TOLD by the PIONEERS - Washington Secretary of State

Told by the Pioneers
R. D. RHODES
Recounts Damage Done to Oystet's
Pacific County •
In November, 1875, the Bay experienced one of the worst south
storms ever known. It was a humdinger. I was just 10 years old,
yet I remember it as well as though it had occurred yesterday. It
played havoc with the oyster beds. Then six months later, in June,
1876, we had the Columbia River flood and that seemed to put the
finishing touches to the job. The flood waters of the Columbia rushed
down in one immense volume close to the North Head, following up
along the beach and came right into Shoalwater Bay, and this water
was almost fresh enough to drink. Then, on top of that, came the
"eel grass," which would reach a length of 10 to 15 feet and grew so
dense and thick it made navigation on the Shoalwater oyster beds almost
impossible. The fresh water and eel grass combined w~re too
much for the oysters, which got poorer and poorer. They just seemed
to starve to death, which they did by the thousands of bushels, and by
1879 oystermen were pretty scarce on the bay. Some went to raising
cattle. Others moved to the Columbia river and, of course, fished,
while others left for other places. About 1880 the oysters seemed to
get a new grip on life and what few were still alive spawned profusely
and by 1884 we had oysters again on the market.
FOREST FIRES
Some of the most spectacular, and terrifying, sights that our early
pioneers on the west side of the Cascades had to witness were the forest
fires. Starting from some careless source or from lightning, these
fires grew until they covered great areas like the settling of darkness.
They leaped to the pitchy tops of the evergreens, creating their own
draft and wind then traveled at a swift rate, scattering new embers
far ahead of the fire, itself. The heat was so intense that neither animal
nor vegetable life could survive in close proximity. Smoke was
so dense the sun was obscured for weeks in the summer. The greatest
loss, of course, was the timber that was destroyed, although the pio­
Heel'S, themselves, thought the supply was inexhaustible and of little
value unless close to the water.
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