Wishram celebrates 100 years

Kenny Ratliff of Wishram discovered the landmark date a few years ago, said Dee Gabbert Dillon, one of its organizers. She said she’s been trying to get a celebration going ever since.

“Tye Ross in Goldendale, whose family is the original Bunn family, jumped on board to help with everything,” Dillon said. “Now we have a band and a beer garden.”

The old railroad town has been around longer than 100 years.

In 1908, the SPS Railroad chose the location on the Columbia River for a major railroad terminal. It was first named Fallbridge for the location near Celilo Falls and the rail bridge. Later the name was changed to Wishram to honor the Native American tribe in the area.

At one time, Wishram was a major hub for the SPS Railroad. It included a roundhouse, a lunchroom called The Beanery, three hotels for the crews and the depot. Trains ran 24 hours a day. The location allowed trains to be made up and switched out for trips up the Oregon trunk, Vancouver, Spokane and Pasco.

In 1911, George Bunn opened the first store, and later a tavern called the Pastime and a small restaurant called the Caboose.

“It’s still very much a company town,” Gabbert said. “Everything to the southern side was all railroad property where only railroad employees could live. The northern part of town was pretty much Bunn property.”

Bunn also expanded the amount of housing available to railroad employees and others.

SPS Railroad was once the busiest railroad in the Pacific Northwest. A new giant, Burlington Northern, was later born, merging SPS, Great Northern and Northern Pacific. Burlington Northern has since merged with the Santa Fe railroad to become BNSF.

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