of
Hood River County, Oregon
|
History and Genealogy of Hood River County, Oregon |
Cities, Towns &
Communities
| Hood River, Oregon.—Hood
River is located in Wasco county, 64 miles east of Portland,
on the line of the Union Pacific railroad, and at the
junction of the Columbia and Hood rivers. It has a present
population of about 350, and is the trading and shipping
point for the rich Hood River valley. The site of the town
is a picturesque one, sloping as it does to the north
towards the Columbia river, and to the east towards the
smaller stream of Hood river. It commands a magnificent view
of some of the best Columbia river scenery, and it is today
one of the popular inland summer resorts of the state. The town of Hood River contains two handsome church edifices, owned respectively by the Congregational and United Brethren denominations. The Methodists hold services in temporary quarters here. The public school here is held in a building which is inadequate to properly accommodate the pupils in attendance. It is probable that a larger and better school building will be erected during the present year. Two teachers are employed in the public school here, and the average daily attendance of scholars is about 80. Hood River contains a dozen or more stores, two hotels, and two well stocked livery stables. A free reading-room is maintained in the town for the accommodation of the public, and a good weekly newspaper, The Hood River Glacier, is published at this point. The manufacturing enterprises of the town are represented by the Hood River Manufacturing Company, which turns out everything in the line of woodwork. The Hood River valley is about 18 miles in length by about 8 miles in width. It maintains a level of from 400 to 1,000 feet above the sea. The soil of this valley is rich and varied, and will produce all kinds of cereals and fruits equally as well. This is one of the finest fruit belts in the state. The Hood river peaches are unexcelled in quality, and large quantities of this delicate fruit raised here yearly find a ready sale in the Portland market. Apples, pears, prunes, cherries, and all the smaller fruits do well on this soil. The farmers of the Hood River valley place great reliance on their strawberry crops. The berries of this fruit grown here attain a remarkable size, the yields are always large, and the fruit is of the best quality. In 1892 the returns from the strawberry crop of the Hood River valley alone amounted to $23,000, and the average value of the product of each acre planted in strawberries here during that year was about $600. During the season of 1893 the area of this land planted in strawberries was about three times what it was the previous year. The principal markets for Hood river strawberries are in Montana and Portland. In the mountains around Hood river is a wealth in fine timber that is yet hardly touched. This river has its source at the base of the east and north slopes of Mount Hood, and for a distance of 10 miles from the mountain it has an average fall of about 70 feet to the mile. This stream is capable of furnishing a large available water power, which will some day be largely utilized for sawing the timber found adjoining the stream. The town of Hood River is fast becoming popular as a summer resort. A salubrious climate, with the attraction of the finest drives, flower-dressed hills, and pure mountain streams of the coldest water filled with the gamiest of brook trout, have combined to make this one of the most popular resorts for recreation in the state. Mount Hood, the monarch of the Cascades, with its covering of perpetual snow, looms up plainly in the distance from the town of Hood River. The mountain is reached from this point by an easy stage ride of but 28 miles in length. In the neighborhood of Hood River is considerable government land still subject to entry. This land, while lying some distance back from the town, contains fine soil and is perfectly adapted to fruit culture. All of this land will be occupied a few years hence, and the town of Hood River will ultimately become one of the most important fruit-shipping points on the Columbia river. The Oregonian's Handbook of the Pacific Northwest Edward Gardner Jones, Editor 1894, The Oregonian Publishing Co. |
