Rogue River courier. (Grants Pass, Or.) 1886-1927, 1913-11-07

Ihe following article concerning
Grants Pass and the Rogue River val
ley was written by Addison Bennett
special writer for the Portland Ore
gonian, and published in the Daily
Oregonian October 20:
The Grants Pass people aver that
their town is in the Rogue River val
ley, and they can prove it by showing
the Rogue in all its beauty as it
passes under the bridge across the
principal business street of the city.
Or is 1t town? At what size or what
age does town become city? Sure
ly the mere incorporation of a num-
Der of people under the municipal
act does not constitute city. And
1t seems to take something more than
people to make a real city. How
ever, under any circumstances Grants
Pass is a city and not a mere town.
Its population is somewhere around
5,O0O-many of the citizens say more
than that, up as high as 5000.
1t is the county seat of Josephine
county, the name coming, it is said,
from Josephine Leland, the first white
child born within the limits of the
county. The name of the town is
legendary, the name of General U. S.
Grant being linked with all of the
stories, but these are not so well
verified as the name of the county
No two of them exactly agree.
Streets Not Pole Marred
In more ways than one it is a
magnificent city, but what strikes one
most forcibly is the absence of tele-
phone and telegraph poles and wires,
not one being visible in the place
Upon inquiry | discovered that when
the city decided to pave the streets
three or four years ago they first put
In a splendid sewer system and then
placed all of the wires in conduits
underground, then had every pole re-
moved. The result has been that not
single square foot of pavement or
sidewalk has been torn up since pave
ment and walks were laid. Other
municipalities might ponder over
those conditions with profit, even
cities of the size of Portland.
The main business thoroughfare,
called Sixth street, is one of the finest
streets in all Oregon. Looking up it
from the Rogue River bridge towards
the hills 1t seems to run directly into
the hill, which is mile away. The
elevation at the end is q feet above
. the bridge, giving fine fall for
sewage. This street is wide, perfect
ly paved, the buildings along it are
yary fine and well kept, the parks
and railway grounds are pleasure
to the eye-it is a magnificent street
A. night it is lighted up by a myriad
of bunch lights.
Speaking of the parks and depot
grounds reminds me that on all the
Southern Pacific line in Oregon there
is no finer depot, no finer grounds,
than here. There are four small parks
adjacent to the depot, on railway
property, and these parks are cared
for largely by the ladies of the city,
the Ladies" Auxiliary taking charge
Of them. There is also a fine city
park on the banks of the Rogue, just
across the bridge. This is another
beauty spot, although it is new and
has not reached the state of perfec-
ton that the ladies will undoubtedly
see it gets.
Valley of Valleys Surround
Grants Pass is 33 miles north of
Medford, 297 miles south of Portland,
474 miles north of San Francisco.
1t is, as stated, surely in the Rogue
River valley, which valley is aug
mented hereabouts by the following
contiguous valleys: Fruitdale, Apple
gate, Williams Creek, Jones Creek,
Illinois, Sucker Creek, Elk Creek,
Jump-Off-Joe and Slate Creek. Some
of thees valleys are rather small,
some of them large. One of them,
the Illinois valley, is said to contain
$4,000 acres Of agricultural land. 1t
will be remembered that the Illinois
river flows into the Rogue river at
Agness, about 80 miles east of Gold
Beach. think have told some little
of this valley heretofore in The Ore
gonian for | heard much about 1t on
my trip a year ago through Curry
county and up the Rogue.
1t is one OF the most remote places
in the United States, that is from the
beaten highways, Indeed you can find
in southwestern Josephine and east
ern Curry about the last Of the really