100 Years Ago

From the East Oregonian

Feb. 18, 1921

The Oregon prune, served au natural in a thick brown syrup; enthroned on a lettuce leaf with a crown of mayonnaise; cavorting about in an egg meringue; reposing beneath a crust of pastry — or presented in a hundred different ways — appears as the headliner on the bill of fare, for Prune Week is with us for a seven day engagement. Stores, restaurants and hotels of Pendleton are featuring the fruit. Time was when the prune occupied a rather lowly position in life. That was in pre-war days before prices went skyward to such an extent that the fruit was deemed worthy of the best culinary effort. With the price at 35 cents, cooks discovered that prunes were a delicacy, and since that date their reputation has been unquestioned. The price today in Pendleton stores ranges from 10 to 25 cents a pound, according to the size.

50 Years Ago

From the East Oregonian

Feb. 18, 1971

If you are a young woman wondering what major to pursue in college, you should consider food and science technology. This degree could bring you a career with a major food company that sends you to Europe as well as all over the United State. Margaret Marks, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Les Marks of Hermiston, grew up in Fossil and graduated from high school in Heppner. She was recruited by General Foods Corporation before her graduation from Oregon State University in 1969 and now works as a sensory evaluation specialist based in Tarrytown, N.Y. “We do a lot of experimenting on food products. How does it taste, smell? How does it feel?” she said. Part of Margaret’s job is consumer testing, and it is this part that takes her out into the field. She was in Europe last fall and recently was in San Francisco testing “doughnut coffee,” ground coffee packaged in a gauze wrapping and shaped like a doughnut to fit over the stem in a percolator. “No messy grounds to get rid of — you just throw the ‘doughnut’ away.”

25 Years Ago

From the East Oregonian

Feb. 18, 1996

Hermiston racked up nearly twice the 1995 lottery sales as the next highest selling town in Umatilla County with Main Street being a hot spot for video poker and traditional lottery sales. Hermiston took in $1.65 million more in lottery sales than Pendleton, which ranked number two in the county. Some of the highest Hermiston sales were at the Pheasant Cafe and Lounge, Hale’s Tavern, the Cozy Corner Tavern and the Eastside Market, all on Main Street. The Grainary Inn on Hermiston Avenue and the Last Chance Tavern on 11th also do a lot of state lottery business. The Crossroads Truckstop in Umatilla is the top seller in the county, with $747,185 in sales, and the Blevins Villa-Mart in Milton-Freewater brought in $543,396 last year. The money generated by the lottery returns to the community in various ways. Some of the money was used for infrastructure improvements for the Wal-Mart distribution center in Hermiston and improvements to the city of Umatilla’s water system.