History of Early Pioneer Families of Hood River, Oregon. Compiled by Mrs. D.M. Coon

LULU DONNELL CRANDALL 1854 - 1931
Wasco County Pioneer of 1858. By Fred W. Wilson

     In every phase of her life, Lulu Donnell Crandall was inspired by the spirit of the pioneer. By birthright, youthful environment and the predilection of mature years, her days were intimately surrounded by pioneer atmosphere and she reveled in the delights which came with it. She was the personification of much that is attractive in the tradition of early years in Oregon. In pioneer language, Mrs. Crandall was true born, for her parents, Zelek M. Donnell and his bride Camilla Thompson, made the long journey across the plains in 1852. They were married in Indiana February 3, 1852, and on March 1st of that year, Mr. Donnell left with his young wife by steamer from Cincinnati for St. Joseph, Missouri. Here he outfitted and with ox teams began the long trek westward. As the company was mostly made up of young couples, they walked the greater part of the way, the train being known as Dr. Crawford's company. In September, 1852, The Dalles was reached. Leaving this resting spot, they journeyed down the Columbia River to the Willamette Valley, and the writer has heard Mrs. Donnell tell of going over the Cascade rapids in an Indian bateau while holding in her lap a sick child whose mother had died enroute. Such a trip would be viewed with awe by veteran rivermen of today. The rest of the party made the portage by land. The Donnells located upon a donation claim near Brownsville, where they lived until 1858, and then disposing of their land to Captain James Blakely, father of an honored citizen of The Dalles, Judge George C. Blakely, they moved to Wasco County, where Mr. Donnell was the first to range cattle between the Deschutes and John Day rivers. The first Eastern Oregon home of the Donnells was on Fifteen Mile Creek, south of The Dalles. In 1866 they moved to The Dalles, in order that the children might attend school, the father continuing in the stock business until his death November 28, 1873, at the age of 44 years. In 1864 he was elected state senator from Wasco County, and served in two regular sessions; and in one special session held for the purpose of ratifying the thirteenth constitutional amendment. In the dark days of the Civil War, Mr. Donnell was an uncompromising Union man and outspoken in his support of Lincoln's administration. Both Mr. and Mrs. Donnell were charter members of the Congregational church at The Dalles, organized by the Rev. W.A. Tenney in 1859, a church of which in after years the Rev. Thomas Condon was pastor.
     While at Brownsville the Donnells were neighbors of Mr. and Mrs. Zenas F. Moody, afterwards the Governor of Oregon. The Moodys moved to Wasco County at an early date and the friendship between the two families continued throughout the lives of all.
     Lulu Donnell was born at Brownsville May 29, 1854, the same year Wasco Co. was created. With this background it is not strange that the spirit of the pioneer was in her heart. From the family's removal to Eastern Oregon, the rest of her life was spent in Wasco County and along the Columbia River she loved so well. In her childhood The Dalles was a military post and redolent with history. Col. George Wright was commandant. Her girlish eyes gazed upon the panoply of war as she watched the soldiers drill upon the parade ground and listened to the tales of Indian warfare. Long after the abandonment of the military post, a handsome school edifice was erected upon the spot where the flagstaff stood. To Mrs. Crandall was given the privilege of choosing its name, and with historic precision she named it the Colonel Wright School, thus commemorating the services of that sturdy Indian fighter. As the girl grew to womanhood, the pageant of the steamboat was at its height and the romance of the river brought its tribute to her. In 1877 she became the wife of Capt. George F. Sampson, one of the skilled captains who navigated the streams of the Oregon Steam Navigation Company, from Celilo to Lewiston. Those of a former generation will readily bring to mind the delights of the steam boat days, the pleasant sociability and wholesouled hospitality that were characteristic of them. In all of these the wife of Captain Simpson was a happy participant and their memories were pleasant ones throughout her life. To Captain Sampson and his wife four children were born, two of whom survive. Mrs. Georgia Sampson Brown of Kellogg, Idaho, and Victor Sampson of Portland, Some years after the death of her husband, and in 1892, Mrs. Sampson married C.J. Crandall and thus began other historical associations. Mr. Crandall was an architect of real ability. The beautiful Wasco County Court House was his artistic creation, while the high school and the grade schools at The Dalles, the hotel and other prominent buildings stand as monuments to his skill. But it is upon the later years of Mrs. Crandall that her friends like to dwell. They were remarkable in their activity. Advancing age brought no impairment, but, on the contrary, seemed to stimulate her mental energy. Some 15 years ago she began to gather historical data of The Dalles and Wasco County, and her industry was unceasing, from morning until late at night she worked, apparently never tiring, and the result is that all possible historical facts relating to this portion of the state have been carefully gathered and wisely segregated. Future historians will find their work easier because of her efforts. Her activities extended in many directions. She was the first Oregon woman to attend a National Republican convention as a delegate, in Cleveland, in 1924. The next year she attended the national convention of the Daughters of the American Revolution, as national chairman of the committee on Indian Welfare, and also an a member of the national committee on preservation of historical spots. Mrs. Crandall was prominent in civic, church and lodge work. She was an organizing mother of the Rebekah Lodge, in The Dalles; past state president of the degree of honor; an active member of the Oregon Historical Society; one of the Founders of the Wasco County Pioneer Association; a regular attendant at the Champoeg meetings; an active worker in the Episcopal Church; a friend of all the other churches and a wise advisor in the work of the public schools.
     Her personality was gracious, kindly, warm-hearted, modest, adverse to receiving praise, but freely bestowing commendation and encouragement. Courageous and faithful, sustained by deep religious faith, she exemplified the pioneer spirit and traditions until the end.
     Mrs. Lulu Donnell Crandall died at The Dalles June 21, 1931.
     C.J. Crandall died at The Dales June 1917.

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