Oregon State Police and the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department are seeking the public's help in identifying the suspect(s) involved in the theft of two valuable bronze plaques stolen from separate locations in the Columbia River Gorge along the Historic Columbia River Highway.
On Sept. 1, 2006, Oregon State Parks Ranger aides discovered one of four bronze plaques had been removed and stolen from a large rock at the entrance to the Portland Women's Forum east of Corbett along the Historic Columbia River Highway.
The plaque appears to have been chiseled and cut from its mounting on the north side opposite from roadway traffic. Three other bronze plaques on the east, west, and south sides were not taken or damaged.
According to Robert W. Hadlow, senior historian for the Oregon Department of Transportation, the stolen bronze plaque (16" high x 24" wide) is "really a work of art that is part of a set."
In the early 1930s, friends of entrepreneur Samuel Hill honored him for spearheading construction of the Columbia River Highway by adorning a 50-ton basalt boulder moved from Rocky Butte Quarry to the Portland Women's Forum State Scenic Viewpoint. They commissioned Seattle sculptor Alonzo Victor Lewis to design several bas-reliefs for the rock, including three panels that depict Gorge history -- aboriginal life, Lewis & Clark, and transportation along the river before the highway. Lewis also designed a panel showing Hill's profile and the dedicatory panel that was stolen.
Shortly after the first discovery, the ranger aides found a second bronze plaque stolen.
This one was from the "Guy W. Talbot Memorial" located west of Latourell Falls. It appears unknown suspect(s) cut the plaque (23" high x 30" wide) from its four- (4) metal bolts drilled into the rock base.
Hill's friends intended to honor him for all his years of work to improve transportation in the Pacific Northwest. Unfortunately, he died suddenly in 1931. The rock and Lewis's bas-reliefs became a fitting memorial to the late good roads advocate.
Gus W. Talbot was a president of Pacific Power & Light Company. He and his wife donated the seed acreage for a park named in his honor. This popular recreation destination includes Latourell Falls along the historic highway.
"The state parks in the Columbia River gorge are as much a historic experience as a scenic one," said Dave Wright, assistant director for Operations with the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department. "This loss harms the state park system, and we need anyone who has information about the theft and current location of the plaques to contact the State Police immediately.
Anyone with information regarding these thefts are asked to contact Oregon State Police Northern Command Center dispatch at (800) 452-7888.
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