25 YEARS AGO

June 29, 1999

The McNary Dam loomed large behind Sen. Gordon Smith as he gave a campaign speech all about fish, power and dams.

Smith’s speech revolved around dam breaching, the proposed solution to restore salmon runs in the Columbia Basin. By removing earthen walls from the four dams along the Snake River, and possibly the John Day and McNary Dams, the hope was to increase river flow for the fishes’ benefit.

Politicians all across the Columbia Basin, including Rep. Greg Walden and Sen. David Nelson, had pledged to fight dam breaching because they claimed it would cause an economic disaster by reducing energy production.

“I will ask you to sacrifice for fish,” Smith said, “but I won’t ask you to commit economic suicide for fish.”

Smith also spoke of the growth the dams had sparked by powering Portland and opening the Basin for barges, along with their environmental advantages.

“There’s no global warming coming from here,” he said. “What would you replace it with?”

Instead of dam breaching, Smith pointed to the Bonneville Dam and its successful testing of fish-friendly turbines that allowed fish to pass straight through the dams.

With opposition rushing as strong as the water currents that would result from dam breaching, more focus was given to alternative methods.

50 YEARS AGO

June 27, 1974

Driving, reading and playing baseball in the dark are not easy to do. Although the first two activities remain a struggle, a grant would eliminate the last one for Hermiston residents.

The city of Hermiston received a $33,000 grant from the Bureau for Outdoor Recreation to install lights at the baseball fields in Weber Field. As for why Hermiston was chosen, the organization pointed to the good condition and extensive use of the field. They also noted how the area’s high temperatures led a majority of baseball games to be held at night, which could potentially be dangerous.

This was the second grant awarded by the Bureau for Outdoor Recreation for Weber Field, as a previous one had enabled the city to install irrigation. With such renovations, city officials and residents alike were looking forward to enjoying the new field. Not to mention the baseball players, who were hoping to see an improvement in their batting averages now that they could actually see the ball.

75 YEARS AGO

June 30, 1949

It was said that all of Stanfield, its countryside and the adjacent communities turned up to welcome the town’s new modern pumper fire truck.

The ceremony took place on June 24, with decorated bikes and floats ushering in the new arrival. The school band then performed several numbers on Main street, where the Stanfield Commercial Club also served ice cream and cake. The nearly $50 they made in dessert sales would be used to purchase helmets for the fire crew.

Once the crowd had gotten their fair share of music and sweets, they made their way into the high school auditorium for a welcoming ceremony where Chief Louis Proehl and his crew were then introduced. Having served 25 years with the Portland Fire Department, Proehl was deemed an ideal person to train the volunteer firefighters and entrust the new equipment with.

As the evening drew to a close, attendees were encouraged to come by on the Fourth of July where the new fire truck would make another appearance for a more formal presentation.

90 YEARS AGO

June 28, 1934

Droughts usually signal hardship for farmers, but farmers in the central and western portion of the country actually benefited from the dry weather.

It was the basic science of supply and demand, as the weather had decreased harvest numbers which in turn increased prices. The extension economist at Oregon State College reported that grain, hay, cotton and dairy products had seen the greatest price jumps.

On the other end of the harvest table sat fruit, the coveted summertime food. The OSU extension economist said it was too early to determine specific fruit prospects, but they predicted national production to remain steady. They did know the crop count at the beginning of the month was a little larger than the previous year but still 5% less than average, and pears were signaled out to have a very poor outlook. As for the rest of the fruit spectrum, people would just have to wait until more data was collected.