Hood River-Mosier Forest Wayside

1946 State Parks Report: Hood River-Mosier Forest Wayside

The Hood River-Mosier Forest Wayside begins at Mile Post 68.22, a mile or so east of Hood River, and ends at Mile Post 70.48, a little over two miles of highway distance. The tracts are described as being in Sections 31, 32, and 33, Township 3 [?] North of Range 11 East, W.M., all in Hood River County, containing 101.50 acres, more or less. These tracts are designated in the deeds as being "Indian Deed Inherited Lands", conveyed to the State of Oregon by noncompetent "Cascade" Indians who were of Hood River origin. Their names and the respective acreages are: Katie Coon, heir of Charles Coon and Jack Coon, 36.83 acres; Thomas Jim, a single man, 28.60 acres; Martha Aleck, widow of Joe Aleck, 15.07 acres; William Johnson and Isabel Johnson, his wife, Frank Johnson and Celie Johnson, his wife and Edward and Esther Johnson, his wife, 21.00 acres. All were respected citizens of this community. In his younger days Jack Coon was a noted bear hunter. For several years Joe Aleck, Matha's husband, carried the White Salmon mail and ferried passengers across the Columbia in an open, not too seaworthy skiff. He had three sons all of whom met death in river accidents. At the time of her death in 1939, Martha Aleck was the oldest member of the Hood River Indians, erroneously reputed to be a hundred years old. She was a small child, possibly two years of age, at the time of the Indian troubles at the Cascades in 1856. Her father was warned by a friendly Klickitat Indian that the Yakimas planned to attack the settlement the next day. To avoid being involved in the conflict he put Martha, her mother, and their meager possessions into his canoe and left for Hood River at midnight before the trouble started. This would fix Martha's age at eighty five, more or less, when she died.

The east end of this wayside forest is approximately a half mile from the Hood River-Wasco County line, and marks what is practically the east limit of the western Oregon Douglas fir forest area along the Columbia River Highway. Within the length of the wayside forest there are two small, privately owned, triangular tracts that corner on the highway right of way and interrupt its state owned continuity. Although the acreage is not great, their sylvan value is high, especially in this locality, which punctuates the waning edge of the fir forest that borders the highway on its march from the ocean to the treeless region beyond.

The only improvements in this wayside where fire breaks, fire hazard reduction and a lineal survey, by CCC forces in 1934.

W. A. Langille

State Parks Historian

December 5, 1945

Recommendations:

The waysides should always be kept in their natural state. Connecting forties should be acquired.

S. H. Boardman

State Parks Superintendent

March 25, 1946

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