The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1913-06-05
LABOR REPORT TELLS
LOCAL OPPORTUNITIES

From report of o. P. Hotf, commits
sioneT of labor. TO the goyernorJ
Hood River county is the first county
east of Multnomah, its northern boun-
Diary being the Columbia river. II eX-
tends south 30 miles 20 the sn0wcapped
peak of Mount Hood. Wasco county on
the east. Its acreage is 347, $40, Of
which about three-ffths is in forest
reserve. OF the balance l53, $40 acres
is decided land, 13, 600 cares being
planted to the famous Hood River APP
pie, $4,000 acres in wood and, and the
balance planted to other fruits, straw
berries principally, and various hay
crops, in toWnsites and uon-tlllabie
lands. The soil of the valley is a red
clay loan, rich in lime, ph0sphorlc acid
and humus, but lacking 10 potash,
which can easily be supplied however.
Anything suited to the climate, which
is mild, can be grown on this soil, from
semi-tropical fruits to hardy grains.
The surface is rolling and mountainous
and the r0ck formation similar 10 that
of Wasco county, which adj0ins il on
the east, and of which Hood River
county was part until 1908. The av-
erage acreage per farm is 5l.l, and the
average improved acres 1872. The as
sessed valuation G9l0 censusJ was
Sl2,4l0, 600. There are 744 farms IN the
county, 61 operated by native born
white and l07 by foreign born white,
and only six by non-whites. The soil
and climate Of Hood River county are
wonderfully adapted to the principal
industry. apple raising, and reputa-
tion has Deen established for the Hood
River apple all around the world The
Apple Growers Union here is probably
the best organization of les kind in eN-
istence, and maintains a strict watch
over the packing Of the fruit that goes
from the valley principally to the east
ern markets, and across the ocean to
Europe. Water for both irrigation and
domestic purposes is plentiful ana
while the orchards are not irrigated TO
any extent, the water is on hand If f.
wanted. All hay crops, gardens and /.
strawberries have to be irrigated. /
There are four large cold storage ware
houses in the valley with rarely enough .
capacity to store the entire apple crop. /
A railroad runs up the east side Of the
valley % miles to Parkdale. A vinegar
and cider factory take care of all the
"culls, " but a cannery is needed. The
output of the fourteen sawmills and
planers in the county was 81 600, 600
feet for the planers and 81 .000, 900 feet
for the sawmills in 1912, and required
an average of 426 men besides l57 in
the woods. A more delightful spot for
a home can hardly be imagined than
among the orchards and hills of Hood |
River valley The mean temperature /
during the spring months IS 5O,9 de- 4,
grees, summer 65.4 degrees, fall j3.6
degrees, and winter g. 3 degrees. The
mean precipitation during the spring
months is 2.S5 inches, summe" "a inch,
TALL l.S4 inches, and winter 6.l0 inches. S
The United States census of 1910 gives I
Hood River county the highest priced j
arm value land in the state, S3l0 an c
cre, the next nearest in the state be- .
ng that of Multnomah, with a value Of 4
$50 an acre. In other words, Hood u
river county farm land is priced by
he United States Department of Agri-
ulture at Sll0 an acre higher than that
n the county Of Multnomah, in which !,
) situated the metropolis of Oregon. 4
IN September 3, 1912 there remained q
My 800 acres of unappropriated and
land in the county. An
important, unincorporated town in the
ounty is Dee, where is located the big +,
liant Of the Oregon Lumber Company.
here is general merchandise store
iere and two hotels. There are apple
nd pear orchards throughout the To-
ality Ideal mountain view homes. r'
his locality is an ideal camping place Q
! the summer time Fifteen miles Sc
rom here is the famous Lost Lake and l.
lso the forest reserve from which
ortland receives it supply of water
lmost from the glacier at the side of
rand old Mount Hood. Old timers
now the little lake from which starts
'ortland's water supply, as Chitwood
lake, }. r. Chitwood having discov
red the lake along in the SOS
Hood River, the county seat of Hood
River county newly formed, incor-
porated in 1894, covers an area of Gao
acres. Its population is 1881 (2,750.
II is situated on the main line of the
O.-W. r. & N. railroad, the junction of
the Mount Hood railroad, and one
quarter mile from the Columbia river.
The altitude is from 100 TO $50 feet.
The assessed valuation of town prop.
erty is 2000, 000, with no Indebtedness.
-Four public school buildings approx
mate value of $4,000. Nineteen
teachers are employed at salaries rang
ing from $50 to $3.50 per month. Seven
churches, Congregational, Methodist,
United Brethren, Catholic, Episcopal.
Baptist and Christian, aggregate a
value of $35, 600. The city marshal and |
night Waterman receive $l00 and $G5 /
per month, respectively. Common .
labor $3.50 per day skilled labor So. so +
per day; man and team, So. The cleo
tric light plant is under private owner
ship. Families are supplied water by |
the municipality, at ST. so per month. |
Farming, fruit raising, numbering and |
manufacturing are the chief industries. |
There is an ambundance of undevel- /
oped water power in the vicinity. /
There are three banks, about 40 mer- I
camille establishments, two sawmilIs, .
and a box aud planning mill. A woolen |
mill and sash and door factory are
needed. The postal receipts for the
quarter ending June 80. 1912, were
%, 347 60, The three banks report
capital and surplus of S265, GOO, with
deposits Of 81 200, 600. The two saw
mills have an annual output of between
40 and so million feet. The city has a
complete sewer system. Opportunity
is offered for first class summer ho-
tel. A good cannery is needed for fruit
and vegetables. When installed it
would encourage truck gardening,
which is already becoming important