As I See It
by Mary Schamehorn
March 31, 2021
The first picture I am sharing is the launch of the Telegraph, which drew a large crowd to the dock in February of 1914.
Launch of the Telegraph, 1914
The 103-foot long steam sternwheeler was built at Prosper by Carl Herman.
In his book "Wooden Ships and Master Craftsmen," published in 1978, Ernie Osborne talks about the Telegraph, which he said was probably "the best remembered vessel among old-timers in the Bandon area. She was a powerful vessel and, in 1916, was lengthened to 115 feet. From her launching until the end of her career, she was owned by the Panter family of Bandon.
"She was involved in a bitter rivalry with the Charm, and once as the Charm was going into Jarman's landing to pick up a passenger, the Telegraph put her bow against the stern of the Charm, pushed her out of the landing and picked up the passenger herself. The fare was fifteen cents. Obscene language turned the air blue; oil cans were thrown; tie-up lines were cut, and as a final result, the U.S. Steamboat Inspectors were called in and ruled for suspensions."
The Telegraph was finally beached at Paris "Hap" Ward's ranch at Randolph in 1927 along with the Myrtle and later the Dora.
Recently I shared a picture of the Grace Dollar, which generated so much excitement when it first crossed the bar into Bandon ... and heralded the possibility of even larger vessels carrying lumber out of Bandon. And that is why I chose this picture of the Pacific No. 2 as it crossed the bar in February of 1961 carrying more than four million board feet of lumber. Note how the South Jetty area has changed in the last 60 years.
The Pacific No. 2, 1961
But it is the Grace Dollar that I want to talk more about, after I found an interesting article in the March 11, 1913, Bandon Recorder, talking about a reception held for the captain and officers of the Grace Dollar at the Commercial Club Hall, with club president E. H. Fish presiding.
G.T. Treadgold, well-known attorney, was called on to deliver an address of welcome.
"In part he said, 'When I saw the S.S Grace Dollar coming over the bar today I was moved and impressed at the sight of this grand ship entering the harbor of Bandon. I believe it is only a step to the time when we will have a great harbor here, and ships at Bandon take on lumber carrying it through to the ports of the Atlantic without transshipment.
" 'The fact that the harbor has developed from comparative insignificance to its present stage of importance gives promise of greater things.
" 'To advance the opinion that a large city will grow upon the present site of Bandon is considered by many here as fanciful as a mere dream. I believe that the ideas of dreamers supported by practical work will make of Bandon a harbor that will be open to ships as much larger than the Grace Dollar as she is larger than the ships which came into this port, fifteen years ago."
Today, of course, our harbor is primarily used by recreational vessels and the days of the large lumber carrier is long gone.
Mr. Treadgold, who also served as city attorney, was murdered three years later (in 1916) when he was gunned down in a mechanic's garage across from the court house in Coquille by a Bandon man, who harbored a grudge. He was only 31 years old but had already distinguished himself as a community leader. His murder is a story for another day.
The third picture I am sharing was taken in August of 1978 as Elmer and Grace Gant celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary.
The family of Elmer and Grace Gant, 1978
Elmer was in the clothing business in Bandon before and after the Fire of 1936, along with other members of the Gant family. Grace was a member of the pioneer Thorn family and both were active in the community.
The Gants spent that weekend with all five of their children and other relatives camping on the Sixes River. From left are son Tom, Grace and Elmer, daughter Susan Winnop, son Dr. Jim Gant and daughters, Gloria Haga, and Glenda Hawkins who died recently at the age of 86. The article says their grandson, Gary Gant, flew up from Boulder Creek, Calif., to join the Sixes River gang. Tom, Gloria and Gary still live in Bandon today. Jim lives in Cottage Grove and Susan lives in Satsuma, Alabama.
* * *
I am not sure how many people will remember him, but Dan Harper was a well-known chiropractor in Bandon years ago, before life-style choices took him in a different direction.
I understand he was found deceased at a property up Two Mile last week. I do not know the particulars, but the woman who told me estimated that he was probably in his 70s.
I also learned Sunday that BHS alumni Chuck Cravey had died in his sleep recently of complications from diabetes. I believe he was in his early '60s. Chuck graduated from BHS in the class of 1976 with Susie Korenko and my youngest sister, Mindy.
* * *
Since October there has been an epidemic of marijuana shops in Portland being robbed, including eight involving a firearm, and most attributed to teenagers. The DA's office said 12 of the 21 suspects charged so far have been teenagers.
Initially most of the thefts were smash-and-grabs, but later morphed into armed robberies, one of which ended in the murder of a shop keeper. To make it more dangerous for marijuana shops, they deal only in cash because on a federal level, it is still considered an illegal drug.
The owner of a cannabis shop in Southwest Portland kept his money stored in two black, refrigerator-sized safes in the backroom of his dispensary, with the code known only to the owner and his manager. One contained $125,000 in cash, $25,000 of which the owner was planing to pay to the state in a few weeks' time when his taxes were due. But robbers zip-tied the manager's wrists and ankles, leaving him facedown on the floor after they forced him to tell them the code to the safe. They left the dispensary through the back door (with the money) and peeled out of the parking lot. The ordeal lasted 18 minutes.
Shop owners can also have their bank accounts shut down if they try to run cannabis money through their personal bank accounts.
Some are hoping for the passage of a bill called the Secure and Fair Enforcement Banking Act, which would significantly reduce the number of marijuana robberies and burglaries, because there would be little to no cash on the stores' premises. If passed, the SAFE Banking Act would provide a "safe harbor" that allows banks to offer financial services like loans, credit card processing, and access to capital to the cannabis industry without criminal risk.
* * *
Cities and counties across the country will be receiving Covid 19 relief, although the details as to how the money can be used is sketchy at this time.
Bandon is set to receive $641,669, although it may be over a two-year period.
Others in the area and the amount they will receive are Myrtle Point $521,611; Coquille $802,698; Powers $138,607; Port Orford $235,020; Brookings $1.3 million; North Bend $1.9 million and Coos Bay, $3.3 million.
* * *
Having undergone cataract surgery Thursday on my second eye, I can certainly attest to its success as I can see things I did not even know were there .... cobwebs for one; wrinkles for another, but as many have said, the brightness of colors is amazing. I should have done this several years ago, but kept putting it off.
Having to put eye drops in four times a day for a month is a bit of a drag, but it's a small price to pay for having my vision restored. So if any of my readers are hesitating about having the surgery, don't. There is really nothing to it, and it is definitely painless.
I feel the same way about getting my second Covid vaccine, although I will say I did experience a bit of soreness for a few days, but again the feeling of relief is overwhelming after a year of worrying if I might contract it. The more people who get vaccinated the sooner we will be able to return to some form of normalcy. I personally can't wait for that to happen ....
The crowds were in town this week for Spring Break and thankfully the weather was mostly good as people were sitting outdoors every place they could find a seat. Many restaurants had tables lining the sidewalk, and most were full.
It would be wonderful if our restaurants and bars could just open for inside seating, but I am not sure that will happen anytime soon based on our Covid numbers. But hope springs eternal ....
* * *
It's been a week since a 43-year-old Coos Bay woman was killed in a one-vehicle accident Monday night on Whiskey Run Beach. April Garrett died when she fell off the roof of a vehicle, apparently being operated by her 46-year-old husband, Jerry Garrett.
There has been no further information about why she was on the roof of the Mercury Mountaineer on the beach at around 7:40 p.m.
* * *
There has also been no information put out about an incident which occurred on Highway 101 at Dollar Hill Saturday evening involving numerous police, fire and other emergency responders. All I know is what I saw on Facebook, which indicated that the driver had been traveling 100 miles an hour and officers were trying to stop him with tack strips north of town. One person said they saw what appeared to be a male being detained alongside of the road. I am sure the story will eventually come out ....
As I See It
by Mary Schamehorn
March 24, 2021
I still remember like it was yesterday ... the maiden voyage on the sternwheeler Bold Duck, built by Joe Bolduc and Roger O'Conner, which made its first trip up the river in July of 1984. The photo I am sharing was actually taken in May of 1985 as members of the Port of Bandon commission and the Coquille City Council, along with other civic leaders, were on this trip. Among them were Jean and Jim Hanna, Jim Weber, Coquille councilor Mollie Anderson and county commissioner Ed Stevenson. This photo was taken as the boat docked at Coquille's Sturdivant Park.
Sternwheeler Bold Duck, 1985
One of those on the maiden voyage was Fran Montgomery of Radon-Craft of Oregon who said, "You see things on the river that you don't notice from a faster boat. Homes, piers, birds, piling, islands ... it's great! This will bring people to Bandon," she told the paper.
Another passenger said, "There are lots of old-timers who remember the riverboats and think it's really neat to have a boat on the river again the people can ride. Joe did a beautiful job of building, and it's a perfect day for the first voyage."
Then Port of Bandon director Alex Linke said he had no doubt that that sternwheeler would be a success.
After several years, the first Bold Duck was sold and another built. But it was also sold, and what was hoped would become a lasting tourist attraction never really materialized. But as one who rode the sternwheeler several times up the river, I can only say it was a thrill of a lifetime.
We'll go back about 75 years with the story of the Grace Dollar, which is pictured here at the dock in Bandon around 1913.
Grace Dollar, 1913
An item in the Bandon Recorder tells the story of how important this ship was to Bandon.
"The Grace Dollar arrived in port Saturday and went directly up the river to the Randolph mill to take on a cargo of lumber.
"The Grace Dollar is the largest vessel that has ever crossed over the Coquille River bar; she is 230 feet long and has a 40' foot beam, with 16 foot depth of hold. She is equipped with 1000 horsepower engine and can ride the seas in any kind of storm. She is a steel vessel and has every appearance of the massive vessel that she is," pointing out that she could carry 1,200,000 feet of lumber at full capacity.
"She is a fine vessel in every sense of the word ...the fact that such vessels as she can come into this harbor in its present condition only goes to show what a great harbor could be made here with the forming of a port commission and the expending of a comparatively small amount of money."
Update: Later George W. Moore of the Moore Mill & Lumber Co. purchased the vessel and renamed it the Mary E. Moore. On May 23, 1927, the ship arrived off the Coquille bar about noon trying to ride out a storm when she lost a propeller and began to fill with water. Captain Karl Rosenblad (Roger and Andrea Cox's grandfather) signaled for help, but the tug Klihyam and the Coast Guard could not get across the bar because of the conditions. They did, however, put out a distress signal to ships that were in the area. Captain Rosenblad was not aware that help was on the way and took his crew of 28 men into two lifeboats, where they were rescued by the Admiral Peary, a ship en route from Portland to San Francisco loaded with freight and passengers.
Nothing could be done to save the Mary E Moore (nee Grace Dollar).
I have chosen this great picture, taken in 1975, of Myrtle Dickey. She and her husband N.L. "Newton" owned and operated The Minute Cafe for a number of years, but I knew her best as the "locals" correspondent for the Western World.
Myrtle Dickey, 1975
In later years as her eyesight deteriorated, she was still determined to write her column each week, letting our readers know who was traveling to Roseburg to visit or what family had come from out of state. As editor/reporter, it was my job to go to her house each week (she lived on Edison Avenue just up from what is now Edgewaters) to pick up her column.
Often because of her poor vision, she had written one line over the other .... or two or three, but I always managed to figure it out. She also took up painting in her later years, and here she is pictured with one of her creations.
She was always a big supporter of Bandon, no matter how eccentric she became.
* * *
Bandon has a new city councilor. The council has unanimously appointed Geoff Smith to replace Patrick Salandro, who resigned for personal family reasons.
Smith is the owner of By The Sea Gardens, a business started by Liza Ehle.
Others applying were Michael O'Neill, Rodney Taylor and Kurtis Breiter.
Smith ran for a council seat in November and received over 700 votes. He will be seated at the April 11th council meeting.
* * *
I saw on Facebook that a Bandon business, 10 Core Fitness, was vandalized last Wednesday night. While the vandals did not get inside, they broke four windows.
* * *
Several of my readers have requested that I "stop bashing our governor." And I actually thought about it until I saw a front-page photo in last Thursday's Register-Guard of cross country runners .... running a race while being forced to wear a mask ... outdoors.
Those of us who routinely wear a mask when entering a grocery store or pretty much anywhere else, and hopefully that is pretty much all of us, know how hard it can be to breathe while masked.
Then try to think about running an endurance race, where your lungs do the majority of the work. Doctors, coaches and parents say it is not only wrong .... but extremely dangerous to the young runners.
So I decided to check and see if this was a nationwide requirement.
Guess what: ONLY Oregon and New Mexico require masks for cross-country runners. Originally it was also a rule in the state of Washington, but concerned coaches prevailed and the mandate was lifted.
This makes no sense at all.
Hopefully, like her original decision not to allow all residents to be vaccinated by May 1, which has now been rescinded, she will take a long hard look at this ridiculous mandate and rescind it as well.
But until that happens, I will continue to criticize whoever is behind these kinds of decisions.
Leave decisions up to individual cities, through our home rule charter authority, and common sense might once again prevail.
An article in the Oregonian Sunday said the Governor's approval rating has dropped to 37 percent ... and a lot of those who were polled are Democrats.
* * *
I made a mistake in last week's column identifying where the picture of Big Mac was taken as he investigates a break-in at Bandon Fisheries. I should have remembered, since I took the actual photo for the paper, that the Fisheries business was located across from what is now the Wheelhouse in the Bandon Seafood building. The building has long-since been torn down, but was about where the High-Dock (Loft) building sits today.
I had mistakenly identified it as being the port's marketplace building, which was not built until 1977.
* * *
An article in the Oregonians indicates that the state projects that 80 percent of Oregon senior citizens will be vaccinated by March 31 as the Governor has accelerated the timetable for shots.
Starting March 25, people over 45 with an underlying health condition, farm and food processing workers and homeless people or those displaced by wildfires can receive vaccines. On April 19, any adult with an underlying condition is eligible, along with all frontline workers.
The article adds, in parenthesis, ("One change Brown hasn't made: advancing grocery workers in the vaccine line.") It adds: "The governor, who has faced intense criticism for not moving up vaccinations for grocery store workers, argued that giving priority to people with underlying conditions would achieve a similar purpose."
"The staggered release of vaccines -- making people eligible in groups of roughly half a million people every three weeks -- will allow the state to distribute the federal supply of vaccine doses to mass vaccination sites, hospitals, health clinics and pharmacies."
Another article said that about one-third of health care workers in the state are refusing to be vaccinated. I have also heard, but not confirmed, that a number of employees of our local hospital are also opting out of the vaccine.
From my standpoint, as a senior citizen, it could well be a lifesaver and I am thankful I was able to obtain both doses.
In the meantime, Coos County's case numbers continue to soar and restaurants and bars remain closed for inside dining.
The city council has sent a letter to the governor, ending with: "We are close to Curry County, where restaurants are open, which increases the toll on our restaurants as people choose to go to dinner in Port Orford rather than getting takeout in Bandon.
"As a home rule jurisdiction, Bandon would like the ability to balance our common desire to stop the pandemic with the human and economic cost of the current shutdown and open our small businesses."
As I See It
by Mary Schamehorn
March 17, 2021
A lot has happened in Bandon over the last nearly 50 years, and as I look back at old Western Worlds, I realize that we do not have nearly the crime or the arson fires that we had in the early '70s.
The first picture I am sharing this week is our police chief, D.S. "Big Mac" MacDonald, looking through an opening in the floor of the Bandon Fisheries building (now owned by the Port of Bandon and housing the farmers market and Lori Osborne's seafood business) after a string of burglaries, which saw seven Bandon businesses burglarized in a six-day span in December of 1972.
Floor of the Bandon Fisheries building
Since burglars had entered through a hatch on the floor it indicated that they had waited until low tide to go beneath the building, which was constructed on piling over the river.
"Although Fisheries employee Gerald Patrick (holding the flashlight in the photo) reported that nothing had been taken from their business, Mrs. Ernie Osborne who owns and operates Bandon Seafood in the front portion of the building, said that an empty cash register had been stolen," according to the article.
Another photo on the front page shows Gena Swenson, co-owner of Ray's Pharmacy, examining a case from which several hundred dollars worth of Timex watches were stolen.
In those days Ray's Pharmacy was located in the medical building, which is now the home of Winter River Books. Entry was made through a barred window at the rear of the store. The thieves broke out the bottom half of the window and crawled into the building past the iron bars.
This was the fifth time Ray's Pharmacy had been burglarized since the Swensons bought the business several years earlier.
Others hit during the spree were Winters Body Shop and Dr. John Kidby's dental office.
Owner of Winters Body Shop, Roger Winters, said someone had broken out a window on the south side of the building and taken $8 to $12 worth of change out of the till.
In those days, we pretty much had a two-man police department, and often no one was on duty at night, which may have accounted for the large number of burglaries.
The second photo was taken in July of 1955 as Ralph and Wanda Cochran of Coquille prepared to open their new ice cream and snack bar business on Highway 101, known as Ralph's. Later the business was purchased and greatly enlarged by Trudy and Gerry Fraser and operated as Fraser's for many years. Today it is the home of the Asian Garden.
Ralph's, 1955
An article in Western World explains that the building was new from the ground up, with the latest new modern facilities including their own ice cream making equipment.
"Owners of Ralph's are Ralph and Wanda Cochran, who are not strangers in the Coquille Valley. They have been operating a similar business in Coquille for the past five years. In 1939 and 1940 Mr. and Mrs. Cochran lived at Bullards on the Floyd Peterson ranch. Mrs. Cochran (the former Wanda Houdyshell) taught in the Bandon grade school and junior high for three years and has many friends and acquaintances in the community.
"Manager for the Bandon place is Mrs. Alida Harriman. Her husband, Willis Harriman, will teach the fifth grade in the Bandon West Side school." I also read that the late Flo Curran helped manage the business after it moved to Bandon.
I have chosen the third picture to honor one of my favorite people, Jim Curran, who died last week at the age of 96. This picture features Jim, with two of his golf students, Brad Hurley, left, and Kevin Murray.
Jim Curran with two golf students
A World War II Navy veteran, Jim had a long career as a teacher and a coach on the South Coast, mostly in Bandon and Coquille. He and his late wife, Flo, had been married 73 years when she died in February of 2019. They had five children, Jan, Ann, Jim, Peggy and Bill. Jim and his wife, Patti, and son, Jimmy, live in Bandon.
In December, Jim was honored on the occasion of his 96th birthday with a drive-by gathering in Coquille, where he had been living for the last few years.
I talked to him on the phone several times during the pandemic, which hit him especially hard because he loved people and wanted to be out and about socializing with friends and neighbors.
He always attended the Bandon Fire programs at the museum as he had been a paper boy in Marshfield at the time of the 1936 Fire and he loved to tell his story.
We will miss him....
* * *
I've been concerned about the U.S. Postal Service for quite some time, with one story after another of mail that either didn't arrive .... or, in several instances for me, took a month for a first-class letter to get to Baltimore. Then there was my Bandon Disposal bill that never came (which nearly resulted in my service being suspended after many years of paying my bills on time). I later found out the same thing happened to my sister, and the first thing she knew about the bill that never came was having her service suspended. But that's another story and hopefully after several very positive discussions with Bandon Disposal, that's been rectified.
But back to the post office.
When I went to get my mail Thursday, I noticed a card from my friend Betty Fedji who lives in Indian Wells, Calif., with her daughter and who has been having some serious health problems.
I was surprised to open the envelope and find a Christmas card, with a nice note about her plans for the holidays. Wow, I thought, that isn't like Betty.
Then I turned the envelope over and very clearly stamped was the date the card was mailed: December 3, 2020! Do the math, that is exactly 99 days!
Enough said ....
I did go back into the post office to find out if they had any idea who this could happen, but the woman at the counter said maybe it was stuck together with another piece of mail.
Then I went downtown and a friend told me that he had mailed a large check to his bank .... 12 days earlier and it still had not arrived.
A similar story appeared in The Oregonian Saturday about a man from the Vancouver area who lived two miles from his pharmacy but rather than go out, he preferred to order his prescriptions through the mail. The story was about one prescription which traveled 3,600 miles across three states before it finally arrived on his doorstep 10 days later.
Anyone who thinks there isn't a problem probably isn't using the U.S. Post Office.
* * *
I recently received the rainfall report for February from my pal Gerry Terp. It showed that we had 9.63 inches of rain, compared to 2.69 inches the previous February. In the last 17 years, the February with the most rainfall was 2017 with 21 inches (part of the 86.59 inches for that calendar year); the least was the 2.69 inches in 2020 (with the calendar year rainfall of 57.67 inches). That is a difference of almost 30 inches of rain from one year to another.
* * *
Former Bandon resident Mike Nettleton (a member of the Class of 1966) posted on Facebook Sunday that he had been featured in The Columbian, the Vancouver, Wash., newspaper in a section called "Everyone Has a Story." He wrote about his close relationship with his father, Carroll Nettleton, who was the OLCC inspector for most of Coos and all of Curry county, who occasionally would take young Mike with him when he carried out his duties.
Although the Nettletons moved to Grants Pass during Mike's sophomore year, his older sister, Lana Nettleton, graduated from BHS with the Class of 1959.
I have quite a few photos in my collection of Mr. Nettleton, as well as of Lana, who was a majorette with the band, which I plan to share with Mike and Lana now that I have his email address.
If others of you, who grew up in Bandon, think I may have pictures of you or your family in my extensive collection of over 30,000 negatives, just send me your email address and if I come across something, I will send it to you. Mine is marys@coosnet.com.
* * *
Having received my second Covid vaccine this week (with virtually no side effects), I can only say that it is a huge relief, and I certainly understand that people who are of an eligible age and are still trying to get an appointment may be frustrated. A lot of it appears to be in the right place at the right time as I have heard that some entities have vaccines to give away, as in the case of the Coquille hospital, but not enough takers. Others, like Coast Community Health Center, have well-organized clinics where the vaccines are mostly given by prior appointment.
An article in Sunday's New York Times said: "President Biden has held out two distinct dates of hope: May 1, when all adults in the U.S. will be eligible to receive vaccines, and July 4, when modest Independence Day celebrations might start to show a resemblance to life like it once was."
What it should have said was all adults in the U.S. will be eligible ....except in Oregon .... as the governor has said she will not honor the May 1 date until she knows that the vaccines will be available. The President was clear: everyone will be eligible on that date.
Actually, what the May 1 date does is to allow anyone to get vaccinated who may be able to get an appointment or to attend a drive-through clinic without having to prove you are of a certain age. It only makes sense. We all know it doesn't mean that the vaccines will be available for everyone in the country on that date, but if you have an opportunity to get the vaccine, you will be able to.
The irony is that Governor Brown is basically defying the President's order, yet she can dictate what each county and city can do even though cities operate with their own distinctly different Home Rule charters.
A recent bulletin from the League of Oregon Cities pointed out that the state legislature is slowly chipping away at cities' home rule authority. I personally am ready to challenge that loss of our authority.
* * *
For the most part, the Covid news in Oregon is positive with the seven-day rolling average of new cases down 74 percent and a decline of 74 percent for the number of people hospitalized.
Unfortunately, there are only two counties in the state that remain in the extreme category, and we are one of them. The other is Douglas County.
I just feel for our restaurants as most other businesses are pretty much operating as usual, but more and more are providing outside seating, which is good news, but it is NOT the answer. They need to be open as we move into the spring and summer season.
We must work to get the numbers down, and the best way we can do that is for as many people (of all ages) to get vaccinated as quickly as possible. The spread is primarily among the younger crowd and so far, most have not been eligible for the vaccine.
As I See It
by Mary Schamehorn
March 10, 2021
I've decided to deviate a bit in my column this week by running three photos of one event: the tragic train wreck at the Seeley and Anderson Logging Co. site east of Bandon at Bear Creek on Nov. 25, 1912, which ultimately killed six of the seven men on the train.
The Bandon Historical Society museum has loaned me the photos that I am sharing with you this week. And if you'd like to learn more about this accident or see more photos, visit the Bandon museum, which is open six days a week.
I'd heard about this accident for years, and knew it was in November of 1912, but while going through page by page of the 1912 Bandon Recorders I could find hardly any reference to it. And that is when I figured out that two issues of the paper were missing in the digitized copy I had, so I went to a different site and found the article. It was every bit as horrific as I had heard.
The first picture shows the railroad trestle before the accident.
Railroad trestle before the accident
If you look closely at photo number two you will see the remains of the train buried under logs and debris, with stunned onlookers gathered around it.
Remains of the train buried under logs and debris
The third picture shows members of Bandon's Life-Saving Station, loggers and other rescuers carrying the wounded (several of whom died after getting to the hospital) and the dead away from the scene.
Rescuers carrying the dead and the wounded
The Coos Bay Times was the first paper to carry the story and described how the entire train had dropped 70 feet into the gulch below on its maiden trek across the new trestle.
It was the first loaded train to cross the big trestle, as the logging road was under construction. The trestle was about 300 feet long and at its highest point was 104 feet above the bed of Ferry Creek. Where the train went through it was 70 feet above the ground.
W.F. Harmon told a graphic story of the wreck. He had narrowly escaped being on the ill-fated train after he failed to get to the logging site on time because his riverboat from Coquille had been late.
Rol Anderson, the brakeman and the brother of the proprietor of the Seeley and Anderson company, was the lone survivor after two of the seven had died in the hospital. The seven included three crewmen and four passengers from the logging camp, including two who were headed to the doctor in Bandon after having been injured in woods accidents.
He said that soon after they started over the trestle, they felt it sinking. He said he realized what was going to happen and turning to Engineer McDowell said, "Good-bye Jim." Anderson said that McDowell replied in a husky voice, "Keep your seats, boys. We're gone."
Anderson said when he came to, the timekeeper Guy Rose was throwing cold water in his face.
The article explains that "as soon as he opened his eyes, he heard Rose say, 'Get up and notify them, you're not hurt,' and then Rose (who died of scalds and burns) fainted. Anderson dragged himself up the embankment and finally succeeded in reaching Radley's camp, almost three quarters of a mile and gave the alarm."
An article in the Nov. 26 Oregonian said: "Leaving behind him a trail of blood a mile long, Roll Anderson ..... terribly wounded with one leg and one arm broken, to a place where he could give alarm of the accident and secure aid for the other victims fastened under the wreckage. He will pay for his heroism with his life."
The Bandon Recorder editor was quick to point out that Anderson had no broken bones nor gushing wounds. His injuries were principally scalds and burns.
It appeared the brakes had just been set as the train rolled on to the trestle. The brakes held fast and the whole trestle was pushed forward by the train wheels holding fast to the rails with the brakes set. This swung the trestle out of balance and the collapse followed. The part of the bridge ahead of the engine buckled and the rear portion was torn away.
Historian Dick Hancock later wrote: "In the late 19th Century and the early 20th Century there were a number of small, shortline logging railroads in the area, including near Lampa Creek, Fat Elk Creek and in the fields between Coquille and Coaledo where you can still see pilings from the early rail lines, as they crossed from the timbered hills to the river, where the logs were dumped for towing to the mills."
In the first report of the wreck, the Coos Bay Times said that 700 pounds of giant powder on the train had exploded and could be heard all the way into Bandon. It turned out that was not true.
But nowhere in the county was there a train wreck that could compare to the disaster six miles east of Bandon at Bear Creek ... three days before Thanksgiving over a hundred years ago.
* * *
I am not sure where the explosion of Covid cases is coming from in Coos County nor have I been able to get a definitive answer as to how many of them are actually in Bandon.
But Friday's numbers for the state showed Coos County with 31 new cases, compared to 29 in Jackson, 24 in Douglas, 22 in Marion, 17 in Clackamas and 13 in Multnomah. And those are not cases per 100,000, they are actual cases. Sunday's numbers were much better with Coos County recording only four.
Last week I said that I had been told that Bandon had not had any new cases for the last month or so, but several people challenged that information, so it's hard to know what to believe.
If there are actually 55 active cases in Bandon (the 97411 zip code has over 7,000 people), as one statistic seemed to show, I do not know where they are as I have heard of no one who is down with Covid as we speak. If you do know of a positive case, or cases, I would appreciate your letting me know. I do not need to know the name of the person, for privacy reasons, but I am just trying to get to the truth. My guess is that the figure I saw was the number of cases in the 97411 zip code since the countdown started ... not current cases. I have asked for an explanation from the health department, but have not yet heard back.
At any rate, news that Governor Brown is allowing counties like Curry, that were scheduled to return to the extreme risk category, to remain open for another two weeks has angered and confused some of our restaurant and bar owners who have not received the same concession. We remain closed.
I have asked the city manager to put together a statement for the council to sign, or maybe it will just be me signing it, urging the governor to modify current restrictions on small businesses, or provide more flexibility for local governments to decide our own set of restrictions and measures.
"Grocery chains and department stores are wide open, while restaurants and health clubs are not." The letter points out that our restaurants, bars and other small businesses are some of the safest places to go during the pandemic.
The letter ends: "As a home rule jurisdiction, Bandon would like the ability to balance our common desire to stop the pandemic with the human and economic cost of the current shutdown and open our small businesses."
I will definitely lend my signature to the letter.
* * *
As further evidence of how restrictive some states are versus others is the subject of whether spectators (mainly parents) should be allowed to attend high school and college sporting events, which are finally being allowed in this state. In Oregon, even the parents are not allowed to attend, while in Indiana, where the men's NCAA playoffs (March Madness) will be held March 18 through April 5, the venues are allowed to be 17 percent filled. The stress of not being able to play for almost a year is now made even worse by the fact that even the parents can't go to the games in this state.
Indiana's death rate from Covid is 187 per 100,000; Oregon's is 53 per 100,000.
Does this really make sense?
* * *
One of Bandon's premiere artists Victoria Tierney asked me to do her a favor this week. She is looking for information about a painting she sold to Dr. Chuck Meece, who operated a chiropractic business in Bandon many years ago, and she is hoping one of my readers may still be in contact with Chuck.
So if you do have an address for him, would you let me know. The painting has special meaning for Victoria and she is trying to find out if he still has it or might know where it is.
* * *
For those of you who read my column on Monday morning on Bandon.tv, I know most of you were shocked to see me identify Big Mac as Harry in the wreck picture. The only excuse I can offer is that I almost never saw Mac wear a hat in all the years he served as chief while I was reporter/editor at Western World. But several of my readers were quick to point it out, so I was able to get it changed in other publications, including Amy Moss Strong's Bandon Buzz and The Friday edition of The World. Talk about embarrassing .... (ok, maybe it has something to do with having one "fixed" eye and one that is awaiting cataract surgery on March 25).
* * *
I have another question. Do any of you know if Kenneth Ayers, 49, went to school in Bandon? He is the UPS driver who was recently sentenced to 20 years in prison for shooting at drivers, and wounding at least one, as they drove along Interstate 5 in the Medford/Grants Pass area. For some reason, I think he might have gone to school here, but I don't have the yearbooks for those years so I can't be sure.
* * *
I've learned that the three Bandon Port Commission incumbents, Reg Pullen, Rick Goche and Harv Schubothe, whose terms will expire June 30, have or are planning to file for re-election. I believe the deadline to file is March 16.
* * *
Don't forget Daylight Saving Time starts Sunday, March 14, and people need to set their clocks ahead one hour before going to bed Saturday night.
As I See It
by Mary Schamehorn
March 03, 2021
The first picture I am sharing this week is something that I have found interesting about Bandon's history .... and that has to do with the two Woolen Mills that were here in the late 1880s and early 1900s.
Bandon's first Woolen Mill
The first Woolen Mill, pictured, was located on piling near the end of Fillmore Avenue, not far from the Cody Mill, which later became Moore Mill. This may be the reason that property on the south side of the highway along Fillmore is part of what is known as the Woolen Mill Addition.
The second one, built several years later, was located over the water at the end of Alabama Avenue, which would be about where the Port of Bandon's glassed-in picnic shelter sits today.
You might wonder why a town the size of Bandon would have two woolen mills. And that's the story I want to share, most of which came from a book titled "Later Woolen Mills in Oregon" by Alfred L. Lomax. There are quite a few pages devoted to Bandon's woolen mills.
It appears that as early as 1876 there was evidence of sheepraising in the county, with the first consignment of wool grown here shipped by boat to San Francisco. "In 1898 there were 13,500 sheep and probably included F.M. Langlois' flock of purebred Cotswold. The availability of locally grown wool even in limited supply was sufficient incentive among some enterprising business men to promote a woolen mill," explained the article.
On Sept. 16, 1893, four men incorporated the Bandon Woolen Mills Company for $75,000.
Although information is sketchy it was determined that in "December 1894 the Port Orford Tribune stated that the Bandon woolen mills is turning out a fine assortment of buggy robes, blankets and flannels and that the weaving was done mostly by women. In 1898 the factory produced 1,778 pairs of blankets, 236,125 yards of flannels, 2,260 yards of mackinaw cloth of a total value of $84,000.
"The woolen mill had a stimulating effect in counteracting dull times and was instrumental in attracting small industries: a salmon cannery, a broom handle factory, and shipbuilding. 'Prosperity and goodwill reign in Bandon,' chortled the editor of the Bandon Recorder and announced that the woolen mill was paying the highest price for wool."
The book tells of trips made to San Francisco by the president of the company to buy wool and supplies and to solicit orders. Most were made on small coasting steamers. "Occasionally the less direct land route was used, sometimes by horse and buggy to Myrtle Point, thence by stage to Roseburg; or a combination of riverboat from Bandon to Coquille City or by the 26-mile railroad which ran from Marshfield to Myrtle Point.
"By 1901, with the mill running full time the town enjoyed a real estate boom: $10 lots were selling for $100.
"In June, 1903 Clark (the president of the company) returned from an eastern trip and announced he was closing the Bandon factory and moving it to North Bend, a new community 25 miles north on Coos Bay.
"A disconsolate note pervaded the town as employees began to move to their new jobs. 'What will Bandon people do now to repair the loss?' wailed the Recorder's editor. In answer to the plea, Robert E. Lee Bedillion, a well-known citizen, left for San Francisco early in February 1904 on the new steamer Elizabeth purportedly to find capital for a new Bandon woolen mill."
Under his direction the Bandon Woolen Mills was incorporated on May 7, 1904, with C.Y. Lowe and W.D. Marshall.
"The year 1905 was a stimulating one ... with the woolen mill .... and word that a congressional appropriation had been made to build the much needed north jetty to improve channel depth.
"In the meantime the North Bend woolen mill was having trouble. The unused stock of wool, yarn, dyes and chemicals was for sale and was brought to Bandon. On March 9, 1906, the whir of pulley belts and clatter of looms shattered the months of silence in the big building."
Several years later other businessmen joined the corporation including Elbert Dyer, George P. Topping, R. H. Rosa and A. McNair.
It is not known exactly when the second woolen mill ceased operation, but it may have been in early 1915.
Again, local businessmen were not content to let the mill close, and following Bedillion's management, the property was placed in the hands of W.J. Sweet (John and Sue's grandfather) as Receiver.
News that the woolen mill would soon reopen "was very encouraging and fitted into the overall business conditions of the town which reported nearly $900,000 in exported products, mostly ties, piling, matchwood and shingles. But cheese and butter, canned salmon and small amounts of wool and mohair also went out over the bar."
A new corporation was formed known as Sunset Woolen Mills, and the last mention of the company was in February 1920. The equipment from the mill was sold in 1923, which ended Bandon's woolen mill days.
I am not sure when the second photo was taken, but the license plate on the wrecked car seems to say 1958. It was just one of many wrecks which occurred in those days at Fillmore and Highway 101, in front of the Mobile gas station and what was then the Bandon City Hall (and is now the local museum).
Wreck at Fillmore and Highway 101
Even though the intersection is now "protected" by a traffic light, it is still considered by many to be a dangerous intersection and continues to be the scene of accidents in the last few years. Bandon Police Officer Harry Franson can be seen taking a report. I believe the young service station attendant is Gary Stiltner, but I could be wrong.
The third picture was taken in May of 1956 as Golden Rule owner Bob Norton sweeps up broken glass and metal from the front of his building, which had been struck by a car operated by a Bandon woman, who apparently hit the gas when she should have hit the brakes.
Golden Rule, 1956
At any rate, over the years, the Golden Rule suffered two fires, including one in 1968 which claimed the life of one of the upstairs renters, Berna Linn. And that, of course, does not include the fact that the Golden Rule was located on First Street at the time of the 1936 fire and was destroyed along with all the other businesses on that street.
Today, this is the Continuum Center.
* * *
Talk about sad. Coos County is now one of only five counties in the state that remains in the Extreme High Risk category, which prohibits our restaurants and bars from offering indoor seating.
Over the years Oregon's counties and cities have enjoyed what is known as Home Rule status, but slowly that authority has been eroded by the state legislature.
I understand that Bandon presently has no Covid-19 cases and to my knowledge, there have been no hospitalizations, yet we are punished along with our neighbors to the north, where most of the Covid cases are occurring.
A group of concerned citizens has been meeting weekly at the Restoration Worship Center to talk about the situation and see what can be done. Friday night Senator Dallas Heard from Roseburg joined the group, which was estimated at a crowd of more than 100 people.
We encounter big crowds of people every day at the local grocery stores, sitting outside at various locations and most assuredly gathering in private homes, but still bars and restaurants remain open only to take-out. If it's OK for people to dine in a cafe in Langlois, it should be OK to eat in a restaurant in Bandon, but as we know they are in two different counties, and Curry is not in the Extreme Risk category. Maybe the matrix needs to be by city and not by county.
State Representative David Brock Smith from Port Orford has introduced HB 3177 known as the Covid Business Equity Act which supports" the diverse working families of the hospitality industry, the small business owners across the state and provides the needed business equity that is severely lacking."
Several Bandon people, including Broken Anchor owner Jessica Neal and Bandon Chamber representative Margaret Pounder, testified before the legislature's House Committee on Economic Recovery and Prosperity last week in support of the Bill.
Jessica was particularly powerful in her testimony, ending by saying, "The matrix are ruining the lives of thousands of people in Oregon .... not to mention the trickle down effect, which is awful."
We all need to get behind their efforts.
* * *
I was sorry to learn that Glenda Gant Hawkins, 86, had died last week in Medford after a sudden illness. She was born April 21, 1934, to Elmer and Grace Gant and lived most of her life in Bandon. She and Warren Hawkins, who later divorced, raised six children, Stacey Christensen, Scott Hawkins, Terry Chandler, Kelly Ventriglia, Marnie Rubrecht and Lucas Hawkins. Later she earned her license in hair design and cosmetology and leased a salon in downtown Port Orford in 1988.
Her survivors include her two brothers, Tom of Bandon and Jim of Cottage Grove, as well as two sisters, Gloria Haga of Bandon and Susan Winnop of Satsuma, Alabama.
I was also advised by Commissioner Bob Main that long-time Coquille city councilor Fran Capehart died last week, but I do not know any of the particulars.
* * *
An article in last Sunday's Oregonian highlighted a man who has definitely made money during the pandemic, but not because of anything to do with Covid. No, he puts plywood on broken windows, and since May 29, he has often worked 15-hour days boarding up windows in downtown Portland. One call came in for 45 windows on Yamhill.
And anyone who thinks the vandalism has slowed down is not reading the news. The article talked about a snowball fight on Feb.12 held by Portland protesters. "About 75 people -- some dressed in black bloc, others wearing '80s-style ski suits -- gathered in Director Park for what was cheekily billed as 'Antifa Snow Day.' Tamales were served; so was beer. Around 10 p.m. a smaller group set out for the Portland Police Bureau's Central Precinct. Not long after, somebody started shattering windows at ZoomCare clinic, then a Starbucks." And that's when the guy in the story got called out.
He was identified only by his first name because he said some city contractors have seen their windows shattered in 2020 for working with the police or on homeless sweeps.
"The most jacked-up part of this is seeing families sobbing," he says. "It's hard to be there for them emotionally when they've lost everything. First because of COVID, then all their inventory's been taken. It's heartbreaking."
Previous columns by Mary Schamehorn
bandon.tv