Historic Hood River

Notes

Lat week I was researching a Post Canyon land claim of a man named Fred Hertz when I ran across the intriguing headline in The Hood River Glacier “Read of His Own Death.” “Click Bait” in modern parlance, but as Mr. Hertz was the subject of my research I had to read.

Read of His Own Death

Mr. Fred Hertz will make final proof on his homestead at The Dalles land office next month. Mr. Hertz about three years ago had an experience that not often happens. He read of his own death and was mourned by his friends as having crossed the dark river. The circumstances of his reported death were as follows: He had met with an accident in a saw mill and received injuries to his head which caused loss of memory, and he sometimes was unable to recognize acquaintances. Realizing that something was wrong with him, without saying anything to his friends he decided to go to Portland and consult the advice of physicians. None of his acquaintances saw him leave, but the last seen of him he was sitting on a rock on the river bank near Viento. A few days after his disappearance the body of a man was found washed ashore on a point of land some distance below Viento, on the opposite side of the river. Some of his most intimate acquaintances pronounced the find the body of Fred Hertz. Hertz read of his death in the Oregonlan. After spending a few days in Portland he went to California and placed himself under the care of the skilled doctors in the asylum at Stockton. The doctors trepanned his skull and he got well. On returning to Hood River be found that his old neighbors had believed the report of bis death. His cabin had been broken into and all his personal property, including a kit of millwright tools, and even the top of his cook stove, was carried off. His trip to California cost him $500, but he will never begrudge the money, as he is now a sound man and his memory is as good as ever.

For those of you unfamiliar with trepanation, it is the practice of drilling or cutting a hole in the skull for therapeutic purposes. It is my understanding it was one of the earliest forms of surgery known, with evidence of trepanation found on skulls at Cro-Magnon sites. Perhaps someone with medical knowledge can weigh in on whether Mr. Hertz’ full recovery was actually aided by the trepanning of his skull. In any case, he did survive to proof his homestead up in Post Canyon, which will be the subject of a future HHR discussion.

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