Historic Hood River
Hood River Baseball
8-17-2018
Notes
This Albert Kollas image was in an envelope postmarked in early 1917. Much later someone added a sticky note saying “Bob Kollas?”
I can’t find any records of any Kollas’ playing baseball, but I did discover Albert Kollas was drafted into the army shortly after receiving this envelope. It seems he was relatively fortunate, as a 1919 report has him returning from duty in the Puget Sound where he was part of the “spruce production division.” Spruce was very important for the production of aircraft during the war.
Charlott
The Robert Kollas I know about was much later than 1917. Not that I know that much about baseball uniforms, but this does strike me as more 1940’ish. Robert Cecil Kollas, the son of Alphonse and Ruth Kollas was 21 in 1940, which this could have been about 1937, if in fact this particular Robert Kollas.
Looks like a catchers mitt to me.
Buzz
Ran across a number of old spruce stumps along the shoreline in S.E. Alaska . Best spruce trees were cut down that would fall into salt water. Story was they would just cut off the straight grained part of the tree below where the limbs started and tow them to the closest mill. My dad was exempt from the military when the war started because he was logging. But my mom said he couldn’t stay home when his buddies were off to war, so he voluntarily enlisted in the infantry.
Arlen Sheldrake
our spruce railroads exhibit at the Oregon Rail Heritage Center attempts to commemorate this world changing war. love what the Brits and French told us, "just send us the spruce and we will build the aeroplanes as you guys don’t know how to build them". a giant effort in Oregon and Washington to build railroads to bring the spruce out….I understand that one the attributes of spruce was that it didn’t splinter when a bullet hit it…..
L.E.
Classy looking kid, especially with that lock of hair pulled down from under his ball cap.
Looking up the Kollas name in HR can become confusing with Franks and Alberts.
Phillip and Therisa Kollas immigrated from Germany in 1880. Children were William who was born in Germany 1880, Albert born in The Dalles 1890 and Alphonse, born in Oregon 1896.
Albert registered or WWI draft in 1917. In 1920 he is on a farm in Odell. In 1929 he married Ruth. He died in 1962 in HR.
But……There is a Frank Albert Kollas, born 1878 in Germany. His parents were Philip and Maria Theresa. His siblings were George Wilhelm and Alphonse and his wife was Ida Mae. He passed away in 1961 in HR.
Sadly, he had a son Frank Albert Kollas Jr. Frank Jr. joined the Fish Hawks division of the Navy. He was killed in 1945 and is buried at St. Mary’s.
Perhaps there are still some members of the Kollas family living in HR??
L.E.
Hey Arlen…last weekend I rode the Chelatchie Prairie train, with my grandchildren. I loved the whistle, the puff, puff, puff as we were going uphill back to the station.
Perhaps that train brought spruce logs out of the Lewis River area.
Arlen Sheldrake
yes, great run out of Yacolt….love the tunnel. I doubt if much spruce came out of that area as most if not all was on the coast of OR and WA and some BC. the spruce division of WW 1 changed the timber industry. and thanks L.E. for exposing our replacements to our RR history!
yes, this dude is a lady killer
Buzz
Spruce was the primary species in S.E. Alaska. Next was hemlock which was used mostly as pulp to make paper. Also a little cottonwood and cedar in lower lying areas.
Maria Kollas
Yes, Albert’s great grandnephew Paul Kollas returned to Hood River in 1981 after serving 22 years in the Air Force. Brother John Stuart lives in Milwaukie and the youngest, Philip is in Hillsboro. Philip would like to return to Hood River when he retires.
Arthur
Thanks Maria! I forgot to point out this image is courtesy of Paul Kollas, who has preserved the Albert Kollas negatives and shared them with us. This is from the same collection as those wonderful images of the Columbia River Highway on its opening day. There are still a few of those coming up. Paul also shared the Joe Kollas and Alan Winans photos we have enjoyed so much.
L.E.
So, Maria, can you explain, who is the Albert born in The Dalles in 1890 an who is the Frank Albert born in Germany in 1878? Both had the same parents, the same siblings, different wives and died in different years.
PK
I’ll jump in here; see if i can help. Albert (1880/The Dalles) was a brother of Frank A (I’m not sure A = Albert; 1878/Martinsthal GE). Frank and Georg Wilhelm, my great uncle and grandfather respectively, emigrated to US in 1897. So Albert and Alphonse were both born in Oregon, and their older siblings Frank and Georg (Bill) became naturalized, and grew up together on a homestead on Middle Mountain.
Paul (PK)
PK
OK, so Frank A is properly Frank Albert. I’m pretty sure the picture above is Bob Kollas, i remember that he played baseball, but probably not big league.
pk