guler1.html

The Oregon Journal, Portland, OR., May 29, 1915, page 4
"The Oregon Country, in Early Days"
by Fred Lockley, Special Staff Writer of The Journal

Christian Guler is one of the pioneer residents of the Trout Lake Valley. He went to Trout Lake when the settlers went in by pack horse or afoot on the trails. I spent an evening recently with Mr. Guler at Guler postoffice on Trout creek. Guler postoffice is located in the hotel at Guler and beautiful Trout lake is only a few hundred yards distant. It is almost at the foot of Mount Adams. "Peter Stoller was the first homesteader to come into this country," said Mr. Guler. "That was 42 years ago. For many years he stayed here and one by one other settlers came in here and took up places. When I came here 27 years ago I had only been away from my native land, Switzerland, three years. One of my brothers was in this country, another was an Alpine guide. A fellow countryman of mine, who was working for a logging company on the White Salmon river, told me of this country. When I came in I found the climate of the Italian Alps, the beauty of my native country with free land and miles and miles of timber where the stand ran 7,000,000 to 17,000,000 feet to the quarter-section. I stayed. "When I came 27 years ago, I found only nine or 10 permanent settlers in the country. They were Joseph Aerni, Frank Coate, his brother Will, Harvey Byrkett, Henry Fine, Charles Pearson, John Peterson and William Stadelman. The first school taught here was opened 29 years ago in a homesteader's cabin. "We were locked in all winter at first by the snow. We had no roads and what we needed we brought in on our backs on snowshoes or skis. I have brought in some heavy loads on the trails but the hardest trip ever made was leading or rather being led by two 80-pound pigs. They ran around nearly every tree and bit of brush along the trail." I used to carry my goods on a foot log across the White Salmon. It flowed nearly a hundred feet below the log. I had to take my cook stove to pieces to take it across. I brought in a sewing machine on my back. Finally, R.D. Cameron built a road from Husum to the head of the valley, nine miles from here. He turned it over to the county. Now we have excellent roads. "When I came here we ate no beef nor mutton, instead, we ate deer meat or duck, geese, swan and trout. Soon we got our cattle in and put up wild hay for them. This is a wonderful stock country and dairy country now. "When I came here there was a German aristocrat here - a high born man named Von Otto. He lived by hunting and trapping. A cougar tore his back and arms almost to ribbons. It took him a long while to get well. When he could get around at last he said "I have had plenty of trapping; I will quit that business." It was not his fault he got torn up by the cougar. He saw a cougar eating a deer. He shot it. Another cougar that had been also eating the deer came for him. That one he also killed. Two, he thought was all, but a third one, before he could load his gun, leaped on his shoulders and began chewing and tearing him. He caught it and twisted it in front of him and while it tore him with its claws he held it by the throat with one hand and with the other hand took out his hunting knife and cut and stabbed it till it was dead. He could hardly crawl to a nearby settler's house he was so torn and bled so much. "Fishing in the lake here is good yet. I put a boat on the lake and have often caught a hundred trout in the forenoon running from 12 to 18 inches in size. About 15 years ago the postoffice was located here. They called it Guler for me. Yes, it is pronounced as if it were spelled Gooler. "I took the contract to carry the mail between here and White Salmon for $365.99 a year. In the winter I had to come nine miles from my homestead on Bear Valley and start from here at 7 o'clock a.m. I had to get up at 3:30 in the morning. That gave us only 50 cents a day each for our work. "About 15 years ago he started irrigating. Then we found we had a wonderful strawberry and apple country. This level valley is made land and very rich. "Eighteen years ago I bought the old Peter Stoller claim of E.L. Smith, the Hood River apple man, for $2,000, nothing down and pay when I could. It included the outlet of Trout Lake and part of the lake. I put up a hotel. Soon many people from Portland came here to spend the summer and fish. "Yes, this is a farming country. Charley Moore, the postmaster at Trout Lake raised 120 bushels of oats to the acre on his place last year. With our timber, our lake, our ice caves, our lava caves, our water power, our climate, our wonderful scenery, our strawberries, dairy land, stock land, other resources we will have a railroad some day and then this country will become thickly settled.

The Klickitat County Agriculturist, Goldendale, WA., June 4, 1915, page 2

EARLY DAYS
Guler Tells of the Trout Lake Section

Christian Guler is one of the pioneer residents of Trout Lake valley, in western Klickitat. He went to Trout Lake when the settlers went by pack horse or afoot on the trails. I spent an evening recently with Mr. Guler at Guler postoffice on Trout creek, says a correspondent. Guler postoffice is located in the hotel at Guler in beautiful Trout Lake is only a few hundred yards distant. It is almost at the foot of Mount Adams. "Peter Stoller was the first homesteader to come into this country," said Mr. Guler. "That was 42 years ago. For many years he stayed here and one by one other settlers came in and took up places. When I came here 27 years ago I had only been away from my native land, Switzerland, three years. One of my brothers was in this country, another was an Alpine guide. A fellow countryman of mine, who was working for a logging company on the White Salmon river, told me of this country. When I came in I found the climate of the Italian Alps, the beauty of my native country with free land and miles after miles of timber which standing ran from 7,000,000 to 17,000,000 feet to the quarter section. I stayed.
"When I came 27 years ago, I found only nine or ten permanent settlers in the country. They were Joseph Aerni, Frank Coate, his brother Will, Harvey Byrkett, Henry Fine, Charles Pearson, John Peterson and William Stadelman. The first school taught here was opened 29 years ago in a homesteader's cabin.
"We were locked in all winter at first by the snow. We had no roads and what we needed we brought in on our backs on snowshoes or skis. I have brought in some heavy loads on the trails but the hardest trip I ever made was leading or rather being led by two 80 pound pigs. They ran around nearly every tree and bit of brush along the trial.
"I used to carry my goods on a foot log across the White Salmon. It flowed nearly a hundred feet below the log. I had to take my cook stove to pieces to take it across. I brought in a sewing machine on my back. Finally, R.D. Cameron build a road from Husum to the head of the valley, nine miles from here. Now we have excellent roads.
"When I came here we ate no beef nor mutton, instead, we ate deer meat or duck, geese, swan and trout. Soon we got cattle in and put up wild hay for them. This is wonderful stock country and dairy country now.
"When I came here and there was a German aristocrat here -- a high born man named Von Otto. He lived by hunting and trapping. A cougar tore his back and arms almost to ribbons. It took him a long while to get well. When he could get around at last he said: 'I have had plenty of trapping; I will quit that business.' It was not his fault that he got town by a cougar. He saw a cougar eating a deer. He shot it. Another cougar that had been also eating the deer came for him. That one he also killed. Two he thought was all but a third one before he could load his gun leaped on his shoulders and began chewing and tearing him. He caught it and twisted it in front of him and while it tore him with its claws he held it by the throat with one hand and with the other took out his hunting knife and cut and stabbed it until dead. He could hardly crawl to a nearby settler's cabin he was so torn and bled so much.
"Fishing in the lake here is good yet. I put a boat on the lake and have often caught a hundred trout and the forenoon running from 12 to 18 inches in size. About 15 years ago the post office was located here. They called it Guler for me. Yes, it is pronounced as if it were spelled Gooler.
"I took the contract to carry the mail between here and White Salmon for $365.90 a year. In the winter I had to come nine miles from my homestead on Bear valley and start from here at 7 o'clock a.m. I had to get up at 3:30 in the morning. That gave us only 50 cents a day each for our work.
"About 15 years ago we started irrigating. Then we found we had a wonderful strawberry and apple country. This level valley is made land and very rich.
"Eighteen years ago I bought the old Peter Stoller claim of E.L. Smith, the Hood River apple man, for $2000, nothing down and pay when I could. It included the outlet of Trout Lake and part of the lake. I put up a hotel. Soon, many people from Portland came here to spend the summer and fish. "Yes, this is a farming country. Charley Moore, the postmaster at Trout Lake, raised 120 bushels of oates to the acre on this place last year. With our timber, our lake, our ice caves, our lava caves, our water power, our climate, our wonderful scenery, our strawberries, dairy land, stock and other resources we will have a railroad some day and then this country will become thickly settled."