100 Years Ago

From the East Oregonian

June 2, 1920

William Howard Taft, president of the United States between 1908 and 1912, will be Pendleton’s guest this evening. The former president comes not on a political mission but as a lyceum speaker, under the auspices of the Pendleton high school lyceum course. His topic is “Americanism vs. Bolshevism.” Happy Canyon pavilion will be the scene of the first address ever made in Pendleton by a former president. The fact that Mr. Taft is speaking on a subject of national and international importance and not on politics is expected to attract a large audience of all political and social faiths to the lecture.

50 Years Ago

From the East Oregonian

June 2, 1970

Two pioneer Weston farmers, Miller and Walter Rayborn, have been selected by the Oregon Wheat Growers League as Umatilla County’s Conservation Men of the Year. The Rayborn brothers jointly farm 1,220 acres on Weston Mountain, the cropland of which is devoted mainly to the production of wheat and peas. In addition they run a 40-head cow-calf operation on their home place. Much of their farmland is sloping and the construction of over four miles of terraces to protect the soil from runoff helped earn them the conservation title. Contour seeding and chiseling are also part of the Rayborn brothers’ conservation program. Gully and other erosion has virtually been eliminated because of these practices.

25 Years Ago

From the East Oregonian

June 2, 1995

When Susan DeMarsh moved to Pendleton in 1989, no women belonged to the local Rotary club. Then in 1991, she was among five women inducted as Rotarians. DeMarsh was elected to the board two years later. On July 1, she will become the first woman president of the Pendleton Rotary Club in its 75-year history. “I think that every human being brings a special resource and a point of view to any organization,” DeMarsh says, regarding a woman’s contribution. “I have that same need (as men) to make those commitments to community, and Rotary provides that forum.” When she was new to Pendleton Rotary, DeMarsh says she could sense which members were resistant to women joining the organization. Since then, she has watched them become more supportive.