Historic Hood River
Sheriff on a Busy Day
8-29-2013
Notes
This Leroy Childs photo is labelled “Hood River County Sheriff on a Busy Day.” It is dated to 1918, and a pencil note may indicate the sheriff’s name is T.F. Johnson.
I’m not sure if the title is intended to be humorous, or if the sheriff also had fish and game responsibilities.
charlott
This would be Thomas Fuller Johnson, who was the sheriff at the time.
It is obvious that nets were being used to catch the salmon. It would never be allowed today. Lots of good eating there though….
Buzz
I don’t understand just how they are using the nets to catch the fish. The mesh doesn’t seem to be large enough for a gill net, and the poles seem to be a little spindly for a real surge of fish.against them. I wonder if they are just using the net to steer the fish into a fish wheel that is not a part of the photo? And wearing hip boots around deep water not always wise. Go overboard and when your boots don’t fill up with water very fast you end up feet up from the air still in the boots and head down. Not good.
Ralph
The topography makes it looks like outside the current Drano lake viewed from the Oregon side of the Columbia. That would be my guess and the water could be shallow enough for waders. Just a thought.
l.e.
Does anyone recognize the shoreline we are looking at?
I hadn’t thought of a fish wheel Buzz, but that is a good suggestion.
Evidently there were fish wheels and canneries at both Dodson and Warrendale.
l.e.
Well, this has me intrigued. I thought the photo might be in the area of the Shell Rock/Wind Mtn. submerged forest but I can’t find anything about a fish wheel in that area. I am really curious how far they would have to transport these fish to a cannery.
Scott Cook needs to step in here. I bet he knows.
longshot
Pretty sure that would be Drano Lake in the background. The river is narrow between Mitchell Point and the rocks on the Washington side and thus the current might have been right for a fishwheel.
charlott
If it were a fish wheel it would have been on a scow, as there were no fishwheels in the local area, at least by that time. Fish wheels on the Columbia were outlawed in 1927.
l.e.
This doesn’t really solve any questions about the photo, but, interesting.
In 1889 There are 57 fish wheels operating in the area 30 miles above Bonneville and near Celilo Falls. The best wheels catch 6,000 fish a day.
The hatchery on the Little White Salmon began production in 1897.
charlott
I have some fantastic photos that my Dad took of the last existing fish wheel at what was called "Big Eddy" in The Dalles. It eventually went by the way side as it was burned down. Too bad that it wasn’t saved to show what they really looked like and could do. It wasn’t too far from the Shaker Village there by Shiloh Inn. That is another interesting story.
Buzz
Last fish wheel I saw working was on the Copper River, and some of the natives still use them for subsistence on the Yukon.
Jill Stanford
Leroy and Hazel Childs were good friends of my grandfather. I remember Leroy but it was Hazel and her laugh that I remember best. I believe her sister came from Texas to live with her after Leroy died and those two were a pair! I have a picture of Hazel at my wedding in 1960.
Mike Childs
Leroy Childs was my grandfather (1888 to 1962) . He was always making witty off the cuff remarks, so his statement could have gone either way.
Bill P.
Could either of these men have been the Wright brothers? Very well known Hood River fishermen.
Bill P.