Clackamas County OR

Biography of Daniel H. Lownsdale

DANIEL H. LOWNSDALE. – Mr. Lownsdale, the son of one of the earliest settlers of Kentucky, was born in Mason county, of that state, April 8, 1803. As was the custom in those days, he was married quite young – at the age of twenty-three – to Miss Ruth, the youngest daughter of Paul Overfield, the head of one of the most prominent families of Northeastern Kentucky. In obedience to the venturesome spirit inherited form his father, who had abandoned the comforts of civilization in his youth to become one of the conquerors of Kentucky, young Lownsdale, with his young … Read more

Hecht, Jean – Obituary

La Grande, Oregon Jean Hecht, 86, of Wilsonville and formerly of La Grande died April 11. Mrs. Hecht was born April 20, 1920, to Drs. Joseph and Margaret Ingle in La Grande. She graduated from La Grande High School and earned bachelor’s degree in English at the University of Oregon where she was a member of Chi Omega sorority. She earned a pilot’s license and taught high school in Vale and Corvallis. She served in the Navy and was stationed in Lakehurst, N.J., where she married Irwin Hecht. The couple moved to Portland nine years ago to be closer to … Read more

Biography of Hon. John Bird

HON. JOHN BIRD. – This venerable pioneer of our state comes from that stock of state-makers and town-builders who have ever been at the front. He was born in 1810 in Boone county, Kentucky, and lived there with his father until the year 1827, thereafter making Illinois his home until 1847. In the latter year he joined the train of Captain Sawyer, and set forth for Oregon, starting from Missouri about the 1st of May. Upon the trip nothing was more notable than the appearance of about one hundred Pawnee Indians, who laid a blanket on the ground for the … Read more

Franklin, Sarah Lucinda Gibbens – Obituary

Franklin, Mrs. Sarah L., February 1, aged 82, late of Molalla; [step] mother of Effie Bathurst of Richardson Springs, Cal.; Myrtle Warner of Multnomah; Viola Looney and Oscar B. Franklin, both of Molalla. Funeral services 2 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 4, at the Everhart Funeral Home, Molalla. Interment Miller Cemetery, Silverton. Oregonian, February 3, 1949 Contributed by: Shelli Steedman

Biography of Ephraim W. Baughman

Few men are more widely known in the northwest than Captain E. W. Baughman, of Lewiston, who for forty-eight years has sailed on the rivers in this section of the country. His circle of friends is indeed extensive, and his genial manner and social disposition win him the regard of all. He was born in Fulton County, Illinois, May 18, 1835, and is of German lineage, his ancestors having long been residents of Pennsylvania, however. His father, John Baughman, was born in that state and married Miss Jane Murphy, a lady of German descent. In an early day they removed … Read more

Biographical Sketch of Governor George Abernethy

GOVERNOR GEORGE ABERNETHY . – Oregon’s first governor will of necessity occupy an important place in her annals. This is due both to the intrinsic character of the man and to his official position. So frequently, however, does he appear in the narration of the body of events described in this work that it is not necessary to do more here than give the mere outlines of his career. He was born in Aberdeen, Scotland, in 1807. The family moved to the United States soon after; and the future governor spent the first thirty-two years of his life in New … Read more

Biography of Dr. Alden H. Steele

DR. ALDEN H. STEELE. – “Olympia will always be a place for pleasant homes,” says one of her citizens well qualified to render an opinion, – the gentleman whose name appears above. The wide streets, magnificent shade-trees and comfortable residences of the capital of Washington Territory, together with her delightful climate, an extensive view of water and mountains, fully justify the remark; and no place could have a more pleasant recommendation. The Doctor has also examined the facilities of the place for a naval station, and finds that the location is most desirable from the following particulars: Safe anchorage and … Read more

Courtney, Donel – Obituary

Donel “Jig” Courtney of Lostine died Oct. 10, 2005. He was 79 years old. Memorial services will be held Nov. 12 at Bollman Funeral Home. A full obituary will be published at a later date. Wallowa County Chieftain, Thursday, October 20, 2005 ____________________________ Donel “Jick” Courtney died Oct. 10, 2005 at his home in Lostine of a long-term illness. He was 79. The son of Donel Eugene and Margaret Sara Courtney of Enterprise, Mr. Courtney was born on Oct. 21, 1925. He returned home from the Marines after World War II, got married, started a family and then moved to … Read more

Biography of Heman J. Geer

HEMAN J. GEER. – The name of Geer is so well known in our state that the following account of the father of T.T. Geer of the Waldo hills will be of interest to all. This now venerable pioneer was born in Ohio in 1828, removing with his parents to Illinois in 1840. In 1847 he crossed the plains to Oregon with General Palmer’s train. The large company forestalled trouble with the Indians. Peter Hall, who stopped with Whitman at Walla Walla was the only one who experienced any disaster. The crossing of the Cascade Mountains by the Barlow Road … Read more

Biography of William Morfitt

To this worthy veteran of many a struggle with the savages on the frontier, as well as in many of the battles of life in the wild country, being a pioneer of the state of Oregon, and having led a life of activity in the forefront of the progress of civilization, having done well his part in all this good work, we are pleased to grant a consideration in this volume of Malheur County’s history, both because of this prominent part that he has taken in the County and in its leading industries and developments, as well as for his … Read more

Jack, Robert “Bob” – Obituary

Robert “Bob” Jack, 88, a former longtime Baker City resident, died March 25, 2008, at Clackamas. Bob was born on Dec. 25, 1919, at Baker City. He was a 1938 Baker High School and worked at the mill in Pondosa out of high school. He was a member of the Oregon Army National Guard. He enlisted on May 27, 1941, with Company F 2nd Battalion, 186th Infantry Regiment, 41st Infantry Division during World War II. On Jan. 24, 1942, at Fort Lewis, Wash., he married Lola A. Randall on a number of 15-minute leaves provided by his company members. He … Read more

Bigley, William Clive ‘Bill’ – Obituary

Baker City, Oregon William Clive Bigley, 86, of Baker City, died July 30, 2002, at his home. His memorial service will be Saturday at 11 a.m. at Coles Funeral Home, 1950 Place St. Pastor Aaron Oglesbee of the Agape Christian Center in Baker City will officiate. Mr. Bigley was born Dec. 23, 1915, to Clyde and Fern (Swan) Bigley. He was raised in and received his schooling in West Linn. He moved to Baker City in 1933. On Jan. 21, 1941, he enlisted in the U.S. Army to serve his country during World War II. He was honorably discharged on … Read more

Dalton, James – Obituary

North Powder, Union County, Oregon James Dalton, universally known as “Jim” Dalton, was born at Marshtown, Tenn., and his age is given as about 69 years. He came to North Powder a year before the railroad was built on from La Grande, arriving here in 1883. He purchased railroad land and was successful in a business way from the first, we are told. The present Dalton ranch, joining for a mile or more the Old Oregon Trail 2 miles from North Powder, was acquired in the early days and has one of the old water rights from the North Powder … Read more

Josi, Robert E. – Obituary

Robert E. Josi, 74, of Wallowa died June 13 at St. Mary’s Hospital. A memorial service was held June 23. Mr. Josi was born Oct. 26, 1931, to Fred and Olga Elmer Josi in Oregon City. The family lived in Snowden and White Salmon, Wash. He worked on ranches at at the Mount Emily logging camp. He served in the Army during the Korean War, and in 1954 he married Agnes Tsiatsos of Starkey. The couple moved to Wallowa. He worked as a logger, and during layoffs he would find ranch jobs. After a divorce in 1983 he married Bonnie … Read more

Gill, George – Obituary

Minam, Oregon George Gill, 76, of Baker City passed away at his home on June 6, 2007. Memorial Services will be held at the Eagles, 2935 H St. in Baker City on Saturday, June 16, at 1 p.m. An additional memorial will be held on the Minam at a later date. Mr. Gill was born in Oregon City to Manuel and Mary Gill. He attended several schools in Oregon as a child, moving with his family as his father worked in the construction business. When he was 12 years old, his father bought a ranch on the Minam in Wallowa … Read more

Biography of Robert J. McWilliams

ROBERT J. McWILLIAMS. – Robert J. McWilliams has been for many years identified with the pioneer business interests of Oregon, particularly in the line of lumbering and preparing materials for the construction of steamboats. He was born in New York in 1825, and in 1839 emigrated to Michigan, where he assisted his father in opening out a farm, and after the age of twenty entered upon the business of lumbering, with which he remained until 1850, when he crossed the plains to California, and remained until his trip overland to Milwaukee, Oregon, in 1851. At that young city, then a … Read more

Biography of Capt. J. H. McMillen

CAPT. J.H. McMILLEN. – Captain McMillen, a fitting example of the men whose stout courage, tireless energy and ready friendliness laid the groundwork of our state, is a pioneer of 1845, having crossed the plains with W.H. Rector, Colonel Taylor, Hiram Smith and others of that large immigration. Of Scotch ancestry, he traces his American lineage to a great-grandfather who crossed the Atlantic and settled in Rhode Island, where a numerous family grew up around him. The grandfather, James, pushed westward as far as New York; and in that state Joseph, the father, was born. Arriving at maturity he married … Read more

Biography of J. L. Stout

J. L. STOUT. – The proprietor of the townsite of Sea View on the weather beach, a city which boasts of a population of from five to eight thousand during the summer bathing season, is from the Buckeye state, having been born in Ohio in 1824. During his boyhood his father took him to Illinois; and he passed his early life on the frontier. he came up with a generation of men whose natural force and enterprise led them into the most exalted position in the great West which their energies had developed. While in Illinois he was ever restless, … Read more

Biography of Joseph Buchtel

JOSEPH BUCHTEL. – The peculiar composition and make-up of this man is that of only one in a million. He is noted for his daring deeds of adventure, if they may be so called; and his whole life is made up of daily events in rescuing others from their perilous positions; indeed, so much so that he is known far and wide as the “Oregon Life Saver.” Hundreds, if we may not say thousands, who are living to-day directly owe their lives to him. The natural daily routine of circumstances seems to have brought him upon the scene just in … Read more

Biography of Hon. Dolphes Brice Hannah

HON. DOLPHES BRICE HANNAH. – This gentleman is the son of Brice and Celia Tade Hannah, and was born in Gallatin county, Illinois, October 11, 1822. His father, who was a substantial business man engaged in trade and forwarding, died in the spring of 1823, leaving a wife and two children, one boy and one girl. He left considerable estate, consisting of personal property. John McLaughlin and the widow were appointed to administer the estate; and, as usual, McLaughlin did the work, pocketed the entire proceeds of the estate, and then left for parts unknown. About two years after the … Read more