cvyarns.html

The Goldendale Sentinel, Goldendale, WA.

(Editor's note; This is the first of a series of recollections of Centerville in the early days. They're written by Cecil A. Niva, who spent many years of his childhood there (Niva now lives in Seattle). The stories start out with Niva's father, before the turn of the century. Read on for a folksy dose of local history.)

Part 1 was in issue July 24, 1986, page 3
Part 2 was in issue July 31, 1986, page 2
Part 3 was in issue August 7, 1986, page 2

CENTERVILLE YARNS
By Cecil A. Niva

William Frances Niva was born in Calumet, Michigan on August 28, 1873. He married Jetta Severina Walman. She was born in Centerville on May 22, 1882.
Dad came west and was employed at various different jobs. He did some fishing in Astoria where he would go way out in the ocean in a hand-oared boat and get his fish. There were no powered engines in those days. It was just back breaking endurance for locomotion.
After his fishing venture, he went to Aberdeen and the Cosmopolis area and worked in various saw mills. He was about 18 years of age at that time.
After his time in the Aberdeen area he came to Centerville. He attended the Klickitat Academy School in Goldendale. He stayed with a Mr. Hornibrook, who was a freelance minister.
There were no regular churches in those days. Mr. Hornibrook would pick out different areas in the Cedar Valley area and sometimes places on the Indian Reservations to preach. In order to reach these he had to use horse and buggy. That was dad's job, to transport him. Dad was furnished his bed and food for this service.
In the summertime dad went to work at Streeter's Saw Mill in Cedar Valley. They did logging at the foot of Mount Adams. They would dam up mountain streams for large storing areas for their logs and after these areas filled they would send these logs down a large v-shaped flume. It had four foot v-shaped sides and was about five miles long. It was dad's job to maneuver these logs to a large gate and open the gates and release the water so that the pressure of the water along with the logs would cause them to slide down this flume to the mill at the bottom of the flume close to the mill. On nice warm days when the sun was up, large snakes would crawl on top of the logs to sun themselves.
Dad always carried a wood stick with a v-shaped slot that he would use to put over the snakes so he could handle them safely. He would put the captives in a gunny sack he had with him.
There in the valley lived a man that manufactured a snake oil ointment that would cure all the aches and ailments that a person could have. He traveled all over the country in a little covered wagon pulled by horse. He would set up shop in small towns and give lectures on the merit of his product and its magical cures. He had built on his place a 10 by 20 dirt pit that had 12-inch sides. He paid dad a nickle or a dime according to the size of the critter. He would hang the snakes by their tail on a clothes line that was in the sun. The oil that came off the snakes would drip on corrugated sheets set to catch it. He would dilute the substance and bottle it up for his use: his magical wonder kit. It was quite a novel way to make an extra nickel here and there when a penny was worth a penny. That was for dad!

Part 2

In the early l900s dad went to work for U.F. Abshier. He was a retired Senator from Lane County in Oregon. He started a hardware store in Centerville. It had a complete line of hardware, farm implements and harness materials for horses. it was a large place and there were even big Conestoga Wagons and buggies on display. I remember as a little boy wandering in it. Then came a big fire that burned up most of the town along with the store. Afterward he built a brick building that still stands today.
Before dad went to work for Absheir, he had been a freelance spotter for The Dalles Milling Co. Wasco Milling Co. was the competitor. He was furnished with a pony and a cou-ple of hundred dollars in gold every-day. Dad would spot clouds of dust on the prairie, indicating that a load of wheat was being transported. He would give them a five dollar gold piece to take it to his mill. There were other spotters out there doing the same thing.
Then when SP&S built the rail spur to Goldendale in 1902 it sort of changed the situation. About a year before the rail came through, Balfour and Guthrie, nationally known large wheat brokers, began to construct big platforms of heavy timbers at Warwick, Centerville and Goldendale. Scale houses and scales were provided and when bad weather came large canvas tarps were spread out over the piles of wheat to keep it dry. Mr. Abshier and dad were selected to run sack platforms 202 and 333. When the road was finished they used gondola cars that carried 250 sacks. Later, standard tracks were installed so that standard 650 sack capacity boxcars could be used.
The railroad was built on land that the Klickitat Indian Tribe owned. Skookum Walihee was then the chief.
According to Indian custom, more than one wife was allowed, but the only one that I knew of that was married to Skookum was Sally Wakkacus. I guess that was his favorite, but it was said that there were others.
They were funny shoppers. They didn't want anyone to wait on them. They just walked around the store and picked up this and that and finally when they were through they put the merchandise on the counter and left. I remember riding on the train and there was Skookum walking along the side of the track. He took off his big sombrero hat and waved it for us to stop. He never had to pay, he just climbed on and went to Centerville. He always wore Moccasins. He would waddle in and say, "Bill, I need a plow," or "Bill, I need five sacks of wheat for the chickens." He didn't like to get his bill at the end of the month though. He would waddle in, in his moccasins and settle his bill.
There were other tribes of Indians there also. They were always on the go either to the Huckleberry fields on Mt. Adams or to Celilo Falls for dip net fishing. They traveled only with saddle and packhorses. Later they used light wagons. Seldom did they have any money, but dad trusted them. They would come back with berries they had gotten at the foot of Mt. Adams and we never had to worry about getting fish. All these Indians were the most truly honest people on this earth.
Our store was the most colorful place. In the center stood a big round sheet metal stove about five foot across, around which the farmers and usual city folks would gather, especially in cold weather to discuss politics and exchange the latest news and gossip, Also to discuss the road conditions, this being quite a problem until enough money was provided so that good roads were made available. There were some good tales related around that old stove, whether true or not, it didn't really make any difference. Stores were on a credit basis at the time with farmers paying their bills when they sold their crops.

Part 3

My parents' wedding was quite an affair and the reception was held at the Sarsfield Ranch southwest of town. There were about 50 in attendance for the dancing and celebrating. It started to snow early on the eve of their wedding and when it was time to go there was a full-scale blizzard roaring outside.
There was no way to get home;- staying overnight was in order. They made the best of it and since the tenants there had just butchered, there was plenty for everyone to eat. The women found bed space in the house and the men went out to the barn and slept in the hay with horse blankets and collar pads they found to keep them warm. The only difficulty that occurred was the male members of the party running out of liquid cheer and this sad circumstance was rectified when they got two ponies and went over the hill to The Dalles to get their cheer. As far as the women folks were concerned, this of course was a wasted trip!
Dad also had two brothers that lived all their lives in Centerville. A.J. had the grocery and general drygoods store and Levi lived west of town and was a successful farmer.
I went to work for Marshall Wells Hardware in Portland in 1927. It was a Duluth-Minnesota based concern. They carried a complete hardware line that dealt with hardware stores and mill equipment for logging and lumber accessories.
During the depression, our duties were varied. You never knew what the day would bring. Longview, Wash. was then being developed and they used a lot of bolts....It was a lot of hard work and not much pay.
The brand name for Marshall Well first grade tools was Zenith and they were of the best quality. We would get shipments of files, axes, saws and hammers. They had a test lab that everything was tested through and checked for hardness.
The test equipment consisted of a ball bearing in a plastic tube with a small suction cup that lifted the ball and dropped it on the hammer face and it had to bounce to a certain degree. Hand saws were put in a jig on a table. Then the blade was bent in a half moon shape and when let loose it was supposed to spring back to its original straight shape. Axes would be set on a fiber board block and tested by making three or four cuts on a nine gauge wire. Those that didn't test out were sold to Montgomery Wards if rumor was correct, or to Alaska Junk.
It sure is different today. Now you go and buy what there is and take your chances. Of course, the methods and ways of doing business accounted for by progress has made it a different world.
It's funny, but in dads' store he always had a bunch of copper-bottomed wash boilers and even in those days they sold for six or seven dollars. We also had gallon garbage cans that were a lot less expensive. The farmers used them to store their seed wheat in.