Firemen used methods a la 1900 to put out a pesky fire on an island near Powerdale here early Sunday, Sept. 6. The alarm came in on a brush fire about 12:30 a.m., and it was nearly 3 a.m. before the fire had finally been controlled. Water was not immediately accessible in the brush fire area, so the firefighters packed Indian packs to help spray it, and used shovels and dirt to help douse the flames. There was no monetary damage listed — only lost sack time for the firemen. It was believed that a resident of the hobo jungle started the brush fire, and slept through the whole thing.
— Hood River News, September 17, 1964
Old Antelope snubs name change
RAJNEESH, Ore. (UPI) — None of the people living in Antelope before the Rajneeshees came in and took over the city government attended the ceremony Wednesday that marked the change of the hamlet’s name to Rajneesh.
Frances Dickson, former Antelope city official, said she and her husband Bill are planning to move to the family farm outside the city. She predicts that all of the six non-Rajneeshee families will be leaving the town shortly.
“We thought it would happen sooner or later,” she said of the name change, “about the time they changed our street names.”
The change from Antelope, the name it had since the turn of the century, to Rajneesh passed by a 57-22 vote on Tuesday.
— The Dalles Daily Chronicle, Sept. 20, 1984
Newspaper takes top award
The Enterprise received a first place general excellence award — topping other candidates across the state — in Group II of the Better Newspaper Contest sponsored by the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association.
The announcement came at the Vance Tyee Motor Inn in Olympia over the weekend. One first place plaque is given in each of the state’s four circulation groups. The Enterprise competed with newspapers from throughout the state with circulations of 2,251 to 3,500.
A trio of judges reviewed all newspapers within each circulation group on a scale of 0 to 100 in each of five categories — design (all pages), advertising, news coverage (community events), photos and graphics, and opinions.
The Enterprise topped the list of candidates with 431 points out of a possible 500. Second place went to the Topenish Review.
— White Salmon Enterprise, September 20, 1984
County flag design finalized
Wasco county now has an official flag, just in time for the observance of its 150th anniversary celebration. J.J. Despain was a junior at The Dalles High School in March when his flag design was chosen from those entered in a design competition.
Since then, Wasco County Operations Manager Fred Davis has been working with Elmer’s Flag and Banner of Portland, a leading flag manufacturer, to refine the design for manufacturing requirements.
Davis translated the original design into a line drawing, then added color specifications. The final proof of the six-color flag is seen below.
The design will now go to a production company that will print the design on nylon flag stock using acid inks.
The county hopes to have a finished flag ready for its Oct. 5 open house in conjunction with Historic The Dalles Days. Flags will ultimately be available for purchase.
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