Historic Hood River
Tug at Viento
10-1-2013
Notes
Here’s the tugboat “Pearl” which pulled rafts of rough sawed logs across the Columbia from the end of the flume at Drano lake to Viento. In this photo the crew seems to be made up of children, though the formal roster shot we have doesn’t seem to have anyone less than age 15.
spinsur
So, the "awash platforms" from yesterday really are the rafts used to ship the cants across the river? The slip way pointing north has rails, and a partially submerged "car" is visible that the four workers are loading. Cable (steam donkey?) would then drag it up to railroad? 42ish (?) stars on flag – might be able to refine date.
spinsur
I think the skipper of course is in the wheelhouse; the crew are partially obscured behind bulwarks at the door to engine room. But it is blurry, could be those are children also. Crew may be helping unload rafts? I like the anchor stock and rode visible on the aft of the cabin!
Buzz
This picture does clear things up a bit. My perception of this "log" flume was a little skewed. The flume carried wood-lumber-that was further along in the production process than I envisioned. Some of the cants are fair sized, but this flume might be more realistically described as a lumber flume. That helps me better understand why the flume didn’t need to be of sturdier construction and why the "rafting of logs" didn’t look familiar to me. This sounds stupid now, but when I was little I heard old loggers talk about "riding the flume" to town on Saturday night. I grew up thinking that sounded like fun.
TomK
Good lucking smack tied up behind the tug.
l.e.
Buzz…the Broughton Flume, which we are more familiar with in our time, was also a lumber flume.
Spinsur….I don’t know how you see everything you see. I would not have recognized the railroad car for what it is.
This photo is downstream from Drano. If you go around the hill on the right you will come to Cooks and then Drano.
spinsur
Just to clarify, it’s probably not literally a railroad car, but something similar to a very lightweight car used to launch boats in a ways.
Arthur
Field of stars under the Pearl pennant has 43-44 stars, 45 stars on the US flag: 1896-1908, which doesn’t narrow down the date. I’m sticking with 1897-1900 since they don’t mention any other operations in the area.
Here’s a great image of what I think is the first mill at Dee: http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/singleitem/collection/p15799coll65/id/11814/rec/3
Arthur
There are 7 children on the tug– 3 on the roof, 4 on the bow
Jeffrey Bryant
In case there is any doubt whether children were used in the Viento logging operation, I provide the following articles:
The Sunday Oregonian, July 8, 1900
Fatal Accident at Viento – Arnold Eccles, the 12-year-old son of William Eccles, superintendent of the Oregon Lumber Company, of Viento, was brought to Portland on the O.R.& N. train last evening and taken to St. Vincent’s Hospital for surgical treatment. Yesterday afternoon at 1:30 the boy was fatally injured at Viento, getting caught by the wire rope of the drum of a hoisting engine at the mill. One leg was torn off, the other leg broken, one arm broken and his skull fractured. There is no possibility of his recovery. The boy was running the engine in the absence of the regular workman, whose place he was accustomed to take, and it is not known how he became entangled in the rope.
—
Ogden Standard Examiner, July 9, 1900
Oregon
Accident Occurred at Mills of Oregon Lumber Co. – Was the Son of William Eccles – Funeral at Ogden
Saturday afternoon at 4:30 o’clock, Arnold Eccles, son of Wm. Eccles, was caught in the hoisting machinery at the mills of the Oregon Lumber company, at Viento, six miles from Portland, and so horribly mangled that he died yesterday afternoon at 2 o’clock. He was but 13 years of age. Further details as to how he was caught are not yet at hand. The information of his death was sent to J.W.F. Volker, of the Oregon Lumber company, at Ogden.
The funeral will take place from the residence of Wm. Eccles, on Canyon road, near the Woolen Mills, at 2 o’clock tomorrow afternoon, the funeral party arriving here tonight.
The boy’s father was at the mill at the time of the accident, and will return with the remains. The boy was a nephew of David Eccles, who, with his family, is now in Europe. A large number of friends will extend to the bereaved their heartfelt sympathy.
—
Salt Lake Herald, July 10, 1900
Killed In A Hoist
Death of Arnold Eccles, Nephew of David Eccles
The particulars of the death of Arnold Eccles in Oregon reached Ogden yeserday. He was caught in the hoisting machinery at the mills of the Oregon Lumber company at Viento, near Portland, and so badly mangled that he died in a few hours. The boy was a nephew of David Eccles, and a son of William Eccles. The remains reached Ogden last night, and the funeral will take place this afternoon at 2 o’clock from the residence on the canyon road.
—
The Hood River Glacier, Hood River, OR., July 13, 1900, page 3
"Brief Local Matters"
Dr. Brosius, when called to Viento to attend the fatal injuries of Arnold Eccles, made the trip from here in 51 minutes. He went as far as Con Repp’s place with the team, and there he was met by a hand cart which took him to Viento. The Dr. also went to Portland with the boy.
—
The Hood River Glacier, Hood River, OR., July 13, 1900, page 3
"Brief Local Matters"
A fatal accident happened at Viento last Saturday. Arnold Eccles, the 12-year-old son of the superintendent of the Oregon Lumber Company, was running the engine at the mill in the absence of the regular work man, whose place he was accustomed to take, when he got caught in the wire rope of the drum of a hoisting engine. He was taken to Portland and died in the hospital Sunday morning from the effects of his injuries. His remains were taken to Ogden for burial.
l.e.
Reading this Jeffrey, I feel terrible for not only the boy and his family, but poor Dr. Brosius, who must have felt pretty helpless.
There probably wasn’t much he could do.
Buzz
Sad story. And I can’t speak to that era, nor condone it, but maybe add a little perspective. Boys who grew up in the country liked to work with their dads. Logging, mills, farmwork, whatever. My dad had a gyppo logging outfit and I started going with him on the weekends when he had little jobs to do. When I was this kids age and bored and restless I finally talked him into letting me go with him during the week in the summer if I promised to stay out of the way. The secomd time he caught me in the canyon helping the rigging crew set chokers, he wouldn’t take me anymore. There wasn’t any law against a kid doing any job if you were working directly for your dad. I would bet there are oldtimers in Hood River today who were running machinery and working for their dads when they were even younger than 12. It was a different world.
longshot
Looks like there is a road or railroad grade on the north bank of the river. The railroad went in in 1908? Don’t know if there was a road along the north bank any earlier. Looks like more ups and downs than a railroad would have had, but at the same time that amount of earth movement would have been a major undertaking just for a wagon road.
longshot
This does not appear to be the same boat that was in yesterday’s picture.
Arthur
Longshot, I think the railroad on the WA side went in just one year after OR. 1884 I think. I’m sure someone will double check.
longshot
Authur, I Check Wikipedia and according to them the 1908 date is correct. Sounds like the railroad was incorporated in 1905, construction started in 1906, and the section through the gorge was operational in late 1908.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spokane,_Portland_and_Seattle_Railway
Lesa
It wasn’t just boys working like that. My step-father owned an old portable saw mill. It was an old head saw attached to an ancient one ton truck body. It was run by attaching a big belt on a couple of flywheels, one behind the saw, and another mounted on the rear axle, instead of the tire. It had a rocker arm that held the lumber, while it was being fed into the open saw. My ten year old twin sister and I, sliced slabs to proper length with it, for use in our wood furnace. There were no guards on the saw, and you could easily have cut your hands off, or worse. No one thought a thing of it. It was just one of our many chores. This was in the 60’s -70’s.
Jeffrey Bryant
Here is another obituary of a young man killed in a lumber related accident:
The Hood River Glacier, Hood River, OR., August 27, 1903, page 3
TWO MILL MEN MEET TRAGIC DEATHS
Two fatal accidents happened in Hood River last week within 24 hours. Thursday afternoon at 4 o’clock John Johnson, an employee of the Menominee Lumber company, was drowned at the mouth of White Salmon, in Washington, while attempting to cross the stream on a boom pole.
Friday morning at 8 o’clock Clifford Stuhr, while helping to shift boom sticks for the Mount Hood Lumber company, was crushed by two of the logs rolling upon him.
Clifford Stuhr was the 13-year-old son of Phil Stuhr, of Hood River, foreman of the logdrivers for the Mount Hood Lumber company. He was born at Midway, LaCross county, Wis., February 10, 1890, and died August 21, 1903, at Hood River, Or., aged 13 years, 6 months and 13 days. About four years ago, with his parents, he removed from his Wisconsin home to Hood River where he has since lived. He will be sorely missed by friends and loved ones, who have the sympathy of the community in the untimely death of their son and brother. The funeral services were held Saturday at the U.B. church, conducted by Rev. H. C. Shaffer. Many beautiful floral offerings were made by friends.
John Johnson came over from Lower Durham, N.B., and was a young man 24 years of age, and well educated. He was buried in the church yard at White Salmon, Sunday, August 23, 1903 . Mr. Johnson was an Odd Fellow, and his funeral was conducted by the White Salmon and Hood River lodges. Rev. Garrison of the White Salmon Congregational church preached the sermon. Norman Young of Hood River came from the same town that Johnson did, and was well acquainted with the young man. About 50 Odd Fellows attended the funeral.
Kenn
I was hoping some of the drowned forest would show in this photo, it was just above the mouth of Viento Creek as is this mill. Between 1934 and 1936 there were counted 2130 trees on the south side and 938 on the north side.