The Kennewick courier-reporter. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1939-1949, 1946-02-07

Oregon line north to British Col
umbia, east to the Columbia river
and west to the foothills of the
Cascades, an empire of waving
bunch grass controlled by cattle
barons for more than a quarter Of
a century.
ben had three ranches with
immense corrals. One Of these was
in Parker Bottom. One was near
the present site Of Mabton, the 9TH
er near the elevation since known
as Snipes Mountain and named
for him In 1866 Ben took 1000
head to Montana. They were
driven via Bickleton to White
Bluffs, where they swan the COL
umbia. Scarcely house was seen
on the way, bu tonly Indian Tee
pees."
Bickleton is.in the Horse Heaven
Hills, which stretched westward
from Kennewick to the Klickitat.
This was fine grazing country, re-
ceiving its picturesque name be-
cause it was considered literally a
heaven for horses. Early accounts
describe it as waving in bunch
grass and rye grass. AS on nears
the mountains the forest trees are
plentifully interspersed through
the grass, and lumber came from
here for the first homes built in
Prosser and other points of the
Yakima valley. The principal
town of the region is Goldendale,
named for John Golden who
homesteaded there in 1868. In the
interview Mr.. Snipes also tells how
the town started.
Eve were down in Klickitat
rounding up cattle and one night
Charles SplaWn, Jack Schuster
and I decided to attend camp
meeting; so we rode over to the
little grove where Father Wilbur
and his Indians were singing and
preaching. There was no town in
Klickitat county and there was
discussion that night as to the best
location. I'll give land said Mr..
Hickenbotham, If you'll build a
town at Columbia,-which was a
boat landing on the Columbia. An
other man said he would give land
on the Swale. John Golden had his
turn then. He said, I'll give every
man a lot and start a town right
here That was what happened,
for the town of Goldendale was
started that year (1872) and was
named for him."
The "back country" in those
days extended from The Dalles
northward through the Yakima
valley to the Okanogan. In 1861
Fielding M. Thorpe, the first set
tier in the Yakima valley, moved
to a place near the present town
of Mckee. Charles A. SplaWn, q
well-known pioneer, had been in
the Mckee region before that and
went on to the Kittitas region,
where Ellensburg was later locat-
ed. A daughter of Mr.. Splawn, Mrs.
w. D. Bruton, says:
''He went by wagon train to
Goldendale and in 1858 to Mckee.
Excerpts from newspapers relate
of finding cut nails and corner
stones of the Splawn house in the
Mckee built in 1860. Needing a
supply of water, father dug well.
The water tasted horribly and
smelled worse. He dug another in
search of a modist little spring.
The one he had tapped spouted in
to q geyser-an artesian well.
''Three people moved into the
Mckee and Folion Thorpe, my
grandfather, was irked by the lack
Of space. Still keeping in the
Mckee, they homesteaded in what
is oW known as Thorpe (near FL
lensburD Grandfather Thorpe
and Charles Splawn moved their
families from Mckee to Thorpe in
1868. was born in the Mckee in
1875. The family was living be-
tween the Kittitas County home
and the Mckee. Frequent trips
were made over the road that
wound down through the canyon
and ended in Mckee. Father was