Offbeat Oregon: Quest led to madness and death
By 1899, when Samuel L. Simpson’s drinking problem finally got around to killing him, he was essentially Oregon’s poet laureate — the Stewart Holbrook of the 1800s. Offbeat Oregon Finn ...
Offbeat Oregon: Wildest lost-cabin gold mine story may be true … or not
The “lost cabin gold mine” is a certifiable Western trope. If every ounce of legendary gold buried in an old log cabin became real and hit the banks at the same time, it would probably crash ...
Offbeat Oregon: ‘Colonel’ Hogg’s war record? Robbery on the high seas
Corvallis/Toledo railroad tycoon T. Edgenton Hogg (pronounced “Hoag”) was always somewhat reticent about his past. Especially the Civil War part. To some extent, that was understandable. “Colonel” ...
Offbeat Oregon: Famous prospector’s death sparked ‘lost mine’ legends
They found the grizzled prospector’s body slumped over a sample of ore on the floor of the rude log cabin he’d been staying in, deep in the wilderness of southern Oregon, late in the spring ...
Offbeat Oregon: ‘Colossal Claude,’ the great Columbia Bar Sea Serpent
Ask anyone to name a mythical Oregon creature, and you’ll get a very predictable answer: Bigfoot, a.k.a. Sasquatch. Offbeat Oregon Finn J.D. John, an instructor at OSU, writes ...
Offbeat Oregon: The ‘own-goal’ champ of state history
This is a continuation of the Offbeat Oregon column that appeared in last week’s Connections. A.C. Edmunds’ experience in Portland before the Civil War had been so short, and by his personal ...
Offbeat Oregon: With a friend like A.C. Edmunds, suffragists needed no enemies
One of the most dramatic things that can happen in a soccer game is an “own-goal.” Not the kind where a player on offense bounces a shot off a defender and into the net, but the full-on ...
Offbeat Oregon: Sternwheelers on the Willamette River sometimes towed barns, caught flying fish
The Willamette River was running high and wild on the morning of Feb. 5, 1890, as Alden and Arthur Graham set out from Oregon City in their sternwheel riverboat for the daily run to Portland. Offbeat ...
Offbeat Oregon: Astoria, San Francisco once powered nation’s marine-engine industry
Between 1908 and 1911, something happened that almost certainly saved hundreds of men from drowning on the Columbia River Bar. Offbeat Oregon Finn J.D. John, an instructor at OSU, writes ...
Offbeat Oregon: Asahel Bush crossed swords with state’s first woman doctor, and lost
On any list of Oregon “firsts,” there’s one name that almost never pops up: Dr. Adeline M. Weed. Offbeat Oregon Finn J.D. John, an instructor at OSU, writes about ...
Offbeat Oregon: Neighbor’s theft of widow and orphans’ home was too much for jury
Especially in the late 1800s, the Oregon frontier was no stranger to acts of judicial lynching — where the local legal system was corrupted to provide cover for murder. Offbeat Oregon Finn ...
Offbeat Oregon: How Abe Tichner hustled the rubes at 1870s county fairs
When Abe Tichner died, on April 29 of 1935, he was one of Portland’s most respected citizens. Offbeat Oregon Finn J.D. John, an instructor at OSU, writes about unusual and little-known ...
Offbeat Oregon: Mayors Lee, Schrunk set tone for city’s modern era
The history of Portland mayors in the 20th century largely comes down to the story of the struggle of progressive reformers against various forms of corruption and vice. Offbeat Oregon Finn ...
Offbeat Oregon: In 1800s Portland, at least one mayor paid to play
Today’s article continues our round-up of colorful mayors in Oregon’s largest and most powerful city —starting with one of the most famously dubious politicians ever to grace the office: ...
