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100 years ago

March 24, 1921 — Facial Stubbles Fierce With Madras Barberless

Madras men all last week faced a barber shortage — faced it with growing fierceness of facial stubble, according to the Madras Pioneer. Tom Jones is confined to his room, number seven at the Fisher hotel and is suffering from inflammatory rheumatism. Joe Truitt is the only other person in Madras with knowledge of the tonsorial art. He is suffering from grippe and is in the Fisher hotel’s room number six.

75 years ago

March 28, 1946 — Need for Gardens Important to 4-H

Four-H Club food production projects are just as important in keeping peace as they were in helping the war effort, it is pointed out by LeRoy Warner, assistant Deschutes county agent.

Enough food to feed three million fighting men has been produced by 4-H club boys and girls in the United States since Pearl Harbor, according to statistics compiled by the extension service, he said.

Today, millions of people in the war-torn countries of the world are depending on the United States to keep them from starvation. Four-H Club boys and girls can have a part in helping these people by producing food for the home front and, therefore, releasing more food for overseas shipment. Warner covered briefly, as follows, some of the high points in planning a garden for this spring.

“Probably the best food producing project is the home garden. Garden time is here and garden plans should be made and the ground prepared.

“The size of the garden should be adjusted to the size of the family and the facilities available for preserving the garden produce.

“The garden spot should be carefully chosen and well worked as soon as possible. A piece of ground that was sown to a cover crop last fall will produce the best garden. This cover crop should be turned under two or three weeks before planting time.

“Where stable manure is available, apply at a rate of five or more wheelbarrow loads per square rod. Sheep or poultry manure should be applied in somewhat smaller quantities.

“Complete fertilizer, 6-10-4, should be broadcast at the rate of four to six pounds per square rod when the soil is being prepared.

“Swiss chard, lettuce, broccoli, peas, onions, and rhubarb may be planted between April 1 and April 15.

“The 4-H garden project provides an excellent opportunity for boys and girls to make a real contribution to their family and their country. The garden is a dependable source of a very important part of the diet, and releases more food for shipment to war torn countries.”

50 years ago

March 24, 1971 — Employment office opens first area satellite

Redmond has a new full-time, year-round State Employment Division office, the first of several satellites to the Bend headquarters planned for the Central Oregon area.

Ron J. Ewing, tri-county area employment division manager, announced that the new office, located at 344 S. Seventh St., “will support an extensive program in serving the local and rural areas in job development, job placement, applicant registration and services to employers.”

Initially unemployment claims will continue to be handled out of the Bend office, and unemployment beneficiaries will be required to report every two weeks to the Bend office. Eventually this service for Redmond area residents also will be transferred here, Ewing said.

Opening of the Redmond office, which probably will be joined later by satellite facilities in Sisters, LaPine, Prineville and Dayville, is part of a new concept in rural outreach.

Originated in Iowa and currently being developed in Idaho, South Dakota and Nevada, the Central Oregon program represents the first effort in this state. It is designed to speed delivery of services and offer extended placement opportunities to the rural areas as well as metropolitan centers that have been receiving such services for some time.

Emphasis will be placed on helping the disadvantaged, Ewing emphasized. This will include the economically deprived, the handicapped, those who need retraining to compensate for outdated job skills and the underemployed.

Greater emphasis will be placed on home visits and telephone contact and closer coordination with other state and federal agencies, including the Veterans Administration, Department of Public Welfare and Vocational Rehabilitation.

Ewing also stressed that better service would be provided to the small employers in small communities who need personnel. “We have felt for a long time that Redmond needed a year-round employment office,” he said.

Bruce R. Long, manpower specialist with the Employment Service, is manager of the Redmond office, assisted by Mrs. Beverly Routen as secretary.

Long, who has been working in the Bend office for 18 months, previously was in the insurance business. The native of the Rogue River Valley came to Central Oregon two years ago. His wife, Bettie, is secretary to the Deschutes County Commission. They have five children, Bill, Linda, Pamela, Christina and Victoria.

25 years ago

March 27, 1996 — Storyteller inspires students

No one at Evergreen Elementary School is surprised to see students walking to bus lines with their noses stuffed in a book. Nor are they surprised at students who read aloud in their best imitation of an Eastern Oregon cowboy’s drawl.

Author Rick Steber affects his audience that way.

Steber has written more than a dozen books on Oregon history, including “Campfire Stories” and “Roundup.”

On Friday, he visited Evergreen to share his views on what it’s like to be a writer and the wisdom of the 5,000 old-timers he’s interviewed.

For instance, he said, the Oregon trail wasn’t really a trail at all for most of the route. It was just a vague direction of giant landmarks like Chimney Rock to guide travelers along their way.

He knows that fact for sure because he put on a backpack himself and hiked 500 miles on the Oregon Trail to verify it.

That personal experience was part of what won over fans like 11-year-old Aleah Glidewell.

“I liked it most when he talked about going on the Oregon Trail,” she said. “My favorite part was when he told about seeing the grave of an 8-year-old girl and how it made him cry and made him really realize what the trail was about.”

Matt Fladwood, 10, said he learned “stuff on the Big Blue River — a topic I’m studying.”

And Matt was relieved to know it took Steber more than 10 years to write one of his books. Matt has 50 pages of his own book written and isn’t sure yet how close he is to being done.

In addition to talking to classes, Steber autographed books for Evergreen students.

For Matt, that was “pretty neat,” he said. “I’ve had baseball cards signed before, but this was my first book.”