The INDEPENDENT, July 18, 2001
Page 7
Part of the upper Nehalem valley is destroyed with the Mist Store
The Mist Store was called Libel’s Store in 1912, when this
photo was taken. The U.S. Post Office operated in the store
for several decades, but started in the private residence of a
family named Jones. Mist was called Jonesborough, initially,
then Esto, then Riverside and finally, Mist. And, yes, accord-
ing to Mist native Shalmon Libel, it was named for the preva
lent Oregon mist. Libel generously shared these old photos,
and his considerable knowledge, with The INDEPENDENT.
The photo below was taken in about 1915.
It has been nearly two
weeks since the Mist Store
burned to the ground, but
many people are still shocked
and dismayed at the loss of the
heart of this small, cohesive
community.
Considered the oldest con
tinually operating business in
Oregon, the Mist Store was
built in 1888 (Despite what The
Oregonian printed, it was not
built in 1874.) for G.F. Lind
gren. He sold the store in 1905
to John Libel, who operated it
until 1921. John’s son, Shal-
mon, was born in the store in
1919 and still lives in Mist.
William H. Bridger, who
bought the store from John Li
bel, sold it in the mid 1940s to
Walter Matthews and his broth-
er-in-law, Ralph Condit. Mat
thews bought out Condit and
operated the store for several
years. He remained in Mist,
moving a few years ago to
Clatskanie.
Others operated the store
until Al Cavanaugh took over to
help his daughter, Julie Wister,
whose husband had died in a
car wreck. It was Cavanaugh
who, in the early ‘60s, estab
lished the café and the reputa
tion for the “Best Hamburgers
in Oregon.” Cavanaugh oper
ated the store long enough that
a whole generation of valley
residents grew up during his
tenure.
The fire that destroyed the
store resulted from cracked
masonry in an old chimney that
allowed flames to get up under
the roof of the two-story build
ing. The tinder-dry wood
burned so rapidly that firefight
ers could only concentrate on
preventing it from spreading to
surrounding structures. The
present owner, John Fitch,
plans to rebuild the Mist Store
and valley residents are al
ready busy with offers of help.
Dowser Society
convention
The Northwest Territory So
ciety of Dowsers will hold its
25th Annual
International
Dowsers Conference at the
Columbia County Fairgrounds
in St. Helens, August 10-12, in
conjunction with members of
the American Society of
Dowsers and the Canadian
Questers.
River
Serving the Community
since 1993
R e tire m e n t R esidence
An Alzheimer's Specialty Home
Licensed • Class-II
DONNA FOSTER - PROVIDER
16941 Timber Rd. East • Vernonia, OR 97064 • 503-429-1152
Master Dowsers and others
whose expertise lies in the
realms of subtle energies, will
share their knowledge and wis
dom with those who are inter
ested in exploring various
methods to enhance their
awareness of the relationship
that exists among all things.
Sunnyside Cafe
Sunday
3REAKFAST BUFFET
8 AM -1 P M * Adults.. $795 Seniors.. $695 Under 12
Menu Service Also Available
$4
ORDERS TO GO: 503-429-4810
Open Daily 5 am-2 pm • 58360 Nehalem Hwy. S., Vernonia
Conference fees are a dona
tion of $15.00 per day per per
son, $25.00 per weekend, if
pre-registered, or $30.00 per
weekend if you register at the
Conference. Children under 12
are free.
For more information, call
Mary Browne at 503-774-1129.