Amy McAllister REALTOR® Hood River, Oregon

Hood River Waterfront Park Groundbreaking Party, March 1, 2008

There will be a groundbreaking party and celebration on March 1, 2008 at The Pines Tasting Room, 2nd and State St. in Hood River from 7-10 pm. This will be a chance to enjoy the success and prepare for the next phase of the Hood River Waterfront Park development. Come and check out the features possible in the next phase of the park. It will be an evening of fun, food, wine and music, and fundraising Tickets are $20.00 and will be available at Waucoma book store, Shortt Supply and from WCPA Board members.

The Original Wasco County Courthouse - This wood-frame building in The Dalles, Oregon once was the seat of government for the largest county in the United States. Wasco County extended all the way to Montana. The old courthouse, constructed in 1858, is one of the oldest courthouses west of the Mississippi River.

Original Courthouse History Forums start Feb. 2, 2008. All programs begin at 1:30 p.m. in the upstairs courtroom of the 1859 Courthouse located at 410 W. Second Place in The Dalles. Coffee and cookies will be served. Below is the schedule of topics.

Feb. 2- Klickitat Bubbling Water: Surprising History of the Mineral Springs- A chance discovery of a soda bottle at a flea market is what started an amazing journey into the history of mineral springs near Klickitat, Washington. A fascinating story will be shared with historic photographs and documents.

Feb. 16-The Celilo Canal and Portage Railroads-Historian Jerry Tanquist follows up programs about the great Southern Railroad and the Deschutes River "railroad war". In this program you will take a look at two early railroads and also the canal that once connected the middle to upper river around the unnavigable Long Narrows and the Great Falls at Celilo.

Feb. 9- Coming to Stay:A Columbia River Journey-Mt. Hood author Mary Schlick will discuss her new memoir and sign books that are brought or purchased. The book is based on nearly 60 years of close association with Native Americans on the Colville, Warm Springs and Yakima reservations. This award-winning author is an advocate of Native arts and artists and adjunct curator at Maryhill Museum.

Feb.23- On the Air in the Gorge:67 Years of Radio History- with Rodger Nichols, former radio personality, and current news reporter for The Dalles Chronicle.

According to early pioneer accounts, Hood River was originally named "Dog River". The name of Dog River originated from a story told about an episode on a cattle drive. Apparently a herd of cattle bedded down for the night on the west bank of what would later become known as the Hood River while the cattle hands set up camp on the east side of the river. Heavy rains fell that night and the river rose so high the men could not cross to retrieve the cattle. The rain continued many days and the crew eventually ran out of food. They bought a dog from a nearby Native American encampment and, out of desperation, killed the dog for food. From then on, the area became known as Dog River.

Mary and Nathaniel Coe were Hood River's first permanent Euro-American settlers. They claimed 319.92 acres in 1854. The Coe's went to work planting apple seeds for nursery stock and a large vegetable garden. Within five years, the Coe's home served as the community center, Courthouse, church, and funeral parlor. By 1858 the Coe's sold apricots, meat, melon, peaches and vegetables in The Dalles market. At this time Mary Coe renamed the community Hood Vale, then Hood River, a more fitting name for the beautiful surrounding countryside. A post office was established in 1858.

Hood River developed slowly until 1882 when the railroad was completed along the south side of the Columbia River. The railroad connected the small river settlement with other towns across the nation. The town of Hood River was platted in 1881 as a result of the railroad depot. The railroad ushered in a new period of growth with the town's population more than tripling from 201 people in 1890 to 622 people in 1900.

As the fertile land of the Hood River Valley was developed after the turn of the century, the population continued to increase. The completion of the Mt. Hood Railroad from Hood River up the valley to Parkdale in 1910 further improved the transportation links in the region and brought more business into Hood River. Hood River became the economic center of the Hood River Valley.

The buildings in downtown Hood River reflect the influx of wealth that occurred in the first decades of the 20th century as the tourism, fruit, and timber industries developed. The original town of Hood River, a four block area was platted in 1881. Additions platted from 1888-1900 are characterized by residential buildings which date from the turn of the century to the 1940's. The majority of these residential buildings reflect either the Vernacular style or the Bungalow style. The largest building activity occurred from 1901-1913 (the end of the Progressive Era). Between 1901 and 1914, half of the commercial buildings in downtown Hood River were erected. Early residential development was beginning also. After the turn of the century Hood River experienced a boom in population; many additions were made to the original plat of the town at this time.

The Honorable Andrew A.Jayne

The following information is taken from the nomination to the National Historic Registry for the Ernest S. & Clara C. Colby House.

The Historic Colby House at 1219 Columbia Ave. in Hood River was constructed in 1905. The house is one of the earlier houses built in the city in the Riverview Park Addition. The house was built as one of the first during the building boom period of Hood River's development from 1905-1915. The Hood River Development Company which formed in 1904 was one of the early promoters of residential development. Andrew A. Jayne was the Secretary of this development company. Andrew A. Jayne was a prominent citizen, three term Circuit Judge, attorney, and the State Legislator who submitted the bill in 1908 which created Hood River County, breaking it out of Wasco County. Previously, Wasco County covered this area all the way to Multnomah County. The Honorable Andrew A. Jayne lived in Hood River from 1900-1912, and lived in the Colby House from 1910-1912. The Historic Colby House was named after Ernest S. & Clara C. Colby who owned the home for the longest period of time and reportedly converted the single family residence into a duplex in the 1930's. Ernest was an electrician and manager of Apple City Electric at the time.

Here's the latest sales data for Skamania County from the RMLS.

Skamania- 0 sales Sale Pending- 1 home

North Bonneville- 0 sales Sale Pending- 3 homes

Stevenson-3 sales $200,000, $255,000 & $293,600 Sale Pending-5 homes

Carson- 3 Sales $147,897, $289,000, & $363,000 Sale Pending- 1 home

Home Valley- 0 sales Sale Pending- 0 homes

Cook/Underwood/Mill A/Willard - 0 sales Sale Pending- 0 homes

Total homes Sold Dec 2007 Skamania County- 6 homes Total currently Sale Pending- 10 homes