Thomas Gilman tells of digging wells on the homestead

A large part of this column deals with firsthand accounts of history seen through the eyes of our early pioneers. The book of memories of Wilson Creek is packed full of them.

Wilson Creek history

A large part of this column deals with firsthand accounts of history seen through the eyes of our early pioneers. The book of memories of Wilson Creek is packed full of them. Read on.

The Rev. David H. Crawford compiled and published a history of families in and surrounding Wilson Creek titled, "Family Memories of Wilson Creek Area." The book was printed in 1978, which was the 75th anniversary of the town. David's son, John Crawford, has given permission for those memories to be a part of this column.

Today we continue the story of James P. Gilman by Thomas Howard Gilman:

James and his brother Lewis each homesteaded 10 miles south and one half mile east of the now oiled highway between Hartline and Wilson Creek in 1903. They had adjoining quarter sections of 160 acres each.

They erected lean-to shacks, a small barn, and dug a cistern and cellar. Water had to be hauled by barrels from neighbors or Wilson Creek about five miles east. Later James moved east one half mile to the corner of his quarter. A cistern was dug and a cellar, and some outbuildings erected. A small orchard was planted, but did not grow well for lack of water. Some fruit grew there for many years though, crab apples, small sweet apples, pie cherries and a few pears.

Two wells were drilled at this site, but no water was found. The drillers then moved 200 yards west. They were about ready to abandon that site when they found water at 365 feet. The water came up within 100 feet of the top.

This well was the best one in the community, and was never pumped dry, like most of the surrounding wells could be. The threshing machine operators hauled water for their steam engines from this well, and a few times had a man pump water day and night, with a gas engine to accommodate them.

The house and other buildings were moved up on the raise where the well was, a new cistern dug and a windmill installed. Due to the expense of drilling the well, and the two dry holes, the homestead was sold to P. J. Kane, a Hartline merchant. Lewis Gilman also sold his 160 acres and James farmed this land until 1936, and the half section sat across the road.

Calling all members of the great class of 1965

We will be having our 45th class reunion this Sunday, Aug. 22. Plus, we are inviting members of the classes of 63, 64, 66 and 67 to join us.

The official starting time is 1 p.m., but we will begin to set up at noon. Ending time is the following Thursday. Just kidding, but doesn't that sound like the class of '65? We are free to visit all afternoon and into the evening.

Kids, grandkids, parents of classmates and teachers are welcome to attend. The aquatic center is nearby, so consider it as a possible opportunity for the youngsters.

Food: This will be a potluck, so bring enough for your family, plus another person or two. We are not going to assign specific dishes, such as main dish or salad, but rather we'll just let everyone bring what they want. KFC meals or pizzas are welcome.

Drink: Again, bring what you want and enough for your family.

Place: We will be meeting at McCosh Park, under the cover.

Contact Dennis at 762-5158 or 750-0541 for more information.

Pass the word. Bring extra chairs.

E-mail from Cheryl

Facts from the past gleaned from the Moses Lake Herald, Columbia Basin Herald and The Neppel Record by Cheryl (Driggs) Elkins:

From the Columbia Basin Herald on Friday, February 3, 1950:

Coal shortage causes emergency at air base

33 below zero temperature called record

Today we complete the story about the cold weather of 1950:

Firms with pipe thawing equipment were working night an day to open up frozen drains and pipes, while fuel oil dealers were on the run to keep up with the demand. Wrecker trucks and geared-up jeeps pushed cars daily to get them started, but some machines refused to budge anyway.

Cars left overnight in the open became so stiff by morning that wheels locked, steering wheels were nearly impossible to turn and gearshift levers barely moved.

After an attempt to resume classes Tuesday morning, schools were recessed in the afternoon and no date was set for them to start again. Luckily there were few personal injuries reported as a result of the weather, outside of frostbitten fingers and toes.

Quincy bank sells to Seattle chain

The Quincy branch of the National Bank of Commerce opened its doors Monday. Formerly known as the Quincy Valley State Bank, assets of the institution have been acquired by the Seattle bank. Transfer of ownership became effective at the close of business Jan. 27.

Randall Marney, former assistant to the manager of the Richland branch has been named Quincy branch manager.

G.I. farm training center approved

Approval of a Moses Lake center for veterans' on-the-farm training, financed under the G.I. Bill, was received this week, according to Maurice Pearson, high school agricultural instructor. Consent of the Veterans Administration was the last step before classes can begin, Pearson said. He asked that everyone interested in joining the program contact him at school to get work underway this spring.

The Grant County Historical Society has compiled several volumes of Grant County history. The books are available for purchase at the Historical Society Museum gift shop in Ephrata.

I bought the series in 2009 and secured permission to relay some of the history through this column.

Memories of Grant County, compiled from taped interviews by the Grant County Historical Society.

Today we continue with the story of Moses Lake by Earl Cole, recorded May 13, 1975:

Our mail in the early days down on Frenchman's Hill came from Wilson Creek. A man by the name of Brockman that lived up there near Hicksville. How many of you know where Hicksville is? Well, it's about eight or nine miles northeast of Moses Lake, that's where the old Dills Place was.

It was two miles up from there. This Brockman lived in the bottom there and he'd go to Wilson Creek with one team of horses and come back to his place and then change and take another team and take the mail on down to Moses Lake. And I think he made the trip three times a week. We got our mail from there before the railroad came in.

They were blasting along Saddle Mountains when I came here in 1907, but I don't remember exactly what year they did get the railroad through there.

We had some pretty prominent people that lived down in that country at that time. You know the people came from different places. There was a man by the name of Walter Kapp and he was a well-educated man. He could speak five different languages. He was also superintendent of schools in Moses Lake at one time in later years.

They came from Dubuque, Iowa and his father was a mattress maker. Later folks came out here and stayed with them, but they both died and are both buried in this Corfu Cemetery. Walter got married in later years and he had two children, three I think, but they lost two of them during that flu epidemic in 1918.

By the way, Ben Hutcheson is buried there, and the Robbins. There are about 50 graves altogether there in that cemetery and I don't think there's half a dozen that are marked so you can tell. My father was instrumental in getting that cemetery laid out, but in later years the new people that have come in haven't been interested in it and of course the early settlers have all moved or gone.

I wrote down some names of some of the people that lived there in early days. These Kapp brothers, I got that, they lived there and the section they lived on. There was a lawyer from Wilson Creek whose name was C.J. Lambert was a partner of C.J. (Clyde) Jeffers that used to be here in Ephrata, who was later Judge Jeffers.

There were four lawyers in Wilson Creek at that time, the two Southard boys, Jeffers and Lambert. This Lambert had a home?stead down there. Also a fellow that worked in the Wilson Creek Bank, do you remember F. E. Snedecor? He had a homestead down there in that section, too.

I'm sure you've heard of the Burkes. Mrs. Burke had several boys. McCaskey was another man that lived up where they drilled that oil well up on the hill there. That was supposed to be an oil well, but they never got any oil. That was his homestead where they drilled the well.

Then there was the Houghton family and my sister, Ethel, that lived in Soap Lake for a number of years. She married one of the Houghton boys. Ralph was manager of the Potlatch store there in Soap Lake. He died with a heart attack. He was quite a figure juggler and a good writer.