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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 17, 2009)
The INDEPENDENT, September 17, 2009 Early pioneers created their own fun The August 6, 1959, issue of the Vernonia Eagle included the following news story on the front page under the headline “Early Pioneers Created Own Fun, Proved Themselves Hardy Stock: (Because of the great amount of interest shown in the stories of the early settling of the Nehalem val- ley, it has been decided to run a se- ries of storys about the families who were among the early settlers here. This story has been prepared by Mrs. Albert Parker and gives some additional and most interest- ing facts about the first family to homestead in the Upper Nehalem valley. Much of Riverview is on the homestead site. Their place in- cluded what has in later years been known as the Andy Parker place. Clark Parker donated a piece from his homestead to the school dis- trict when it was formed and the first log school was built there near what is now known as tenth street.) Clark L. Parker was born in Kansas in 1825. His wife, Malissa, was born in Kentucky in 1839. They were married in 1857. Eight children were born to the couple while living in Kansas. Two died before the Parkers sold their farm and came West. They first lived in Portland for nearly two years and considered buying 10 acres on the East side, the price, $3,000. This area is now in the heart of the city. In the meantime before the deal could be made Parker heard talk of the Nehalem and its great opportu- nities, and the big attraction for him at the time was the chance for trapping of fur bearing animals, along with homesteads for the tak- ing and the talk then was that a railroad and wagon road would New book sales to benefit Library When Oregon author George Byron Wright finally lo- cated a man he had been trying to find for over 25 years, he was inspired to write a novel with that theme: finding a per- son who had played an impor- tant role in one’s life – especial- ly when young. On October 1, Wright will introduce the result of six years work when he launches “Driving to Vernonia”, his fourth novel, at the Vernon- ia Public Library. “After years of looking for a man who had been so very special in my life,” Wright said, “I was caught up with the idea of writing about someone who desperately needs to find someone long lost to him.” In fact, the concept caught the fancy of people asking about his next novel to such an extent that the title of the book has be- come a metaphor in Wright’s mind. “It seemed that every time I explained the premise of the novel, people would indicate that they too had one or more people of significance in their past that they had lost track of. Often, as in Wright’s case, they still needed to thank that per- son for all they had done. In the end, Wright formulated a pseu- do definition for the title of the book: <driv•ing to Ver•non•ia> v phrase: the act of locating a person of significance in one’s past. Wright assures the reader that the novel is not merely a warm fuzzy with big hugs at the end. “Driving to Vernonia” ex- plores one man’s loss of self and chronicles his journey to reconnect with his past and re- claim what is there. Wright stresses that “Driving to Ver- nonia” is a penetrating story of deprivation, laced with love and anger, violence and self-dis- covery. Wright will attend a brief re- ception at the Vernonia Public Library, 701 Weed Ave, Ver- nonia, on Thursday, October 1, at 6:30 p.m. At 7:00 p.m., he will discuss and read from the book. Books will be available for sale with a percentage of the proceeds going to the Friends of the Library. Wright’s previous novels, known as the Oregon Trio, in- clude: “Baker City 1948”, “Tillamook 1952” and “Rose- burg 1959”. To learn more about Wright and his work go to www.c3publications.com. soon be built into the Nehalem country. See Pioneers on page 22 Pitt and Griffin marry in Utah Anne-Marie Pitt and Zach- aria Joseph Griffin were mar- ried September 9, 2009, in Tooele, Utah. Anne-Marie is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. William E. Pitt Jr. of Rush Valley, Utah, and Dodie Tumlinson of Vernonia. Zacharia is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Scott Hansen of Lo- gan, Utah. Anne-Marie and Zacharia will make their home in Logan with their daughter, Autumn Griffin. Senior News By Karen Miller PLEASE, no donations after our busi- ness hours of 9:00 a.m to 3:00 p.m., Mon- day through Friday. Any drop-offs made at other times will be considered illegal dump- ing subject or prosecution. Call Pauline to make other arrangements. See you at the Senior Center this Satur- day, September 19, where there will be ta- bles set up as part of the Community Garage Sale. Reminder: You can get fresh made fritters for $1.50 or maple bars for $1.00 here at the center and the proceeds go to the cen- ter. Take your chances or call ahead to be sure there are some here for you. Doctor to patient, “Well, did your asthma go away since I told you to sleep with your window open? Patent, “Yes, it did. Along with my wallet, my laptop and my tel- evision set.” Vernonia Senior Center: 503-429-3912. What to do with your sale leftovers If you are participating in the Vernonia Community-Wide Yard Sale and have unsold items that you don’t want to store any longer and would like to donate to a not-for-profit or- ganization, you may take them to the yard next to Vernonia Realty for pickup on Monday morning by The Arc of Mult- nomah-Clackamas, a local chapter of The Arc of the Unit- ed States and The Arc of Ore- gon, which is committed to helping children and adults with mental retardation and related developmental disabilities achieve their greatest potential. The Arc will send a truck to Ver- nonia for the donations. Following is a list of items that The Arc will pick up. Page 7 Clothing (all ages) including coats and jackets, small appli- ances, bedding (blankets, sheets, pillows), towels, cur- tains or drapes, fabric, thread and patterns, sewing machines (small), jewelry, portable TVs/stereos, shoes, purses, records, tapes, CDs, dishes, pots, pans, silverware and cooking utensils, toys, tools, musical instruments, bicycles (good condition), pictures and paintings. The Vernonia Senior Center will also accept clean used items, Monday through Friday, from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Neither of these organizations can accept furniture. Plan for hospital topic of meeting Are you interested in the project currently underway to site a hospital in Columbia County? There will be a public meeting on September 28, in the Lou Witt room of the St. Helens High School, 2375 Gable Road, from 3:30 to 7:00 p.m. This meeting will be to dis- cuss the application for a cer- tificate of need by Columbia Health District for a 12-bed hospital to be located at 35311 Millard Road in St. Helens. Any person may speak at the meeting. The time period allowed for testimony may be limited depending on the num- ber of persons who wish to speak. G OOD F OOD G OOD F RIENDS G OOD T IMES 836 Bridge St. Vernonia, OR 503-429-0214