The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1915-12-09
TRIBUTE PAID
PIONEER WOMEN
VALLEY MOTHERS POSSESSED FAITH
D. A. Turner, Earliest Pioneer Surviving,
Tells Interesting Stories Of Days
Before The Orchards

| ~@vAr AssS OASAtssAsS
| On land. some of which has since
sold for 81 900 per acre, the Hood Riv-
er valley homesteaders half century
ago found difficulty in making living.
Some of these pioneers are today
among the apple districts wealthiest
orchardists.
"But had it not been for the wives
of those settlers" says David A.
Turner. the earliest surviving pioneer
of the community, 81 do not believe
a single one of them would have re-
mained here
| No man knows better the history
of the mid. Columbia region than does
Mr.. Turner; for he has lived it.
i. Mr.. Turner was born in Randolph
county, Missouri, September q, 1886.
His mother was Kentuckian and his
father had emiglated to Missouri from
Virginia. The lure of gold carried Mr..
Turner to Ell Dorado county. California,
in 1857, but after four years of the life
there he came with William 0dell to
Hood River, settling where he pur-
chased the squatter's rights to home
stead plot in the Odell district, the
place now being owned by DR.. M.
Thrane. Mr.. Turner has lived more
than 10 years longer in the Hood River
valley than any other surviving pio-
neer.
al pay my tribute to the wives of US
pioneers" he says, because | have
seen their husbands pleading with them
to pull up stakes and leave for a more
fertile region. have seen women
helping their husbands saw wood day
in and day out: have seen them assist
with the farm work. But woman is
more home loving than a man. These
mothers of the Hood River valley had
grown tired of the ceaseless moving
from place to place. Perhaps they had
some foreknowledge of the days of
prosperity that were to come. They
certainly had more faith than the men
had. and they have deserved all of the
reward they have received"
When Mr.. Turner and his partner
reached the district now known for its
hundreds of acres of flourishing orch.
ards, the families residing in different
parts of the community could be num-
bered on ones fingers. Nathan Ben
son was occupying the place now
owned by F. H. Button. Nathaniel
Coe, known as the founder of Hood
River, was residing on the Hood River
townsite. William jenkins, whose
name is known to pioneers and who a
few years later was to meet with a
tragic death by drowning in the Co.
lumbia, was residing on the place later
owned by DR.. W. c. Adams and now
known as Paradise farm. On Indian
creek was the pioneer home ofp pames
M. Benson. On the East Side. now
the most thickly populated section of
the valley were but two families, those
of Peter Neal and Jerome Winchell.
MIR. Turner recalls but one other man
in the valley at that time. This was
A. C. Phelps, who was engaged in
making whiskey kegs on a little creek
west of the city that today bears the
name of the valleys first manufacturer.
"For many years." says Mr.. Turner,
"this keg manufacture was the chief
industry of present dry community.
The hillsides west of town were all
covered with oak trees. the timber of
which was of fair quality: There
was great demand for the kegs at The
Dalles. Whiskey was shipped there on
board the Columbia steamers in bar
rels. But the barrels were too heavy
for burros, and the fire water would be
transferred to five and l0lgallon kegs
to be packed to the mines Of Idaho and
the eastern part of the state"
The first man ever to drive team
of oxen direct to the Hood River valley
was Davies Divers, who with his fam
lily settled in the Summit district on
the ranch now owned by Geo. T. Pra.
ther.
81 remember how astonished we all
were when he drove down by the way
of Mosier," says MIR. Turner. There
were no trails even, in those days, and
the feat was considered the most re.
markable one we had any record of"
The winter of 1861 and 1862 was
the most severe in the records of Ore
CONS history.
"The country was paralyzed from
Portland to Walla Walla," says Mr..
Turner. "On New Years Day the ice
that had formed in the Columbia put
an end to boat traffic. One of the boats
was forced to tie up here at Stanley 4
landing. The caretaker, who swept
the decks of the craft each day, meas.
ured each days snowfall. His records
showed at the end of the snowfall 9
total of 1874 feet. The river remained
frozen until March 10.
'It would be impossible to tell you
what we went through that winter
My partner, who had taken up an ad
Joining claim, and had laid in lot o1
barley. Our food for weeks consisted
of barley and poor venison. The Meals,
our nearest neighbors, were without
-four for period of FIVE weeks. We
finally grew so desperate that jerome
Winchellrand set of for The Dale.
for provisions. The entire trip con
sumed four days.
I'VE came down to the Columbia an(
walked up on the ice. At Rowens
George Sniper had settlement. be
came terribly thirsty when we were
opposite this place, and fearing Il
drink from one Of the air holes in ths
ice we went ashore and called at hil
| place. There we're five dead cows OF
the mans front posch. and between
the Sniper place and The Dalles ",
counted hundreds of dead horses ant
cattle. shall never forget the horrol
of that winter. 1t caused the death o.
all the cattle In the Hood River valley
OF course, the Neal and Winchell FAM
lies slaughtered some of their animal
for food, but the beef was so poor tina
it had but little Dourishment IN it
Actually, the cattle we're SO thin tha
they would scarcely bleed when stuck.
ION our return trip from The Dale
we were accompanied by George Car
rom, a saddler. he, too. carried a bal
of -four thrown over his shouldres. Al
we passed up through lot by Stan
ley's landing the last poor Icow of th
community was standing in the patl
ahead of us. Carrorn was ahead. Yol
know a starving COW is very fractions