The Goldendale Sentinel, Goldendale, WA., April 11, 1963, page 4
Included portraits, one of which is titled:
GERHARD NEILS, who retired as sales manager of the J. Neils Lumber Company
division of St. Regis March 31, following a lifetime with the company, standing
in his office beside a picture of his father, the firm's founder. - Sentinel
photos.
KLICKITAT COUPLE TO TO BE HONORED BY COMMUNITY ON RETIREMENT AND REMOVAL FROM KLICKITAT
Gerhard F. Neils, long-time sales manager at the large
J. Neils lumber and timber operation, with plant located at Klickitat, and
a leader in community, county and state civic functions, has made a difficult
decision to retire and leave the county.
Gerhard F. Neils was born in Sauk Rapids, Minn. on March
22, 1898. The J. Neils Lumber Company was first organized at Sauk Rapids
and was moved to Cass Lake, Minnesota in 1900, so Gerhard went with his family,
when he was two, to make his home at Cass Lake until he was grown.
He received his grade school training at the local parochial
school and went on to Concordia College, in St. Paul, for his high school
work. From the time he was 14, his father put him to work for the company
during his summer vacations. He started as water boy, then advanced to tally
man for shop lumber, took inventory, towed rafts and barges on the lake,
sorted green lumber, and "did almost any kind of work" where he was needed.
Gerhard was the youngest of the four Neils sons, who went into business with
his father. In those days, his wage was 20 cents an hour for a ten-hour day
- and no extra pay for overtime.
In 1916, he entered the School of Business at the University
of Minnesota; but in the fall of 1918 he was elected for officers training
in the United States Army and served until he was discharged after the Armistice.
He went back to school and graduated in the spring of 1921.
Back at Cass Lake, he became timekeeper and was in charge
of retail trade. In the fall of 1922, he became sales manager and handled
the sales of about 40 million feet of Norway, white and jack pine.
In 1922, J. Neils purchased the Klickitat operation in
anticipation of closing the Cass Lake mill in 1923 . Gerhard remained at
Cass Lake until all the lumber was sold and then moved to Klickitat in November,
1924, taking over the important position as sales manager, which he has held,
without interruption, until his retirement. Many of the Cass Lake employees
and their families also moved to Klickitat and some of them are still employed
in the operation.
The community of Klickitat, in 1924, had most of the
aspects of a frontier town. It had a few houses and a boarding house. In
1924, another boarding house was added and, progressively, over the years,
houses were added, streets improved, and utilities bettered - until now it
is one of the nicest small communities of its type anywhere.
In 1927 disaster struck with fire at the sawmill. The
sawmill and planer were rebuilt and behind the steady improvements. Gerhard
had considerable influence in guiding the operation effort and design for
the objectives of quality of product, quality of service and over-all reputation
of the company for the end objective of customer satisfaction. These long-range
objectives and achievements have been a great contributing factor in the
success of the Klickitat operation.
In 1931 a box factory was started to utilize low-grade
lumber in the manufacture of fruit boxes. To keep pace with customer satisfaction
and operating efficiency, Gerhard - in 1956 - developed the plan for the
new equipment and production line in the planing mill, which today is considered
one of the industry's best.
Gerhard Neils has consistently sold the production of
the plant with far-sighted policies and guidance. His retirement will be
regretted by his associates and his personal customer friends. He is well
known in the lumber industry throughout the states from his many sales trips
and his close daily participation in the lumber business.
The good wishes of the Klickitat -- Camp Draper J. Neils
communities - and the county - are extended to this friend and leader of
Klickitat county. Long-time friends of Gerhard and Selma Neils are invited
to a farewell open house, to be held at the Klickitat High School gymnasium,
Friday, April 19, from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. The Neils' will make their
new residence in Oswego and Neskowin, Ore.
On rare occasions, a woman comes along who has a
fore-sighted, creative approach to living, which is combined with the required
persistence and energies that develop worthy causes and historical permanence
and whose benefits are available to everyone and forever lasting. Selma Neils
has been doing just this since 1924, on arrival in Klickitat County.
When asked what had been some of her more important
activities since her arrival in that community in 1924, Mrs. Neils, whose
husband recently retired from J. Neils Lumber Company as sales manager, replied,
"Oh, just say I graduated from the University of Minnesota, married, had
three children and had ten grandchildren."
Residents of Klickitat County know that Selma's scarcity
of words hide a long list of community contributions which the townspeople
will long remember.
After she graduated in economics and started working
on her master's degree, Gerhard persuaded her to take an MRS, instead of
an M.S., and brought her to Klickitat - a town without a church or high school;
its grade school consisted of two rooms and was staffed by two teachers.
In the late 20s, the PTA was organized, with Mrs. Neils'
help, and she served as its third president. At the last meeting of the PTA,
she was honored for her long service by being presented with an inscribed
gold charm for her charm bracelet and by being the principal in a humorous
"kangaroo court" skit in which she was charged with the many improvements
Klickitat had gained under her guidance. In atonement for these charges,
she donated her refrigerator to the school that same evening.
It was during her term as president of the PTA that the
senior banquets were started to honor seniors and their parents. This is
an event ranking second to graduation in the school and the community.
Educational interests have priority in the Neils family
and Selma is proudest of the 15 years she served on the school board. Many
things transpired while she served in this capacity, a partial list being
the start of a library, remodeling of the school building, black-topping
the play area of the school, painting of the school with volunteer labor,
and land-scaping the grounds.
Mr. and Mrs. Neils' interest in education continues to
be active and they have helped many deserving Klickitat high school graduates
through college.
In 1929, the women of Klickitat met at the Neils home
and formed the Klickitat County Women's Club, with Miss Laura Soaper and
Elise Creceluis helping in its organization. The Women's Club has accomplished
many worthwhile community works, from completely furnishing the kitchen in
the gymnasium after the gym was built in 1936, to arranging the first rock
display in the area at their Hobby Show. Their most recent project was their
Klickitat Women's Cook Book, which was printed and sold in December, attaining
a wide distribution.
Selma's mail project, through the Women's Club, has been
her establishment, in 1936, of a reading program throughout the country.
This program is directed by the extension division of WSU, with ESO credit
given under the National Women's Federation Program.
In connection with the reading program, the club has
donated over $500 in books to county libraries.
Mrs. Neils organized the Community Betterment Program
under the auspices of the Women's Club. Some of the Betterment Program's
projects have been the Christmas lighting contest, the Community Christmas
tree and carol singing, care of the athletic field, summer recreation, a
swimming program, volunteer help for outdoor recreation, summer pageant,
summer baseball, volleyball, painting instruction, and summer speed-reading
courses.
Grace Lutheran Church and the pastor's home were built
after the Neils came to Klickitat, and the couple were actively engaged in
the planning. Mrs. Neils was president of the Ladies Aid three different
times; taught in the Sunday School and summer Bible School, having organized
the latter when the community was without a Pastor. Under the sponsorship
of the Lutheran Institute for the Blind, Mrs. Neils organized a Braille class
to help copy Sunday School material to forward to the blind.
The Red Cross Bloodmobile originally started coming to
Klickitat after a serious illness of Selma's necessitated numerous transfusions.
After recovery, she encouraged the community to join the Red Cross Blood
Program and, through her efforts and those of the Union, Ruben Libke and
Dr. John Reynolds, then of The Dalles, the program was established in Klickitat.
Mrs. Neils has been an active Red Cross worker, especially
during the depression when she helped sew dresses, make quilts and knit.
The wooden buttons for the clothing were made by their son, Gerhard Neils
Jr..
The Klickitat County Women's Republican Club was another
of Mrs. Neils' project and she also served as Republican State Committeewoman
for many years.
The Historical Society, of Goldendale, is indebted to
the Neils for their help toward establishing the museum in that city. The
Klickitat Room in the building has just been wallpapered with an authentic
paper of the early 1900s, chosen by Mrs. Neils during a trip to San Francisco,
and she has donated many objects to the museum. She is currently organizing
a white elephant sale of items taken from the Neils home. The sale was held
on April 10, at 1:30 p.m., at the home of Mrs. Hugo Larsen, for the benefit
of the Women's Club Scholarship and the Historical Society.
After April, Selma and Gerhard will alternate their residence
between Oswego and Neskowin, Oregon. Although leaving the county, they will
continue to be considered first citizens of Klickitat County
The Goldendale Sentinel, Goldendale, WA., April 25, 1963, page 6
G.F. NEILS FAREWELL EVENT GATHERES 400 AT KLICKITAT
KLICKITAT (Special) - That Klickitat school gym was bright
with colors of spring flowers, evergreen trees, a mural of the mill complete
with a lumberjack on the pond and the shay engine and white trash cans
resplendent with large pink flowers on them, when over 400 relatives and
friends gathered Friday, April 19, to bid Auf Wiedersehen to Gerhard and
Selma Neils.
The open house, given by St. Regis, brought back fond
memories for the older as well as the younger generation, who have worked
beside and played beside G.F. and Selma, and watched Klickitat develop from
virtually a frontier town to one of the more modern mill towns of the west.
Bobby Kasnick's orchestra from The Dalles played from
7 to 9 p.m. for dancing. They also accompanied the soloists, Roberta Jeffreies
of Portland, and Wesley Boardman of Camp Draper, and played for the community
sing, which was a part of the program. Carol Bales and Richard Miner led
the singing with the exception of the German numbers sung, which were ably
led by Hugo Schmidt and G.F. Neils Jr.
Two of the numbers sung were given new words more fitting
to the occasion by Mrs. Paul Wonderly and could be called, "St. Regis has
a rule, you know," and "There'll be a hot time in Klickitat tonight."
Bob Graeme's Dip and Dive Square Dance Club, junior and
senior members, presented a couple dances for the enjoyment of those present.
Paul Wonderly, resident manager, was master of ceremonies.
After short talks by Mr. and Mrs. Neils, at the close of the evening, Carol
Bales on behalf of the office personnel from Klickitat and Glenwood and the
foreman, presented G.F. with a wind gauge, and Mrs. Ada Hall presented Selma
with a silver charm bracelet from local women's groups with which she had
been associated.
Refreshments of coffee, punch and cake were served from
a table centered with an arrangement of blue, white and yellow flowers and
a large sheet cake with an outline map of Washington and Oregon with the
names of the Neils present Klickitat and future Lake Oswego and Neskowin
homes marked by a small shay engine, motor boat and golfing equipment.
That guest book was signed by friends from Portland,
Goldendale, Lake Oswego, Glenwood, The Dalles, Centerville, Lyle, Miles City,
Montana, Seattle, Bend, Ore., Hood River, White Salmon and Laurel.
A few of the out of town guests included Mr. and Mrs.
Walt Rathert, Mr. and Mrs. Paul Neils, Miss Anna Neils, Mrs. Roberta Jefferies,
all of Portland; Hugo Schmidt of Boulder City, Nevada; Clem Ulbricht, Lake
Oswego; Mr. and Mrs. Walter Neils of Libby, Montana; Mr. and Mrs. Jerry Neils,
Mr. and Mrs. Willie Taraha, Mr. and Mrs. Jack Grubb, Mr. and Mrs. Elmer Lofgren,
Mr. and Mrs. Tye Murray, Mr. and Mrs. Conboy, all of Glenwood.
Mr. and Mrs. Bill Ownby, Mr. and Mrs. Clarence Phillips,
Archie Radcliffe, Mr. and Mrs. Charlie Wilson, Mayor and Mrs. George Nesbitt,
Mr. and Mrs. Lowell Johnson, Dr. and Mrs. G.J. Timmer, Bill Radke, Mr. and
Mrs. Howard Bratton, Mr. and Mrs. George Klein, Mrs. Pete May, Mr. and Mrs.
Harold Fariello, Mr. and Mrs. Don Bridgefarmer, all of Goldendale; Mr. and
Mrs. Henry Miller, Centerville; Mr. and Mrs. Hubert Warner and John Tobin.
Commented by many were the decorated pine trees featured
throughout the hall, bright with colorful "blossoms" at branch tip.
[HOME]
© Jeffrey L. Elmer