Historic Hood River
“Mother McKay”
1-28-2025
Notes
We need some help with this one. The caption indicates that Mrs. McKay was “Mother of Jessie McKay who taught school at Crapper school house now Oak Grove school house.” I haven’t been able to find any record of a Miss or Mrs. McKay teaching at the Crapper school, but it’s a great real photo postcard nevertheless. I wonder if she visited a photo studio on the coast for this image or if local photographers provided backgrounds like this for variety. This wouldn’t be a bad Zoom background.
This is associated with other images which mention the names Thomas and Etta McKay.
Thorn
Here’s a quick link to the first HRH photo of Crapper School, and some informative comments, including the name origin.
https://www.hoodriverhistorymuseum.org/crapper-school/
But I’m wondering if the background is the coast or the gorge. Those dock structures, especially the one in the back, look like salmon traps.
Jeffrey Bryant
History of Early Pioneer Families of Hood River, Oregon. Compiled by Mrs. D.M. Coon, Volume 3, page 237
THOMAS McKAY AND FAMILY 1881
Thomas McKay came to Hood River in the spring of 1881; he came in search of a home for his family. He was employed on the railroad and met Mr. C.W. Phelps of Hood River who recommended this community.
After looking through the valley and visiting some of the schools, he bought the Lillie place on Indian Creek, in the Barrett district. His family, at that time, consisted of his wife, a son usually called Tom and a daughter Etta. Another daughter, Anna, had been drowned at Tacoma a short time previous.
Etta soon became a pupil in the school and Tom attended as soon as he was old enough. Two more children were born in Hood River, they were Jessie and Leona.
Mr. McKay was employed away from home much of the time so that improvements were slow but he erected a cozy little house and a good barn and cleared considerable land which he put in crops.
In the years in which the family lived in the valley, they won a warm place in the hearts of the people of the community.
Etta made rapid progress in school, finished the work outlined and secured a teacher’s certificate. In 1891 she was employed to teach the Oak Grove – Barrett school, this district having been recently cut from the Barrett district. The school closed the latter part of August, Jessie McKay being a visitor at the school that day.
A few days later, Jessie was taken sick with diphtheria and lived less than a week; Etta was her nurse and she contracted the disease and died in a few days. Tom and Leona escaped by being isolated in the barn. Mr. and Mrs. McKay sought relief from their sudden bereavement by a change of scene. They moved to Bellingham Bay, where Mr. McKay died two years later. The family now lives at Seaside, Oregon. Tom is a plumber, is married and has one child.
Jeffrey Bryant
Some of the photo notes are incorrect. This must be Henrietta McKay, b. 1848 Germany, d. 1935 Seaside, Clatsop, Oregon. She was married to Thomas McKay.
From the above biography, their daughter Etta McKay taught at Oak Grove. Jessie McKay was only 9 years old when she passed away.
Jeffrey Bryant
Since the family ended up in Seaside, I suspect that is what is suggested by the background.
L. E.
Tragic times. Diphtheria and tuberculosis took so many young lives. Etta was old enough, I am surprised she died from it. She was 19.
Mother, Henrietta McKay is buried at Warrenton, OR. She passed away September 1935 in Seaside where she had lived for the past 30 years.
Her obituary says, she spent her early years in Hood River. Her husband Thomas McKay was a railroad builder.
Surviving relatives are a daughter Leona and three grandchildren Thomas P. McKay, Marianne McKay and Donald McKay all of Seaside.
Her son Thomas McKay had died at age 52 at Seaside from pneumonia.
Elizabeth was from Germany and Thomas was from Scotland so not from the early Hudson Bay McKay family.
With Jeffrey’s information and what I read, I would have to assume the photo is mother Henrietta McKay.
L. E.
Sorry, in the above comment, not Elizabeth. I don’t know where that came from. Henrietta was from Germany.
Thorn
Great info and sleuthing. Here’s some info on the old Pacific Pier at Seaside, and a photo of it from the other side.
https://www.seasideoregon.com/seaside-oregon-promenade/
L. E.
Neat photo of the wooden prom and a very busy beach. It sounds like the original was probably gone when Henrietta posed for this photo, but it makes a great backdrop.