100 years ago — 1922

Under the protecting care of two deputy sheriffs from Mutnomah county, 29 members of the Hip Sing tong arrived in Pendleton yesterday afternoon and marched to the Chinese quarters where they expect to remain until the tong war which is raging on the coast has ceased. This action on the part of the Portland officials is being taken as a means of combatting the tong war. Local Hip Sings will bear the expense of the visit of their brothers while the strangers are here, it is said. The battle has been going on for several weeks, and more murders are expected by the Portland authorities before peace and quiet reign again.

50 years ago — 1972

A motorist who was struck by a rock falling from a cliff above Highway 730 near the mouth of Juniper Canyon lost her lawsuit against Oregon Highway Department personnel. A jury in Umatilla County Circuit Court voted 11-1 in favor of the defendants at the end of a three-day trial. The plaintiff, Elaine Leonard, 44, Las Vegas, Nev., was severely injured by the 15-pound rock that plunged through the windshield of her car on Dec. 17, 1967. She asked for damages of $257,957. Mrs. Leonard’s suit was filed against members of the Oregon Highway Commission as well as specific state highway engineers and maintenance supervisors, accusing the defendants of negligence in not keeping the rock from falling onto the highway. “The rimrocks rise step on step for thousands of feet for several miles,” defense attorney Malcolm Marsh, Salem, said. “It is impossible to screen them all.” He said that freezing and thawing conditions split rocks from the cliffs during the winter and there is no feasible way to keep all the rocks off the highways. “How can the defendants be held accountable for conditions outside the right of way?” he asked the jury of six women and six men.

25 years ago — 1997

The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla will be hosts for a free friendship dinner banquet and author signing at Wildhorse Casino Friday to raise awareness of Native American culture. Athena native Steven Ross Evans, author of “The Voice of the Old Wolf,” Ann McCormick, a contributing writer in the anthology “A Song to the Creator,” and Ron Pond of Pendleton, a curator of the “Song to the Creator” exhibit, will be the guest speakers in a special presentation. Copies of the books and video tapes of the exhibit, which was held at Washington State University last year, will be available for purchase. The video takes viewers through each of the 300 artwork items in the “Song to the Creator” exhibit, borrowed from museums, artists and private collectors throughout the Northwest and including brilliantly colored cornhusk bags, beaded dresses, intricately woven baskets and splendid horse regalia.