Historic Hood River
Mazama Box on top of Mt. Adams
5-16-2024
Notes
This may be a Fred Donnerberg photograph of the box placed by the Mazamas atop Mt. Adams to record parties who summit the mountain. The Mazamas take their record keeping seriously. It was through a record in a box like this we were able to identify the party of climbers in this image, and date their climb to July 5 1896.
Joan S. Woolway
I was trying to find the date of a newspaper
article from my great aunt. It read:
Mount Adams Summit is Conquered at Night.
Portland part finds Mazama record is ruined by pencil left in box.
Troutlake, Wash., Aug 17,— A party of Portland people accompanied by R. M. Filloon, of Troutlake, as guide, made the ascent of Mount Adams by moonlight Saturday morning. They left camp at 1 a.m., climbing a part of the way by moonlight. The
atmosphere was very clear until the summit was reached when a driving hailstorm was encountered, lasting for an hour, and it was intensely cold. The mountaineers found the Mazama box and register buried under two feet of ice. The men of the party cut the ice away and found the box had been filled with water and the registry book ruined because some unthinking person had left an indelible pencil inside, the lead of which having been dissolved had stained the writing so that it was illegible. The names of those who had climbed the mountain are now obliterated.
The Bridge of Wonders, Hell Roaring canyon and and other places of interest were
visited by the Portland party and a week of sightseeing was enjoyed. Camp was made near snowbanks 20 feet in depth, yet the atmosphere was very warm. Those in the party beside the guide were Mr. and Mrs W. S.
Kirkpatrick, Mrs. Hallie Bell and Miss Geraldine Cartmell.