V8 N3 Fall 1980 Landing at The Dalles, Oregon, Circa 1987

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REVIEW FALL 1980

VOL. 8

16TH & EXCHANGE STREET, ASTORIA, OREGON 97103

N0.3

LANDING AT THE DALLES, OREGON, CIRCA 1897 Judge Fred W. Wilson, a notable steamboat buff and resident of The Dalles, wrote of that place, "In every essential it was a river town. Men talked steamboats; they lived with them; the coming and going of the boats were the crowning activities of the day; the captains and the engineers, the pilots, mates and pursers were the best known men about the town. When evening came and the steamer's whistle was heard . . . the most interesting hour of the twenty-four had come. As the passengers reached the Umatilla House, . . . , the townsfolk gathered; old friendships were renewed, new acquaintances quickly made, the news and gossip of the outside world told to eager listeners." Here, something of this atmosphere is captured as passengers are seen debarking from the famous Bailey Cat-

zert around 1897. For a fare of $1.00 she used to provide excursion service, departing Portland at 8:00 a.m. with arrival at The Dalles at 3:00 p.m. and return to Portland at 9:30 the same evening. To the right of the photograph is the Western Queen, a 94-ton side-wheel ferry built at The Dalles in 1877 and replaced in 1898. At the extreme left are seen stacks of cordwood fuel for the river steamers. The Bailey Gatzert was built in 1890 for Puget Sound service, but was transferred to the Columbia River in 1892. She was drastically rebuilt in 1907, becoming virtually a completely different vessel. She was returned to Puget Sound in 1917 and converted to an automobile ferry. In 1926 she was laid up on Lake Union and used as a floating machine shop.


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