25 years ago this week —1999

A new $1.5 million fish screen at an irrigation diversion on the Walla Walla River in Milton-Freewater will save thousands of young salmon smolts annually, and is key to restoring salmon runs in the river, say local fisheries experts.

The new screen was proposed by the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation as part of its comprehensive plan to restore steelhead runs and reintroduce spring chinook to the Walla Walla, according to the tribal fisheries program manager Gary James.

“The main thing we are trying to do on the Walla Walla River is very similar to what we did on the Umatilla River,” James said. “We are identifying some of the problems impacting the fish on the river, and working with the irrigation districts, the landowners, the Army Corps of Engineers and the Bonneville Power Administration, to correct those problems.

“We’re doing this with two goals in mind,” James added. “One, to establish some good natural fish runs, and two, to provide Indian and non-Indian harvest, which there is no opportunity for right now.”

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Although overall crime in Oregon decreased in 1998 compared to the previous year, crime in Umatilla County was up about 10 percent, according to a report by the Oregon Uniform Crime Reporting Program.

Morrow County, on the other hand, was right in line with the statewide decrease in crime, with 4.2 percent less reported crime overall, although behavioral crimes in Morrow County were up nearly 40 percent.

The crime statistics compiled by the Oregon law enforcement data system reflect the offense and arrest data submitted by municipal, county, tribal and state police. Increase and decrease percentages compare the first nine months of 1997 and 1998.

Crime in Oregon decreased 4.2 percent in the first nine months of 1998. Overall, crimes against persons were down 1.9 percent, crimes against property were down 5.8 percent, and behavioral crimes were down 2.4 percent.

In Umatilla County, crimes against persons — which include things such as murder, rape, robbery and assault – were up 9.7 percent in 1998. In Morrow County those crimes were up 2.4 percent.

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Looking over the new town site, Dewey West remarked on the prominence of sage brush — and little else.

“As you can see, there’s nothing else there just yet. Just a lot of people’s dreams,” West said.

Those dreams have been reality for some 30 years now. The former town mayor spoke to a crowd of about 70 people in the Riverside High School library as part of “Honoring Our Past,” an effort by residents to create a collective history of the town.

In Boardman’s case, such a history doesn’t exist; there are no old buildings on Main Street. In fact, there’s little old in this town except memories; the original town site now sits below the blue depths of the Columbia River.

What does remain is a video cassette containing old, silent eight-millimeter home movies made by West. His movies show the old town, the current town site before any homes existed, and the entertaining process of moving homes via tractor.

West narrated it all while the camera focuses on the green grass in the yard of his old home. “We sure hated to leave that old pretty yard … but there’s about 20 feet of water over where that picture was taken.

50 years ago this week — 1974

Delinquency referrals to the Umatilla County Juvenile Department were up 12 per cent in 1973 over the previous year, according to the department’s annual report made available this week.

The figures in the report prepared by juvenile department director James Epley show a rise from 1,550 delinquency complaints in 1971 to 1,742 in 1973. The major increases were in larceny, vandalism and being beyond parental control.

The report noted the department also handled 106 neglect and custody cases in addition to the delinquency referrals, down from the 172 such cases in 1972.

Epley pointed out that the department was able to take care of the additional cases without additional staff.

Runaways continued to be the single largest cause for referral to the department. But the 379 runaways in 1973 were a decrease from the 391 in 1972. It also was the only area of delinquency referrals in which girls outnumber boys, 192 to 187.

Also high again this year were burglaries, 104 in 1973 compared to 105 in 1972.

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“It’s hard to say, but I think we’re sitting pretty good unless something unexpected comes along,” said Jim Tucker, superintendent of McKay Dam for the Bureau of Reclamation.

Tucker said about 1,00 acre feet of water has been released from McKay Reservoir in the last week.

The reservoir was at 64,775 acre feet today. On March 20 it was at 65,795 acre feet.

Tucker said about 290 cubic feet per second was being released from the reservoir while about 350 cfs was coming in.

Yesterday 55 acre feet more came into the reservoir than was released.

“The warm wind must have upped the inflow a little,” Tucker said.

He said they will probably start storing a little more water today.

Just back from a snow survey Wednesday, Tucker said a rough estimate would be 14 inches of snow at Emigrant Springs with about six inches water content. At Meacham, he said there are about 44 inches of snow with a water content of about 18 inches.

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Ah spring. But no gasoline to go anywhere and enjoy it, right?

Wrong, if the lack of lines at gas stations in this region is any indication.

A casual drive around Pendleton Friday afternoon served to make the point. The longest line seen was three cars. And at least two stations which were closed in the afternoons after pumping their daily allocation before noon on days earlier in the month were open and pumping gas in the late afternoon Friday.

Yes, the gasoline shortage still exists. But it obviously isn’t as critical at the moment as it was earlier in the year. At least not in this region. Portland and the Willamette Valley, however, still have serious problems compared with Eastern Oregon.

Valley residents still report difficulty getting gasoline, without waiting in lines, in many instances. And the word of Eastern Oregon’s enviable position apparently hasn’t spread to many Portland residents.

“Sure, Ive’ been able to get gas here most of the time,” said a resident of a Portland suburb last week, “but how do I know that if I come over into your country (Umatilla County) I’ll be able to get enough gas to get back.”

Told of this reaction, one Pendletonian quipped: “Don’t let ‘em know any different.”

Meanwhile in Salem, Oregonians were warned Friday to spend their summer vacations close to home.

100 years ago this week — 1924

Pendleton is to have a Spring Festival.

It was endorsed and approved by the board of directors of the Pendleton Commercial association at a meeting yesterday, when the board declared itself in favor of a festival, underwritten to take care of any possible deficit, leaving it to the membership of the association as to whether or not the guarantee be given by the association directly or by the business men, upon solicitation by an association committee. This decision will be made at the association’s big forum dinner to be held in early April.

Roy Raley, president of the Spring Festival association which presented its first show last year, has consented to direct the second festival and believes that this year the festival will make money for Pendleton parks and playgrounds. Last year there was a deficit because of the expense of materials. Much of this material is now on hand and will eliminate considerable expense.

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With five pre-historic human skeletons already recovered from the Rancho Cunajo, put near here, scientists today resumed their probing of the age-old quicksands now buried beneath 23 feet of sedimentary strata, where these and perhaps other members of a long extinct race are believed to have met death some tens of thousands of years ago.

Discovery of a fifth skeleton late yesterday gave rise to the belief that the quick sans said by geologists to date back to the pleistocene era, may have entrapped a great number of these prodromal southern Californian people, just as the La Brea oil pits, a few miles to the northwest, developed in to a veritable mine of pre-historic animal fossils. According to Dr. Wm. A. Bryan, director of the Los Angeles museum the skeleton brought to light it much better preserved and more complete than the other four. It was found in an upright position imbedded in the water logged wall of the pit, its empty eye-sockets dripping moisture weirdly akin to tears.

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James Hill was elected president of the Umatilla county farm bureau in the annual meeting of that body held Saturday afternoon after the meeting of the Oregon Export Commission league. F. P. Phipps of Hermiston was elected vice-president, and Mac Hoke of Pendleton, was elected to succeed himself as secretary-treasurer.

The farm bureau authorized the secretary to send telegrams to the president and the Oregon delegation in congress asking that the McNary-Haugen bill be passed. The annual report of the secretary-treasurer was read by Fred Bennion in the absence of Mac Hoke.

The activities of the county farm bureau have been far-reaching during the past year, the report showed. The organization has repeatedly represented farmers of all sections of the county in hearing of one sort of another, aided in keeping an adequate supply of labor here during harvest season, purchased distillate for farmers and was active in many other ways.