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About Seaside signal. (Seaside, Or.) 1905-current | View Entire Issue (July 20, 2018)
2B • July 20, 2018 • Seaside Signal • seasidesignal.com CELEBRATING GEARHART’S 100TH ANNIVERSARY From 1918 to today, city’s spirit lives on By Bill Berg For Seaside Signal A s we look back over a hundred years, we can’t help but ponder the greatest mystery of our origins as a home town: after the great hotel fires of 1913 and 1915 that destroyed its identity as a desti- nation resort, why wasn’t Gear- hart (or “Gearhart Park,” as it was then known) immediately and willingly absorbed into Seaside, or at least reclaimed by Clatsop County? Whence came the unruly spirit, among that band of folks in overalls and aprons back in 1917, that culmi- nated in their successful petition for independence? Maybe it helps to put the election of Jan. 28, 1918 — the vote that created the City of Gearhart — into a global per- spective. In those bygone days, upheaval was worldwide, with revolutions happening in Rus- sia, Germany, Ireland, Mex- ico … the list goes on and on. And that’s without mentioning World War I, which wouldn’t be over until autumn. Not to say that Gearhart’s declaration of in- dependence was a revolutionary R.J. MARX Two of Gearhart’s venerable citizens, author Bill Berg and Bob McEwan, a lifelong resident. act; still, it involved a fistful of like-minded residents doggedly engaged in a process of self-de- termination. In those days of global insurrection, maybe that kind of self-assertion was just in the air we breathed. Gearhart Park Gearhart Park, with its chautauquas and carnivals and hotels and boarding hous- es and vacation cottages, had thrived in its early years before and after the turn of the 20th People make Gearhart special Brown from Page 1B eyeing how much candy I was about to bring home. Or it was passing by our neighbors like Carol Lucas, Bob McEwan, and Bill Berg along the path. How many times have you as a Gearhart resident had someone ask you on a trip where you are from, and you proudly exclaim “I’m from Gearhart, Oregon” and the person inevitably says, “Oh my gosh I love Gearhart!” “Do you know so and so” and “so and so”? And you say, “Yes, of course, they are my neigh- bors!” This has happened to me as well many times and it makes you realize that it’s the wonderful people we know that makes this community so special. Celebrating 100 years of the City of Gearhart is really about celebrating the special connections and rela- tionships we have had with the people of Gearhart over these many years … and that is something that will never change. century, but had then died a lingering death of neglect, with its amenities and platted lots being passed along from one syndicate to another, each of whom simply milked it for whatever profit it would bring, and then passed it on to the next syndicate. Their cavalier attitude to- ward the whole enterprise was never more evident than in their failure to provide fire safety for the residences, and especially for the two major hotels. The first grand hotel, the one that stood where city hall now stands, burned to the ground in 1913 because the Gearhart firefighters were no more than a bucket brigade with no fire trucks or hos- es or hydrants to hook up to; and the second hotel on the ocean front, the brightest jew- el among resort hotels along the entire West Coast, burned down two years later because its developers had never both- ered to make sure that its hy- drants would fit Seaside’s fire hoses. The Seaside fire trucks showed up, but there was noth- ing they could do. With the touristic features of the town pretty much in ruins, the locals who had worked for the syndicates and for the vaca- tioning tourists by maintaining the chautauqua and hotels, and by acting as food servers and housekeepers and carpenters and caddies; the farmers in the good land east of the high- way who’d supplied the hotels with food; the shopkeepers and real estate agents; the workers who’d laid planks on the main roads and hauled baggage and tourists from the railroad sta- tion to their lodgings and back; the men who’d laid water lines and dug cesspools — in short, those who had performed all the needed services to keep the resort going — those people now worried about their own future and the future of their numerous children — kids they had educated, by the way, in the school they’d built on the Ridge Path in 1912. Band of upstarts A small chorus of voices declared that the time was ripe for the local community to take control of its own town and its own destiny. The prime mov- ers in that process were Henry Ober, who’d built Ocean Home Farm in 1888, and his sons Henry and Fred; Jim Cutler the grocer; Fred Hager, who’d got the school built back in 1912; Dick Schroeder; John Tyberg; and Bill Badger, the first black American to hold public office in the state of Oregon. He was appointed to the Gearhart city council to fill out an unexpired term in 1918. When he ran on his own in 1922, he lost, but in the depres- sion years of the thirties, with all the new settlers coming in, he was elected overwhelming- ly, and re-elected. During the dark days of World War II, he and Leslie Miller kept the town running and even prospering. But that’s another story. So the original band of up- starts were a wonderful mix — English-American, Ger- man-American, Scandina- vian-American, African-Amer- ican. Add native Americans, and you saw a similar diversity among all Gearhart residents. But not many — just 30 — were able to make the trek to the ballot box at the county court house that January day in 1918. All but two of them cast their votes to establish the city of Gearhart. What exactly inspired that unity of purpose remains a mystery, perhaps buried forev- er with the founders of the city. If anyone still alive can shed light on the question, please come forward. There’s much to be proud of in our history; there may be even more. Gearhart resident Bill Berg is the author of “Gearhart Remembered: An Informal History.” Community volunteers make a difference Principal from Page 1B awesome students, talented teachers and supportive par- ents, but most of all, it’s the community we live in. Gearhart Elementary has approximately 300 stu- dents in kindergarten to fifth grade, who all come to us from the communities of both Gearhart and Seaside. The thing that makes Gear- hart Elementary and all of the schools in the Seaside School District especial- ly unique is our amazingly supportive communities. From Gearhart to Seaside and south to Cannon Beach our communities always support our students and staff. On a daily basis you will find parents and com- munity members volunteer- ing their time at Gearhart Elementary. Some plant flowers, while others read or work on math with stu- dents. Those who can’t vol- unteer weekly at the school, support us by helping with fundraisers, volunteering for field trips or even allow- ing our students to come to their business for a field trip. Each and every one of these people makes a difference in the lives of our students and a positive impact on our school community. They make our little school a very special place! As we celebrate 100 years of Gearhart and the 70th year for Gearhart Ele- mentary School, I find my- self reflecting on the history, but also looking forward to the future. New safer schools are on the horizon and soon both Gearhart Ele- mentary School and Seaside Heights Elementary School will be on one campus. It will be hard to leave our special little school, but at Gearhart Elementary we are looking forward to the new opportunities that combin- ing both schools will bring for our students, staff and community. We are excited for new adventures ahead! Making Memories in Gearhart for 100 Years and Beyond! lumsautocenter.com
