Harrison, Joe E. – Obituary

Baker City, Oregon Joe E. Harrison, 85, died at his home in Baker City on Jan. 22, 2003. At his request, there will be no funeral. An urn burial will take place later at Lane Memorial Gardens in Eugene. Joe E. Harrison was born on Dec. 24, 1917, at Wallowa to John Baker Harrison and Lula Jane Markham Harrison. He attended school at McEwen in Sumpter Valley until the age of 16 when he moved to New Bridge in Pine Valley to finish his education and to work in the Cornucopia Gold Mine. He later moved to Portland where he … Read more

Purdy, Ruth Marion Rippey Eccles Mrs. – Obituary

Ruth Marion Rippey Eccles Purdy, 92, of Picabo, Idaho, a former Baker City resident, died Feb. 26, 2006. Her memorial service will be at 1 p.m., Saturday at the Community Campus (old Wood River High School) Auditorium at Hailey, Idaho. Internment will be at the Picabo Cemetery. Family and friends are invited to a “Celebration of Ruth’s Life” at the Picabo Store immediately after the internment. The daughter of Clark and Lottie Rippey, she was born on June 29, 1913, at Portland. Soon after, the family moved to Baker City, where her father worked for the Railway Mail Service on … Read more

Getty, Delbery Lynn – Obituary

Delbert Lynn Getty, 42-year-old Newberg resident and a former resident of Baker City, died Tuesday, November 14, 2000, in Newberg. Funeral services for Mr. Getty will be held Monday, November 20, at 2 p.m. in the Coles-Strommer Funeral Home. Bishop Greg Baxter of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, First Ward, will conduct the services. Interment will follow at Mt. Hope Cemetery. Mr. Getty was born May 14, 1958, in Portland to Delbert Getty and Louise (Glover) Maness. He attended schools in Baker City, Bates and Bellingham, Wash., graduating from Baker High School with the class of 1976. … Read more

Biography of Sigmund Sichel

SIGMUND SICHEL. – America is made up of the most intelligent and energetic people from all parts of the world. It is those who are alert and keen in the pursuit of information who learn of the advantages to be found in this country. And it is those who feel the impulse to stretch their limbs and operate upon a larger scale of life than the opportunities the old world afford who undergo the labors and take the risks involved in a removal across the Atlantic. This rule, which is not without its exception, is exemplified in the career of … Read more

Biography of William Wallace Thayer

The typical Western man is popularly conceived as a man of liberal ideas, of generous and hospitable instincts, imbued with a spirit of adventurous enterprise, and withal hardy and courageous. He is not punctilious in minor questions of etiquette or inclined to make much of mere forms and ceremonies. He is a friend to his friends, a man of sterling integrity and of firmness of character developed by habits of self-reliance. Such men are the State builders whose names and deeds are a part of the history of the newer States of the American Commonwealth. Every western community contains individuals … Read more

Biography of Hon. A. M. Cannon

HON. A.M. CANNON. – Mr. Cannon, like so many of our prominent men and large capitalists, began life on a farm, where his energies were devoted until he was twenty-one years old. His father was a farmer and a man of fine qualities, but had very limited means to devote to the education of his son. In 1858 he left Illinois, and started with two yoke of oxen for Pike’s Peak. At St. Joseph he was elected captain of a company of emigrants consisting of fifty-two souls, and succeeded in leading them safely across the plains through a dangerous Indian … Read more

Van Hoomissen, Condon J. “Jerry” – Obituary

Baker City, Oregon Condon J. “Jerry” Van Hoomissen, 76, a longtime Baker City resident, died July 4, 2003, at his home. His graveside service will be at 2 p.m. Wednesday at Mount Hope Cemetery. The Rev. Robert C. Irwin of St. Francis de Sales Cathedral will conduct the service. After the committal, family and friends are invited to the Van Hoomissen home at 320 Foothill Drive to swap stories and visit. Food and drink will be provided, but if you wish to bring a dish to share, please do so, it will be appreciated. Jerry was born on Jan. 24, … Read more

Schlegel, Willard “Willie” – Obituary

Willard “Willie” Schlegel, 82, a former Elgin resident, died June 26, 2003, at Emmett Rehab & Healthcare in Emmett, Idaho. The family invites all of Willie’s friends to join them in a memorial celebration of his life on Saturday, July 26, at 2 p.m. at the Stampede hall on the rodeo grounds in Elgin. The oldest son of Velma and William “Bill” Schlegel, Willie was born March 12, 1921, in Whitefish, Mont. He attended school in Whitefish, where he excelled in sports. In high school he was a member of the all-star team in both football and basketball. After graduation, … Read more

Rees, Sherman Griffin – Obituary

Cove, Union County, Oregon Rees- Jan. 3, Sherman G. Rees, aged 77 years, beloved husband of Caddie [McDaniel] Rees, father of Dr. Sherman E. Rees, Portland; brother of Walter Rees, Medford, Or.; Harry, Beaverton, Or., and Tobe, Eastern Or.; grandfather of Thomas Rees. Funeral services will be held Monday, Jan. 5, at 1 P. M., at the Chapel of the Portland Crematorium, SE 14th and Bybee. Deceased was member of Portland lodge No. 55. A. F. and A. M. Hennessey, Goetsch & McGee, Funeral Directors. Oregonian, Mon., Jan. 5, 1942, p. 11 Col. 7 Contributed by: Peggy Lovelace Contreras

Wold, Ariss Jeanette Jones Englund Crow – Obituary

Joseph, Oregon Ariss Jeanette Jones Englund Crow Wold of Joseph died January 31, 2007, at her home in Joseph. She was 90. A memorial celebration will be held at 3:30 p.m. Saturday, June 23, at Joseph City Park, followed by a barbecue potluck dinner. Hamburgers and hot dogs, with condiments, will be provided. Salads, desserts, etc. for pot luck would be appreciated. There will be tables at the park but card or portable tables in addition would be welcome. Any flowers ( her favorite was purple) can be delivered to the park or the Joseph United Methodist Church prior to … 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

DeRoest, Barbara P. DeRoest – Obituary

Prairie City, Oregon Barbara P. DeRoest, 85, of Prairie City, a former Baker City resident, died March 27, 2004, at her home on Pine Creek Road at Prairie City. Her graveside memorial service will be at 1 p.m. Saturday at Mount Hope Cemetery. Bishop Tom Brock of the Baker City Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Mrs. Kim Eardley will officiate. There will be a reception afterward. Barbara was born on Aug. 6, 1918, to John W. and Magdaline P. Hass Williams at Baker City at the old Baker hospital. She was raised at Sparta where she attended … Read more

Teel, Orlan Patten – Obituary

Enterprise, Oregon May 24, 2007 Orlan Patten Teel died on May 16, 2007, at his home in Orofino, Idaho. He was 80. Mr. Teel was born on Nov. 20, 1926, to Wilma Ruth Patten Teel and Maurice Charles Teel in Portland. His mother died at his birth and he was raised in Enterprise by his grandmother, Cora Bell Baker Patten. He married LaNita Warnock in 1946. They later divorced. He married Mary Joyce Kattelas in 1958. They later divorced. He married Diana Lee Boire in Boise, Idaho on Aug. 14, 1974, and they made their home in Weston for 24 … Read more

Hearing, Myrtle I. – Obituary

Enterprise, Wallowa County, Oregon Enterprise Native Succumbs At Hospital. Myrtle I. Hearing of Enterprise passed away on Tuesday, Dec. 30, 1975 at Wallowa Memorial Hospital following several months of ill health. She was the daughter of pioneer parents, Nicholas and Mary Ownbey and was born in Enterprise on Aug. 25, 1890. She lived here until 1928 when she moved to Walla Walla, Wash., to live with a sister, Mrs. Ora Bookout. Later Mrs. Hearing, with her sister, moved to Portland where they made their home. After the death of her sister, she lived with a nephew, Don Bookout of Portland. … Read more

Biography of James Steel

James Steel, banker of Portland, was born in Woodsfield, Monroe county, Ohio, on September 20, 1834, and is a son of William and Elisabeth (Lawrie) Steel. His father was born in Scotland, but came to America when nine years of age, and was engaged in merchandising nearly all of his active life. He was a man of strong character, and every action in business and private life was governed by the most rigid adherence to a lofty conception of right and justice. He was strongly opposed to human slavery, and was very active for more than twenty years prior to … Read more

Biography of James K. Kelly

For many years James K. Kelly has been a prominent man in the legal and political history of Oregon, and has left upon the annals of this section of the Union the impress of his personality. In positions of honor and trust he has maintained an exalted standard of excellence and according to the dictates of his conscience and judgment his influence has been cast for the agencies he believed to be conducive to the true interests of the people. A fitting record of the part he has borne in many important events during his long residence in Oregon, very … Read more

Vandecar, Adelaine – Obituary

Mrs. Adelaide Vandecar formerly a resident of this place but lately of Portland, passed away April 24, age 77 years. North Powder News Saturday, May 10, 1919

Baxter, David Patrick – Obituary

Baker City, Baker County, Oregon David Patrick Baxter, 80, of Portland, a devoted and loving husband, father and grandfather, died Dec. 12, 2004, surrounded by his family. David died of esophageal and lung cancer. David was born March 17, 1924, in Sterling, Ill., to the Rev. Thomas and Eliza Baxter. After his mother’s death in 1932, his father married Myra. They lived in Elgin, Ill., then moved to Austin, Minn. His family later moved to Baker City, where his father was a minister at St. Stephens Episcopal Church. David was a standout football and basketball player at Baker High School. … Read more

Portland Excursions, Public Festivities and Celebrations

The gorge of the Columbia, with its Latourelle, Multnomah, and Horse-tail Falls, and its Oneonta canyon, with the Cascade mountains themselves, are most inviting, and to the artist no less than to the common excursionist, prove wonderful. Mount St. Helens has been an object of attraction to the Alpine Club of this city, the members of which recently played snow-ball upon its mosque-like top. Mount Adams and Rainier, although the finest and most curious of all, are too much removed to be frequented by the men of Portland; they will ultimately, however, come into due appreciation. For those bent on … Read more

Griffith, Harold Leon – Obituary

La Grande, Oregon Harold Leon Griffith, 40, of Portland and formerly of La Grande, died Nov. 19. There will be a funeral service at 11 a.m. Friday at Highland United Church of Christ in Portland. Mr. Griffith was born Feb. 18, 1966, in Portland. He was a graduate of Jefferson High School and Western Culinary Institute, both in Portland. He lived most of his life in the Portland area, but for a time lived in La Grande, where he was a chef at Ten Depot Street. Most recently he was employed as a chef at Jimmy’s Italian Restaurant in Portland. … Read more