Historic Hood River
Hidden in Plain Sight
5-20-2014
Notes
I’ve long wondered why the museum’s collection of Koberg Beach photographs is so limited. The other day, while I was waiting for a Windows update to complete on the photo archive computer, I wandered the museum looking at the displays. There, in the Koberg Beach exhibit, was a large photo album labelled “Koberg Beach” which had somehow escaped our scanning and archiving process. Matt and I temporarily “appropriated” the album, and I’ll share some of the images with you this week.
I did a double take on this one. We’re looking into the cove, but the classic dance pavilion is nowhere to be seen. I suspect this is from the 1920s, before the pavilion was constructed. Tomorrow you’ll see the mystery deepens a bit more.
charlott
No doubt had to have been fairly deep there to have a tower that high. Good idea having that life ring and row boat right there. Currents were and still are very strong in that area.
Bathing attire certainly appear to be about 20ish.
spinsur
So many of the older photos didn’t catch action this well. The fast shutter speed surprises me for the time period.
Is that a person in the upper left corner on the rocks?
Buzz
Appears the beach in this area has always had a fairly steep slope into the water and the water got deep rapidly. With no diving platform, kids in our era had to climb up the face of the rock as far as you could get before diving. Don’t remember strong current in the 50’s, but maybe just forgot. Do kids still dive off the rock today? Probably good thing you couldn’t just easily run from the beach to the top of the rock and jump off, or kids would probably have been doing that too.
DeAnna
Looks like it’s all male beach!
l.e.
Was it common for everyone to wear a swim uniform in those days? None of the guys are in cut off pants and bare chest.
Did boys and girls have separate beaches or separate days for swimming?
lee
Yes the current would want to take you around the rocks and up river so we had to swim back at an angle. This was in the late 50s when we were so dareing?
Judy
In the 50’s kids were more daring and that is how some of the kids got injured. I think Spencer Erikson (sp) was one of them. Anyhow, wish we still had the pavilion there, but time marches on.
Arthur
None of the pictures we have show coed swim classes. I don’t remember coed swimming classes when I was a kid 50 years later.
Susie
I am wondering if the poison oak was as prolific then as it was in the 50s!
charlott
I don’t think kids around here now are even aware of that rock. They are too busy poking buttons on all their little machines. Yes, Erickson was the one that either broke his neck or severely injured it. Oh, yes Dick dove off, but not the top. He said once was enough for him. Very dangerous idea.
spinsur
Kids still jump off the remaining iron work from the pavilion during the summer. Kids will be… well, kids!
l.e.
The map shows the Boat Landing down stream from this a little more, but that sure looks like a road and a boat landing coming down into the water.