Sheep herds walked to mountains for summer pasture

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 backtrack a bit and then continue the story of Ephrata by Thelma Billngsley Nicks:

In those days the sheep were always walked to the mountains for their summer pasture. It would take at least two weeks for them to make the trip to the mountains. They usually had several good sheep dogs that were well trained, and usually two men to herd the sheep.

When they would go by our house they would make a dive for the green grass. The herders would holler at the dogs and away they would go and get them back in the herd. The dogs were very smart and a great help to the herders. It was fun to watch. The kids would stay in the yards and help and sometimes the boys would follow the bands a ways.

I always had a cat, and one day I thought it would be fun to dress it up in my doll clothes. It had another idea and got away from me, and took out for a hole under the house. I never saw those doll clothes again. My mother had kept her nice kid body and china head doll. She thought I would play with it and do no harm. The first thing I did was play Doctor with it and got a hammer to fix its headache.

It had pretty black hair painted on it. I have always regretted that they got me a lovely doll with real blond hair one Christmas. I had seen it in the window of the Hill Boy's Store. Mother said it cost too much. So you can know the pleasure I had when I found it under the Christmas tree on Christmas morning. I do not remember what ever happened to it, but I later got a baby doll and a big Rose O'Neil Kewpie doll. Lem got a red car that would run.

The sidewalks were built in different widths on the main streets. They were boards four inches wide. Many a time I have lost a penny or more in the cracks. If it was a larger amount of money we would have one of the men pry up the board to get it out.

The railroad had large tanks built on sturdy wooden towers for the water for the old steam engines. The first water tower I remember was a small wooden one, across the street from where the post office is now. They piped the water from springs up the canyon until the city drilled a well where No. 1 is now.

The metal pipe ran underground across the flat and through the lot where the court house is. Later they built a larger tank. The water was always oozing out. It would make a nice cool spot on a summer day. In the winter time this would freeze and there would be big icicles all over it.

When I was a girl and even when our boys were young the creek in the canyon was a delight to young and old alike. Everyone enjoyed taking walks and going up it. There was a nice little stream of water which was always running. There were many flowers all along it. There were nice spots for picnics.

There was a big grove of cottonwoods on a bank at the third bridge. Then on the flat near the bottom of the canyon there was a large grove of big choke cherry trees. This was a nice picnic ground for large picnics and was one that was also used by the Indians when they camped here every spring to dig camas.

Where the cottonwoods were the Indians set up a big camp. The women dug camas and the men had races and played their stick games. Many a wiener roast and marshmallow roast would be held up this creek.

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 CBH on Thursday, July 16, 1953:

Block 42 Women hear Bob Yerxa

Block 42 Homemakers held a business meeting and social afternoon at the home of Mrs. Clyde Fletcher last Thursday.

Bob Yerxa spoke on landscaping and a question period followed his talk. Introduced to the 24 members present were Margaret bodily and Irene Williams, new members.

A game of gossip followed the business session.

Wilson Creek area history

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 backtrack a bit and then continue the story of the Cris Larsen:

On the train to Waterville to homestead, they met a man who said "Why go to Waterville, there is plenty of good land at Wilson Creek." The man that told them this was Sam Gross, Sr.

That is the reason the Larsens are at Wilson Creek today. Both brothers homesteaded southeast of Wheeler, proved up on their homestead and later sold them.

August moved to Wapato and Martin moved to Wilson Creek. While August was here he worked for Jim Popple breaking horses. Martin worked several winters for Tony Richardson on the Dipper Ranch feeding cattle and at Anton Schumacher's Meat Market.

Later Martin bought a section of land southeast of Wilson Creek, where he lived until selling to Lewis Underwood in 1928. He then moved to Wilson Creek and again worked for Schumacher, living here until 1930 when he moved to Gig Harbor, living there until his death in 1957. August remained at Wapato until his death.

Our Dad, Chris, came to Wilson Creek in l9l0 at the age of 20. The first job he had was fireman on the night shift on a steam dredge that dug the present drainage ditch of the Crab Creek Lowland, better known as the Swamp.

After a year, he sent money for a ticket for our mother, Marie Jensen, to come over here, They were engaged before he left Denmark. She came in 1911 to dad's sister in Yakima.

They were married at lone on November 12, 1912. Our mother was the hired girl for our dad's parents. Grandmother tried to talk mother out of leaving Denmark, she said Dad would come back for her. There were seven of her eight children in this country then, and she wanted Dad to come back home.

They both worked, mother cooked at the Newlove Hotel and also helped Mrs. Bryant cook for Bryant's threshing crew for three seasons. Dad worked for O.D. McCoy, Oscar McCoy's father, for three years.

He started farming south of Wilson Creek in 1916, renting a farm from J.W. Emmert. He rented this until 1936 when he bought the farm.

There are seven children in the family; Evelyn, Thomas, Lloyd, Norman (Mick), Mariane, Verna and Chris. None were born in a hospital, several were born on the ranch.

Evelyn married Charley Hansen, at Stratford and has two sons, Russell and Stanley. They farm south of Stratford. Charley's father, Holger, homesteaded the farm in 1903.

Thomas is married to the former Ruth Payne Biles of Wenatchee. They live on the old Lorentzen place.

Lloyd is married to Jean Shanstrom of Seattle, lives about half a mile south of Tom. They have two adopted children, Robert and Alice. Lloyd served in the Marine Corps during World War II.

Norman (Mick) married Barbara Jorgensen of Milton-Freewater, Oregon and lives on the old home place, where he was born. They have four children, Paul, Keith, Brian and Darla.

Mariane is married to Kenneth W. (Bud) Saunders, a pioneeer family of Moses Lake area. Bud's grandparents homesteaded their farm in 1904. They have one son, Steven.

Vema is married to Danver W. Johns of Davenport, and has four children, Marie, Lucille, Robert and Karen. Danver's parents are old-timers of the Davenport area.