The History of the Trout Lake Grange No. 210 Written by Mrs. John (Alice) Schmid in 1967 This history covers the years from Nov. 7, 1907 to Jan. 1, 1967

     Trout Lake Valley is in the northwest corner of Klickitat County, a comparatively small valley situated in the foothills of Mt. Adams. It's scenery is beautiful, it's night's cold and it's work hard because of the long winters with deep snows and because nothing can be raised without heavy irrigation. It has only one highway that connects the valley to the outside towns as the valley is completely surrounded by hills and mountains. This means that the valley is not so much influenced by their neighbors and this was especially true in the early years of settlement.
     Just as the valley was influenced by its location, so was it by the character of the people who settled there. Only the strong in character and determination, with high aims of building homes there, would stay to clear the heavily timbered land and build a dairy farm. Trout Lake was fortunate in having several of these strong leaders, who lived their entire life there, taking active part in all the life of their neighbors. Especially was this true of Wm. Coate, who had joined the Masonic Lodge in Ohio, and so was familiar with fraternal work and who was a natural strong leader. Through his influence, a meeting was called Nov. 7, 1907 in the new Masonic hall for the purpose of organizing a Grange in the valley.
     The Grange was instituted by Bros. C.E. Murray and Peter Hoult of Glenwood Grange No. 94. Previous to this Wm. Coate and Elwood Thompson had joined the Glenwood Grange and C.A. Pearson too had become a Granger but am not sure if in Glenwood Grange or Mt. View Grange. I do know by his diary that he rode horseback nearly thirty miles to White Salmon to take degree work in the Mt. View Grange.
     Eighteen turned out for the meeting -- Frank and Anna Coate; Wm. and Nancy Coate; Charles and Susie Pearson; Harrison and Martha Boze; Philip and Emma Erick; W.C. and Elizabeth Duncan; J.C. and Mary Hoke; Elwood and Mary Thompson; Christian Guler; H.C. Ketenberg and Ulrick Zuberbuhler. Most of these were of the earliest settlers and most of them stayed in the valley until their deaths, still taking an active part in the Grange. Harrison Boze had been a young slave until freed by the Civil War.
     At this first meeting of the Trout Lake Grange, officers were elected. The first Master was a woman, unusual in Trout Lake as the second woman master was not elected until 1956 but had the honor of presiding at the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Grange. The officers elected were:

Master - Emma Ehrick   Overseer - Frank Coate Lecturer - C.M. Cutting Steward - Christian Guler   Asst. St. - J.C. Hoke       Treasurer - Susie (Mrs. C.A.) Pearson

Secretary - E.C. Duncan Gate Keeper - Ulrick Zuberbuhler Pomona - Anna (Mrs. Frank) Coate Ceres - Elizabeth Duncan Flora - Mary Thompson L.A.S. - Nancy (Mrs. Wm.) Coate

     At the next meeting it was voted to hold meetings on Saturday and sometimes special meetings were called by the Master between regular meetings for the purpose of initiation and by the end of 1908, Trout Lake Grange had thirty-nine members. Also at this meeting a committee of five was appointed to write up a set of Bylaws and to purchase a Grange seal. This committee was Frank Coate, C.A. Pearson, Christian Guler, Nancy Coate and Mary Thompson. Also another committee to contact the Masonic lodge and work out an arrangement to rent the Masonic hall. It was a new building finished in 1905 and since most of the leaders of the Grange were also leaders in the Lodge, a rental was easily decided on, priced at $1.50 a month for regular meetings and $.75 for each special meeting. So from the first Trout Lake Grange was fortunate in having a good place to meet, with a large cupboard for their own property as well as the use of all the Masonic property and such as chairs, dishes and so forth.
     Since it had been voted to retain the same officers for 1908 as had been elected in Nov. Master Emma Erick installed them Jan. 4, and on January 18 set the time for regular meetings on the second and fourth Saturdays of each month. For some reason Emma Erick resigned from the Master's station in July, 1908 and Wm. Coate was elected to finish out the year. In 1909, Frank Coate had been elected Master, Mary Thompson -- Overseer and Emma Erick -- L.A.S. It was either 1910 or 1911 that the Ericks moved from the valley.
     It was also in 1908 that the homestead of Joseph Aerni had been sold to a family from Portland. The woman not only smoked, often times a pipe, but he also wore men's pants, common today but no joke then. At the December meeting a ruling was passed that no man or woman was to be admitted to the Hall unless complying with the customs in manner of dress. The men were particular about their women.
     In 1909 the Grange decided to buy a piano for the Hall to make the Literary Hours more pleasant. A resident in the valley offered to sell one but the man appointed to inspect it reported at the organ was not worth more than $2 to $5. The committee was then allowed $65 to buy a better one and this was in use by the spring of 1910. Later after the Order of the Eastern Star was organized the O.E.S. purchased a piano and the organ sold for $5. Still later after the Star had disbanded in Trout Lake and the Grange had purchased the Masonic hall, the O.E.S. gave the piano to the Grange and today it is used for any meetings held there, a big help to the community.
     In 1911, the Grange voted to pay the secretary three cents per member for his work but this was soon changed to $15 a year and still remains that amount. The Masonic lodge at this time decided they needed all Saturdays of the month for their own meetings, so the Grange changed to day meetings with a pot luck dinner at noon planned by a committee of the previous meeting. Some called this the "Grub Committee" even in the minutes.
     One of the largest community projects the Grange managed was the fair put on in 1914. In 1913, White Salmon had asked Trout Lake to hold a fair with them but it was still not too easy to travel the crooked, dusty road that far and the only organization large enough to take a lead was the Grange, the members decided to have a fair themselves. It was a wonderful success. A committee consisting of four men and four women, all hard workers in the Grange put on a fair that was a surprise to all. The population of the valley was larger then with many homesteaders still living on the surrounding hills and many of these early women were excellent in doing needle work, crocheting, China painting, quilts and so forth. Besides this, fruits and late vegetables could not be brought into the valley so more effort was put into raising them and this must have been an unusually good year. The highlight of all the displays was a miniature Mt. Adams made by a Grange member, which was made of butter. Trout Lake was and always has been a dairy community and the farmers owned their own Cooperative Butter Factory. These fairs were continued for many years, choosing a new committee each year and not one has been a failure.
     As early as 1915, Grange members who wished to continue their work in the Fifth Degree of the Order but found the meeting places of Klickitat Pomona No. 5 too far away to attend, began talking about organizing a second Pomona Grange in Klickitat County. Klickitat is a long narrow county, the roads one had to travel wound around among the mountains as no State Highways had as yet been built, at least in the west end of the county. Some of the Trout Lake members had joined Klickitat Pomona, but the distances to travel even to Goldendale, the county seat situated in the very center of the county made attendance almost impossible. West Klickitat Pomona Grange was organized in the Trout Lake Grange Hall May 23, 1917. Members who joined that day were Wm. and Nancy Coate; C.M. and Augusta Cutting; Ada M. Alford; C.E. and Elizabeth Duncan; Bessie Coate and twelve others petitioned to join that day.
     In 1918 through the influence of comparatively new members who did not think it good business for two organizations to own property in the same hall, offered to sell their property to the Masons and this they did for $60. The Lodge then raised their rent to $3 a meeting to the surprise of these same members. Thus an ideal, friendly cooperation between the two organizations of neighbors was lost.
     The success of any organization is judged by many things: -- it's aim's, the work it does, it's influence for good or bad in the community, by the friendships it creates among the members and neighbors and much more. Grange members from the farms are hard workers and have accomplished much. Many thanks are due the committees and especially the chairmen, who did the work filling as important a place in the Grange as any officer.
     One very large project of the Grange was the local cemetery. It had originally been owned by the United Artisans but that organization had been disbanded for many years. There was no one to look after those graves who had no relatives in the valley and no one to plan for the general upkeep and improvement. After W.W.I, the American Legion boys took a keen interest and worked with Grange members to improve conditions. In 1927, the cemetery was given to the Grange, more land was obtained, a road cleaned through and metal gates put at each end of the road, trees cut and land cleared, and each year one day of general cleanup. Also the Grange appointed a permanent committee of three, one to be appointed each year, to manage the cemetery.
     For many years residents of the valley had been wanting water put in the cemetery and finally this was accomplished. A small spring was located on the hill across a draw and the right to use the water obtained. The work was made possible when $500 was donated from the John Weingartner estate, $100 given by Mr. and Mrs. C.F. Coate and small donations from others. To finance the rest of the project, it was decided to assess each lot $25. The book work was now more than the men on the committee could handle with all the extra work so Mrs. Lawrence McCuistion freely gave her service and was appointed permanent secretary, going back to the Artisan days to bring books up to date. John Schmid was chairman of the cemetery committee, Kenneth Schmid drew the plans and built the forms for an eleven sided reservoir, Leonard Schmid used his backhoe to did the ditches and he and his brother Delbert did much of the machine work, and many others who donated days of labor.
     The Grange had incorporated in 1930 and in 1939 along with the other Granges in West Klickitat Pomona had sponsored a Grange Cooperative Supply Store at the home of S.H. Thomas in White Salmon. Later this was moved to the large Mansfield store rooms to have more room to store grain and a store added. The business enlarged and many of those who had bought stock in the venture lost heavily when finally sold for only $800, a loss the farmers at that time could not afford.
     One of the longest projects of the Grange has been the sponsoring of the 4H clubs. As early as 1920, farmers were trying to get a permanent County Agent to be included in the county budget, to help the farmers in their work and to lead in 4H work. In 1930, a group of farmer parents met with the County Commissioners in Goldendale to plead for a County Agent. Ira Hyde of White Salmon was speaker for the group and Mr. and Mrs. Fred Wood and Mr. and Mrs. John Schmid, Trout Lake Grange members, were there. From the first the Grange has taken the lead in promoting the 4H Clubs, finding leaders many of whom have been Grangers. Achievement Days and local fairs are held in the Grange Hall and cattle shown on the grounds and the Grange stands as much of the expense as they are able. At a 4th of July parade one year, the Trout Lake 4H Clubs won the Sweepstakes Award prize. It was a miniature dairy farm built on a truck with cow milking, calf feeding, separating, haying, and so forth all done by the children in the Fred Wood and John Schmid families, operating the farm.
     Another project the Grange work long on was getting electricity onto the farms. The dairy farmers needed mechanical milkers. Help in the barns with larger herds, was getting hard to get, and the long days in the barn made clean milk hard to get. Some farmers bought machines run by gas engines; one farmer built his individual plant in one of the irrigation ditches; two men built small community plants but none were successful. Grange committee's work for years to influence the P.P.&L. to further their lines the seven miles needed to come into the valley but it was not until 1939 when the PUD came that the farmers had dependable electricity. The valley has been a heavy user.
     The largest project of all was the Grange buying its own Hall, and improving it until it is the handy working unit it is today. Few young men were joining the Masonic Lodge and the older members were passing away so fast that the Trout Lake Lodge at last gave up their charter and joined with the White Salmon Lodge. They had no use for a building in the Trout Lake Valley and since the Trout Lake members were still Grange members, they offered to sell the Hall to the Grange at a price they could not afford to pass up. This was learned in 1939, the first payment was made in 1942 and the Hall was paid for and the deed recorded by 1946. The money was raised entirely by the members of the Grange: -- with card parties, jitney dinners, rents, 4th of July celebrations, picnics and dances, food sales, dances, everything that would earn money.
     After the Hall was paid for, improvements were begun. It had been built to lease the lower floor for a store and the meeting room was on the second floor. With a drop in business and the sudden death of Claus Pearson, owner of the store, the store was moved across the road to an older building and the lower floor of the building was left vacant. Many of the older members were finding it hard to climb the high steps so the Grange decided to move the downstairs. The support posts were removed and strong cables stretched from side to side step to strengthen the building, the floor rebuilt, sanded and varnished, and in 1950 the walls were completely covered with plywood and varnished. In time a kitchen was added, then remodeled with a counter in the center holding four sinks to ease the work of the women putting on the jitney dinners. A jitney dinner is one where each helping is five cents, a method used for several years until meat was to hard to get donated, and buying it necessitated charging more for the meat. Rest rooms were soon built last of all, the old storage shed was made into a dining room, connected with both the kitchen and main hall room. All this work was done by the Grange members themselves with the exception of painting the outside of the large building and help in putting tile on the high ceiling of the main room. Even the many tables were entirely made by the men at the cost of $145 for material. Today we have a Hall large enough for all Grange activities and to use as a community meeting place.
     From 1939 to 1960 the members of the Grange worked extremely hard to earn so much in so small a community although many from White Salmon came out to the cheap jitney dinners until the work and the crowds were so large we had to give them up. During these years card parties brought in $2996; jitney dinners -- $1014; rent over $2108; picnics over $1066; dances over $550; food sales, etc., $172; and other probably a total of almost $8000. These sums are not entirely correct because of the way the reports were given but some are and all are nearly so.
     As other Grangers do, the Trout Lake Grange has worked in many ways to aid the farmer, and the community, and to make the Grange the center of valley activities. The first large meetings were the visits of the State College teachers who conducted the Farmers Institutes. The Huckleberries Fields have always been a concern and the Grange has worked with the Forest Service to preserve them, to keep them safe and clean, even going into the fields to cut trees and brush until the Forest Service decided their own personnel could do it cheaper and better as part of their work. The Grange worked long to get the State to test cows for Bangs disease, a terrible loss in cows to most of the farmers but it had to be done. It also sponsored for many years the D.H.I.A., with which our cold mountain water made the valley a high producing area for cream and milk. The Grange has always given the Hall free for all youth activities that were of benefit to either grade or high school - 4H, Boy Scouts, school dances and parties when properly chaperoned, and for many years worked with the Federated Women's Club by donating the use of the Hall for the annual Halloween parties, to keep the children off the roads.
     Probably the longest efforts have been toward getting the roads improved in the valley, working with the commissioners in the planning. The Grange worked for a Herd Law, in 1946 helped to organize a Fire Dept. and sponsored it until it could manage on its own. The Grange worked for years trying to establish a usable garbage dump which with the help of the County Commissioners they now have near enough to town to be used by all. The Grange has worked for years trying to get help to get our Trout Lake cleaned and dredged to making it the splendid fishing lake it formerly was but we need State help. We have tried to help with county fairs but the distance to Goldendale for night board meetings is too far to attend. There are of course many other things the Grange has done for the valley, too many to find information on but which has made this valley a better place to live in.
     There are still two projects of fairly recent date that the Grange has worked hard on and which will have to be carried on. One was the making and erecting of name signs on all roads in the valley. At first it was meant only for the farms but has been enlarged to include all homes. The work for this has been done largely by two Grange members, Mrs. Leonard Schmid and her father Raymond Cole with help from others. A certain amount of vandalism is discouraging and probably there will always be a repair work.
     The other project just now is the County Park. Joseph Aerni had allowed the use of land for parking near a swimming pool in Trout Creek on his land but carelessness in closing gates and driving through the hay field soon lost this our first park, to the young folks. Later the County Commissioners leased land on the beautiful White Salmon River through the influence of Grange members, many of whom helped to clean the park and build the necessary conveniences. When the cost of the lease of this land was increased and the County Commissioners were looking for another site for a park, Mr. and Mrs. C.F. Coate donated land at the town corners to be used provided a bronze plate would be set on a rock naming it the "Guler Park". Mrs. Coate was the daughter of the Gulers, early settlers who with their hotel built up the tourist trade in the valley. The Grange still helps with the park and their latest project is to move the large log cabin from the John Weingartner estate and rebuild it in the park as a community museum, showing how the first settlers lived.
     Although the work of the Grange is done by all members, there is a certain amount of leaders of both as officers and committee members to take the lead and keep the work going. In a small Grange like the Trout Lake, there is work for every member and any member can find some office they can fill, but there will always be those who are outstanding leaders. In the earlier years Wm. Coate was that kind of leader, filling the Master's station for nearly eleven years, at one time eight years in succession. He was also Master of West Klickitat Pomona Grange No. 32 for four years in succession. Carl Pearson was Master for six years and George Pearson for four years, both sons of Charles A. Pearson. Lloyd Beeks was Master for four years and is again now, and was for ten years in succession in the Pomona Grange. Of other Masters held the office two or three years including Alice Schmid, second woman Master and a Mrs. Laura Beeks, third woman Master.
     The only charter member living today in 1967, is Mary Stadelman Hoke Keys now living in Bingen, Wash. She received her gold pin Nov. 7, 1957 from State Master A. Lars Nelson when Trout Lake Grange celebrated its fiftieth anniversary. The oldest member of the Grange was C.M. Cutting for whom the Grange held open house on his one hundredth birthday. The only Master to die in office was Merle Johnson who passed away suddenly in August, 1966.
     There have been many outstanding couples in the Grange where both the husband and wife have been most active. Foremost among these today are Lloyd and the Laura Beeks who did not join the Grange until 1942. Even so Lloyd Beeks is on his fifth year as Master in the Trout Lake Grange and was Master of West Klickitat Pomona for ten years in succession. He has held other offices too, mostly as Executive Com. and has attended most of the State Grange sessions as he was Chairman of the Credentials Com. for many years. Even now as County Commissioner, he is working with the State Grange Ex. Com. on much of the proposed legislation this year. There has never been a harder working woman in our Grange than Laura Beeks, especially with the youth and as Home Economics Chairman. From her first moving to Trout Lake she was a 4H Lecturer both in the individual clubs and as Community Leader, and 1958 she was one of four in the State of Wash. to received a reward for her work in 4H. In her work as H. EC. CH. to which she was elected in 1945, in she has held so many years since, she took the lead in planning and putting on the jitney dinners and many dinners for other organizations in the valley, in putting on dances, card parties, in fact any place where workers are needed she is there taking a lead. Of course there are many other workers without whom the Grange would not survive: -- Charles Brown who has done much of the carpenter work and repairing; Bettina McCuistion, who works much with Laura Beeks and is also our outstanding musician, Leonard Schmid, Ira Beasley, who though a new member has improved our Hall with furniture he has made, and many others who have not been mentioned before.
     Other active couples are Fred and Gertrude Wood, faithful workers in all they are asked to do -- she has been secretary for eighteen years. John and Alice Schmid, fifty year members this next March, have been very active since their children were old enough to stay home alone and she has probably held more offices than any other member, all since 1930: -- Flora for two years; Overseer -- three years; L.AS. -- five years; Lecturer -- Ten years; Secretary -- four years; Ex. Com. -- seven years; Master -- two years and secretary of West Klickitat Pomona Grange - twenty two years.
     Today, at the close of 1966, Trout Lake Grange is still active though its problems are the same as other Granges. Sale and closing of the local sawmill this year has taken Grange families away from the valley to live. Also the combining of farms to give a larger income has lost us members. Also this increased work for the dairy farmer keeps members so tired especially during the heavy irrigation season and having to be able to be out evenings. Also a good black topped highway connecting the valley with White Salmon and the Columbia River highways makes it too easy for our young people to drive out to more exciting places. Also the farm as a living is not as appealing as the better wages from less work and the farmers cannot pay the wages and that other businesses can, and of course there are always so many who are in the Grange for insurance only.
     Still our Trout Lake Grange is as well off as the average Grange, and we wish we had young members to take over especially in the floor work in the Literary Hour as well as in offices in committee work. The Grange still means a lot to us and we do the best we can. We have a good sized, easy to work in hall suitable for the activities of the community though we have given up holding public dances because of the undesirable ones who come. We especially enjoy the friends we make and the chance to be together and visit. These active members will keep on doing whatever they are able to do, to make Trout Lake Grange No. 210, a successful, pleasant meeting place for the benefit of the farmer and the community.

Written by Alice K. Schmid, Past Master
and Present Lecturer of the Trout Lake Grange.

HISTORY OF THE TROUT LAKE GRANGE #210
Source and author unknown

     A meeting was held in the Trout Lake Masonic Hall on November 7, 1907, for the purpose of organizing the Trout Lake Grange through the influence of William Coate and Charles Pearson, who were life-long members of the Grange, always taking an active part. Eighteen turned out for the first meeting; most all of whom were early settlers of the valley; one had been a slave as a young man. The first Master was a woman, Mrs. Emma Eirick; from then on for fifty years, all the Masters have been men. By the end of 1908 the Grange boasted 39 members, holding over the present officers. Having the Masonic Temple, which was a good meeting place, and somewhere to keep their property was one reason why the Trout Lake Grange has been so successful and a pleasure to all. In July, 1908 Emma Eirick resigned as Master and William Coate elected to finish out the year. Men and women officers worked very closely together for the success of the Grange through the years. Pot luck dinners were planned by the committee which was called the "Grub Committee". In 1914 the Trout Lake Grange put on the largest and best of all the fairs ever given in the valley, a fair and that is still a surprise to all who saw it. A high-light was a miniature Mt. Adams made of butter by Mrs. Herbert Clark. The southern part of the valley had by this time organized the Fairchance Grange, and the Trout Lake Grange asked them to hold joint installation of officers. The Grange did not work well together and they disbanded in 1916.
     About this time some of the new members of the Grange did not like the joint ownership of property with the Masonic Temple, so the property was all purchased by the Masons; so an ideal friendly arrangement was lost.
     In 1915 Trout Lake Grange members agreed to joining a Pomona Grange which was organized in 1917 with Trout Lake, Glenwood, Mt. View, Columbia, Tillicom, Wahkiacus with William Coate of Trout Lake Grange as first Master with the first meeting held at Lyle in the Columbia Grange.
     In 1927 Grange assumed work of cleaning the cemetery each year, and at this time the Artisans gave the cemetery to the Grange. Other work of the Trout Lake Grange was discussions on annexing West Klickitat county to Skamania; building its own Grange hall, worked unsuccessfully for many years for service by Pacific Power and Light; established a garbage dump, worked for signs on the road for every home and farm in the valley, established a herd law, put on many fairs; worked on a County Park in Trout Lake Valley; bangs disease sponsored; helped organize and sponsor a Fire District; worked for hospital, gave the Grange Hall for the use of youths, worked for County Agent to assist in 4-H Club work; worked for the Public Utility District, and in 1940 Trout Lake at last had electricity they could depend on; organized a Grange Co-op Store which went out of business in 1946.
     Another large project was buying our own Grange Hall in Trout Lake from the White Salmon Masonic Lodge, and the money was raised by any means possible. Finally in January, 1946. Hall was paid for and the deed received.
     Although Trout Lake is a rather small valley in the Mt. Adams foothills, and some of our members live in other places leaving only a few active members, the ones we do have worked hard and cooperated to make it a very successful Grange.

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