re-creation of it in
manuscript form.)
By DR. FRANCIS
D. HAINES JR.
Some of you may be won
dering why we have chose
to commemorate the Rogue
River Valley Railroad. It
was such a small railroad. It
ran only from Medford to
Jacksonville, a track distance
of five and one-half miles.
It never had more- than two
locomotives in service at one
time and had only one pas
senger car.
This little railroad is an in
teresting and vital part of
our history. It was begun
and built by local capital. It
was a local enterprise and it
had an important part in the
development of our Rogue
River valley. In its colorful
history, it played a part in
the lives of the citizens of the
valley, socially and economi
cally, that cannot be over
looked. The Oregon and California
Railroad was responsible for
the construction of the Jack
sonville line. The decision of
the buiders of the O and C to
by-pass Jacksonville left the
county seat in a predicament.
The Rogue River Valley Rail
road was their answer to the
problem.
O and C Bankrupt
The O and C was broke
when it hit the valley. It was
only by a last gasp, super
human effort that the line
was built as far as Ashland.
The effort forced the line into
bankruptcy. After two years,
it was taken over by the
Southern Pacific and the line
to California was completed,
but Jacksonville was still off
the railroad.
There were several good
reasons for by-passing Jack
sonville. The owners of the
townsite of Medford made the
railroad an offer that was
difficult to refuse. The road
was given enough land for its
right of way, yards, ware
houses and every other block
in the townsite.
From an engineering stand
point, Medford was a better
point than Jacksonville. A
line to Jacksonville would be
an expensive detour with
difficult grade problems.
Then, too, there was nothing
to be gained by building to
Jacksonville. The railroad
would still have all of the
Jacksonville trade. Jackson
ville had to come to the rail
road. The only reason for the
railroad to go to Jacksonville
was to pay taxes and that did
not require track. Had the
town of Jacksonville raised
a large enough cash bonus,
the railroad probably would,
have built to Jacksonville
anyway as it was in desper
ate financial straits but the
citizens of Jacksonville could
not do this.
By 1890, Jacksonville was
becoming desperate. The cen
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I
WESTERN THRIFT
30 North Central Avo.
VALLEY 'CANNONBALL'
Rogue River Valley railroad,
ford and Jacksonville in the
ceived commemoration by the
sus figures showed that Ash
land was more than twice as
large as the county seat and
Medford was nearly the same
size. Both towns were on the
railroad. The solution, then,
was for Jacksonville to get a
railroad. It was believed that
a rail connection would place
the old town back in its posi
tion as the leading communi
ty of the county.
A corporation was formed,
the Jacksonville - Medford
Railroad company, and prepa
rations were made for build
ing a line. Judge Silas J. Day
was placed in charge of ac
quiring the right of way. The
job was done by August.
The next problem was con
struction of the line. The val
ley company was not pre
pared to do this so a bonus
of $20 thousand was sub
scribed, 57,500 by Medford
citizens and $12,500 from
Jacksonville, and a Corvallis
firm began construction of
the road.
Plague Construction
Difficulties plagued the con
struction of the line. By Nov.
1, it was apparent that the
road would not be in qpera
tion by Jan. 1, 1891, as re
quired by the terms of the
bonus. A Portland firm,
Honeyman, DeHart and com
pany, took over the job. Con
struction moved ahead rap
idly. The track was laid
though not ballasted by New
Year's day. The company bor
rowed a 25-ton locomotive to
make the trip to Jacksonville.
The locomotive was too
heavy for the rain - soaked
right of way still unballasted.
It wound up in the ditch be
fore it got out of Medford.
Impressed by the good faith
of the company, the men sub
scribing to the bonus extend
ed the time allowed.
The people of Jacksonville
were disappointed. A huge
ball had been planned to cele
brate the arrival of the first
train and black powder had
been stockpiled to "shoot the
anvils" to celebrate the oc
casion. The first train ar
rived on Jan. 15.
The people were unpre
pared when the whistle of the
locomotive anounced the ap
proach of the first train. With
in minutes, however, the
powder was hauled out and
anvils began flying through
the air, as the town rocked
to the explosions.
Had to Walk Home
Carried away by the en
thusiasm of the occasion, two
young ladies of Jacksonville
became the first to buy tickets
and make the ride from Jack
sonville 4o Medford. It was a
costly honor for the two had
to walk home. The Jackson
ville paper said that they
found the return trip a bit
wearying.
The train was an immediate
sensation. A group of Masons
from Medford chartered it to
run into Jacksonville for the
regular Wednesday meeting
of the Warren Lodge. Nearly
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Based on wttt-ieimt ertated hy relief
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in Tirend.
Dial SP 3-5371
Above is a picture of the old
which operated between Med-
late 1890's. The railroad re-
Siskiyou Pioneer Sites Founda-
every person in town made
the trip during that first
month.
Regular train service was
established on Feb. 12. The
track was not yet completely
ballasted and the depots were
still under construction. A
further problem was in roll
ing stock. The locomotive and
cars for the line had not ar
rived' so service was continu
ed with the little locomotive
borrowed from the Union Pa
cific and cars borrowed from
the Southern Pacific.
Charier Train
The railroad became an im
portant part of Jacksonville
life. In addition to the regular
train service, the people fre
quently chartered the train
for special occasions. Baseball
was the big sport of the valley
in those days. There was a
regular league and the towns
turned out en masse to cheer
the local favorites. When the
play-offs came around in the
fall, the local teams were fre
quently strengthened with
rrfajor league or coast league
ball players for the occasion.
The train was chartered to
take Jacksonville people
around the valley to follow
their team. The line of the
Southern Pacific was bor
rowed for runs to Ashland,
Gold Hill and Grants Pass.
Special trains were run to
the county fair, to Fourth of
July celebrations, to special
events at the hot springs
above Ashland, and to the
Chautauqua. Special attrac
tions at the theaters of Med
ford or Ashland also called
for special trains as the promi
nent citizens of the communi
ty turned out fo roperas.'plays
and other touring attractions.
Important lo Children
The train became an im
portant part of the lives of
Jthe children, too. A favorite
sport was to grease the track
near the Jacksonville school.
The children could then
watch' the frantic efforts of
the locomotive to make' the
grade outside their school
room windows. Others took
the hand cars for evening
trips to Medford, flying down
the grade at high speed.
On one occasion, the editor
of the Jacksonville paper be
came irate. He was bound for
his "mail as the evening train
arrived. As it passed him, sev
eral forty-five cartridges set
on the track were exploded,
fragments nearly wounding
him. Had juvenile delinquen
cy been invented, he would
have flayed the delinquents.
As it was, he had to be con
tent with such terms as "hooli
ganism", ruffians" and "young
scoundrels". He predicted a
bad end for all of them.
The train had its share of
encounters with livestock,
too, A prize Jersey heifer
came out second best in one
meeting and some" horses
were seriously damaged dash
ing against a barbed wire
fence when caught on the
right of way by the little
engine.
Prime Source of Dreams
The railroad was a prime
source of dreams for the resi
dents of Jacksonville. It was
hailed , as the Jacksonville
Pacific and all sorts of
schemes were proposed for
extending the line either to
Crescent City or Port Orford.
Once this was done, it was
believed that Jacksonville
would become the big metro
polis between Portland and
San . Francisco, rivalling both
of them. Lines were proposed
to Eagle Point via Central
Point, and on to the interior.
Hopes were revived in 1915
when the Bullis interests pur
chased the road. The line was
connected with the Medford
street railway system and
electrified as far as Jackson
ville. The railroad was not
profitable, however, and a
trip to the coast convinced the
new owners that a coast route
was not feasible. The road
was turned back to the Bar
nums in 1918.
Valley residents were not
to give up so easily. The road
was taken over by Mr. Gag
non and re-incorporated as
the Medford - Coast Railroad
and the talk revived of a
seaport connection. Mr. Gag
non failed to make a go of the
line. An auto jitney service
tion recently when it dedicated a plaque at the site of the
Medford depot of the railroad' at the Crater Lake Motors
building.
on the new highway from
Medford to Jacksonville ate
into his passenger traffic so
heavily that he was forced to
install his own jitney line to
compete.
Long Awaited Prosperity
Hope revived, however,
when Mr. John Opp of the
Opp mine purchased the
route.'To the people of Jack
sonville, the line was going
to bring the long awaited
prosperity.
This effort, too, came to
naught. The line was not op
erated as a common carrier
after 1920. The roadbed de
teriorated and the rolling
stock went into the yards.
The road again reverted to
the Barnum interests.
Mr. George Barnum of
Medford, (who unveiled the
plaque), made a run over the
line in a locomotive in 1925.
He feels fortunate that he was
able to make' the run without
an accident. The roadbed was
shot. Operation of the line
would require a complete re
building of the road bed
Mr. Barnum petitioned the
Oregon Public Utilities Com
mission for permission to dis
mantle the line. In the hear
CAMOUFLAGED This trailer-owner, to over it and rigged a screen at one end. A
protect his dwelling from the elements and porch separates the trailer from a garage
disguise its appearance, has built a shed area for the truck.
SPRUCED UP - Here is one example of on single lots
how trailer-dwellers can improve the ap- porch, awning,
pearance of their trailers when they settle contribute to a
Lumber Prices
Continue Increase
Lumber prices continued to
increase last week on standard
and better dimension items of
all species, according to
Crow's Lumber Market News
service, Portland.
Factors contributing to the
climb were log shortages due
to fire weather shutdowns, a
scarcity of box cars, uncertain
ty as to whether there will be
a mill and woods strike, plus
strong, steady demand from
consuming areas, Crows said.
Standard and better grades
of Douglas fir, White fir and
hemlock have gained a dollar
or two in price, the news
service said. Studs have
shown ah upward trend, but
not so pronounced as dimension.
ing, one die-hard petitioned
that the line continue in op
eration. The Commission
ordered the sale of the line
to any group interested in
continuing operation, provid
ed they met the value of the
property dismantled. '
Purchased by City
No group appeared willing
to operate the line. In Novem
ber, 1925, the line was pur
chased by the City of Medford
and was dismantled. . The
Rogue River Valley Railroad
had passed out of existence.
It is not surprising. Not
only was the road in poor
condition but Jacksonville
was rapidly diminishing in
importance. It was obvious
that Medford was going to
get the county seat in the
next election. Mining had
dwindled away to nothing.
Continued operation of the
railroad was no longer pos
sible. Thus closed one of the most
interesting and colorful chap
ters in the rich history of
southern Oregon. The old de
pot in Jacksonville and the
plaque that was unveiled are
all that remain of this pioneer
enterprise.
400 National Guard
Officers Plan Meeting
Salem More than 400
Oregon Army and Air Nation
al Guard officers will attend
the 31st annual conference of
the National Guard Associa
tion of Oregon at the Port
land International Airport
Sept. 6. The confeence will be
held in , the Oregon Air Na
tional Guard hangar.
According to Maj. Gen. Har
ry C. Brumbaugh, association
president, the one day confer
ence will be represented by
Guard officers from 90 Ore
gon National Guard units lo
cated in 39 communities
throughout the state.
AN UNNEEDED PRIZE
Wellingborough, England
(UPD - Harry Clegg, who won
free haircuts for a year in a
competition, wondered today
whether he shouldn't just
settle for a scalp masage. He
is bald.
Trailer Owners Seek Pleasant Sites,
Settle In City's Residential Areas
By ERIC WENTWORTH
Mail Tribune Staff Writer
(Second in a Series)
More than . two million
Americans live today in
house trailers-or to use the
preferred term, "mobile
homes."
Many live in trailer courts,
or "mobile home lodges."
Some people in this group-
construction workers, farm
laborers, retired people tour
ing the country-move from
place to place as their work
or inclination leads them.
They may stay one month,
three months, six months-
and then push on.
A majority of trailer court
residents, however, are more
permanent. They majf stay
several years. They are gen
erally gregarious by nature,
and enjoy the atmosphere of
a close-knit community.
Neighborly Attitudes
A well-run tracer court en
courages neighborly attitudes
and cooperation in such vari
ous ways as setting up maga
z i n e libraries, baby-sitting
and the formation of social
clubs.
Some people live in trailer
courts simply because they
cannot afford buyingand im
proving a lot of their own. A
modern trailer court provides
sewer, water and electric con
nections, a concrete stand and
patio and often a carport.
But trailer courts-at least
in most communities, and
Medford is one of them-suf-fer
from one great disadvan
tage. Thanks to a traditional
in residential areas. Roof,
trellises, landscaping - all
look of permanence.
ARABS GET LOAN
Berlin- (UPD -East Germany
granted the United Arab Re
public a $20,250,000 loan in
an economic agreement signed
here Friday after six days of
negotiating. The East Ger
man press office said the loan
would be in the form of long
term deliveries of complete
industrial plants, industrial
equipment and machine tool
products.
Soles Rentals
folding
WHEEL
CHAIRS
Open Sundays and Holidays
1 0 a.m. to 9 p.m."
Weekdays 8:30 .m. to 10 p.m.
HUDSON'S PHARMACY
61 E. Main Ph. SP 3-5345
1 Block East Hawthorne jPark
BACKYARD - In this case, the trailer has Apparently no effort has been made to
been wedged between a shed and a garden, improve the trailer's site and appearance.!
Note the roof of the main house behind it. . .
prejudice on the part of the
general public and city offi
cials alike, they are limited
by zoning laws to commercial
or industrial areas.
Unpleasant Conditions
In such areas they are oft
en subjected to a variety of
unpleasant conditions. The
roar of trucks and heavy traf
fic, exhaust fumes and odors
from nearby factories, un
sightly storefronts and the
glare of neon signs by night
these are but a few of the
"drawbacks.
It is difficult for the court
proprietor and the individual
trailer owners to take pride
in the appearance of their
property in such surround
ings. For this reason, and per
haps in the interests of great
er privacy, other trailer resi
dents prefer a more reclusive
existence. Tucked away in
the back yards of other houses
or set up on small lots of
their own, there are single
trailers scattered through
many of Medford's residential
areas.
It is difficult to figure out
how many trailers are so sit
uated, since a person would
have to go out and count them
one by one. The city building
department, while responsi
ble for them, cannot begin to
keep track. ,
"We lack the manpower,"
says Oliver R. McNeel, Med
ford's building inspector. "It
would be a fulltime job for
one man."
Becomes Building
According to the city's ex
isting trailer ordinance,
passed Jan. 20, 1942, a trailer
becomes a building as , soon
as its wheels are removed. As.
such,, it is subject to all the
restrictions of the city's zon
ing and building code.
And the city must grant it
a building permit before its
existence becomes legal.
Going by the ordinance,
there are apparently dozens
of illegal trailers in Medford.
McNeel recalls issuing but
"two or three" permits to
trailers on single lots, and
none to trailers parked in
back yards. '
Refused Applications
He has refused several ap
plications for permits and or
dered some trailer residents
to comply with the legal re
quirements or leave the
premises. But he is one of the
first to agree there are many
violations existing today.
The city's requirements for
single trailers as for houses,
include a minimum lot size of
5,000 square feet, and a solid
foundation-not just up on
blocks. The trailer must be
connected with the munici
pal sewer and water systems.
Its wiring must conform to
the electrical code.
Furthermore, the dimen
sions of its rooms must be at
least the building code's min-
imums. In 1942, this particu
TUalt i V -. : - '
Men and women hear again with nothing
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research discovery. Only YOU will know
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Yet you use both ears (just as normal per-
E-Zone: Everything worn at EYE-EAR
nothing worn anywhere else.
c
C. R. ADAMSON, Manager
lar requirement successfully
slammed the door to almost
every trailer in existence. To
fit the minimums, a trailer
would have to be at least 40
feet long, according to Mc
Neel. They just didn't make
them that big in those days.
Larger Trailers
The recent trend to larger
trailers has changed the pic
ture radically. The big trail
ers can, in fact, fulfill the
code's specifications. Because
of this, and because the own
ers had met the other re
quirements, the building de
partment has issued permits
to "two or three" trailers.
City officials, including Mc
Neel and City Manager Rob
ert A. Duff do not like this
"loophole" by which trailers
quality as houses. It is a
known fact, according to
Duff, that they tend to lower
neighborhood property val
ues. He states that the city's
next trailer ordinance will
almost certainly prohibit
them.
Trailer owners who buy
lots for their trailers plan as
a rule to remain for several
years-"legally" or n&t. They
must provide water and sew
er pipes to connect with city
facilities and run wiring, to
the nearest utility line.
Improve Appearance
Most here in Medford have
taken steps to improve the ap
pearance ,of their property.
In some cases, they Rave
sought to camouflage their
dwellings by erecting sheds
over them or screening them
with shrubbery or lattice
work. Many have added
porches or patios. Quite a few
have put in lawns, flower
beds and vegetable gardens.
Others, of course, have not
made such an effort.
Backyard trailer sites, how
ever, are at least as numer
ous here as individual lots.
There are several off Jackson
st. a short way east of Bear
creek.
Some, it is understood, are
rented from the occupants of
the main house. In other
cases, the landlord may own
the trailer himself-and rent
it as an apartment.
Accommodate Dependents
The majority of such trail
er sites, however, are appar
ently designed to accommo
date aged parents, young
married offspring or other
dependents of those in the
house. Such an arrangement
provides a convenient way
of keeping the house-dwellers
and their relatives in
close proximity without the
disadvantages of crowcling in
under one roof. Each can
"keep house" independently.
In any case, a backyard
trailer can be hooked up to
water, sewer and electrical
systems of the house and thus
have the advantages of trail
er court site plus relative pri-j
vacy and a quiet, more at
sons listen) to enjoy latest hearing revolu
tion recommended by doctors. Based on
Sonotone 'bone-conduction invention, by
passing outer ears.
COJWE IN, PHONE OR WRITE
level,
.SONOTONE,
839 East
tractive neighborhood.
At present, trailers in
some residential areas of
Medford appear definitely
"substandard" in comparison
to adjacent houses. But in
other areas, they actually
look more substantial, and
more attractive, than the jerry-built
frame . houses sur
rounding them.
It depends on the neighbor
hood. And the standards th0
trailer owner sets- for him
self. It seems a safe bet that so
long as the boom in trailer
sales keeps up, the need for
providing them with suitable
accommodations ' will con
tinue. And so long as the
trailer - dwellers seek semi
permanent or permanent lo;
cauons ior - ineir moDue
homes," the demand for sites
in attractive, residential sur
roundings will increase.
Effort to Escape
On the other hand, so long
as , cities like Medford rele
gate trailer courts to com
mercial or industrial zones, it
appears that a certain pro
portion of trailer - dwellers
will attempt to locate their
trailers on small lots or in
back yards of .residential
areas in an effort to escape
unpleasant conditions.
No matter how well land
scaped or efficiently operated
a trail court may be, it will
inevitably be subjected to
traffic sounds, odors and un
attractive views in these
zones.
And thus, so long as these
trailer owners strike out on
their own while the city ap
parently lacks manpower to
actively regulate them, one
can expect the number of vio
lations of both zoning ordin
ance and building code to
rise. i
This brings Medford, and
other cities, to the following
alternatives: , " ' -
It can add the position of
trailer-inspector to- its staff
and set about enforcing the
present regulations.
Or, it can revise its regula
tions in the direction of le
niency and thus "legalize"
today's violators. if
Again, it can plug that
loophole and explicitly pro
hibit trailers from any resi
dential zone. '
Finally, it can revise its
zoning and trailer ordinances
in such a way as to permit the
development of high-quality
trailer courts in pleasant sur
roundings. -
SUB VISITS FRANCE .1
Paris-flJPD-The U. S. atomic
submarine Skate will pay, a
visit to -the .French port xf
Cherbourg Sept. 5, French
naval officials announced Fri
day night. .The Skate, which
has been denied permission
to land at Denmark because
nf ' nossihle radiation dangers.
will visit the Dutch naval
base of Den Helder Sept. 1.
Hearing Secret
Jackson - Phone SP 2-5904