Lyman's History of old Walla Walla County, Vol. 1 / Embracing Walla Walla, Columbia, Garfield and Asotin counties

by William Denison Lyman

MAIN STREET, ASOTIN

VIEW OF ASOTIN, LOOKING EAST

Another presidential year, of still more momentous issues and dramatic surprises comes in with 1916, the year in which the whole world was reeling with the most insane war ever recorded, and of which it is evident that the United States must be the ultimate arbiter. We find in Asotin County in that election 2,506 votes. We find also some changes in voting precincts. They appear thus: Alpowa, Anatone, Asotin, Bly, Clarkston, Cloverland, Grande Ronde, Grouse, Hanson, Pleasant, South Clarkston, Theon, West Asotin, West Clarkston. The total votes of the three Clarkston precincts was 1,237, with one voter reported absent. That of the two Asotin precincts was 519, with three absent. The prohibition question again came to the fore with several measures designed to impair the law passed in 1914. On Initiative No. 24, one of those measures, the vote was 314 for to 1,572 against. It may be added that the negative vote in the state on that measure (allowing manufacture and sale of beer), as well as the others of the same character, was so overwhelming, 100,000 or more, that it was hardly worth while to count it.

The national results of the election were: For the Wilson electors, 1,136; for the Hughes electors, 1,004; for Poindexter, republican, as senator, 983 to 926 for Turner, democrat; for La Follette, republican for congressman, 1,142 to 819 for Masterson; McBride, republican for governor, 927 to 1,182 for Lister, democrat. E. V. Kuykendall, republican for joint senator, had 1,170 to 882 for Thomson, democrat. E. E. Halsey again went to the lower House of the Legislature, his fifth successive election. The local officers were: F. M. Halsey, sheriff; Homer L. Post, attorney; E. R. Downen, assessor; A. A. Alvord; superintendent of schools; P. P. Oehler, engineer; G. A. Fraser, treasurer; Lillie Ausman, auditor; J. W. Stephens, clerk; C. Shumaker, J. K. McIntosh, commissioners.

MISCELLANEOUS HAPPENINGS

Turning from the record of political events to what may be denominated the miscellaneous happenings of the county history, we may note that Asotin has had its full share. The beautiful creek that now furnishes the water for several thousand acres of the great Clarkston project, a stream of much picturesque beauty as it makes its way, swiftly indeed, but with apparent serenity and general decorum through the lower end of the town into Snake River, has taken the liberty on several occasions to gather up reinforcements from the plains through which its tributaries have worn their way, and has come sweeping down the steep declivities in torrents that threatened to tear out everything in its course. It is quite well under control now, due to the extensive impounding and distribution processes of the irrigation system, but formerly in case of sudden rain or Chinook winds, the vast amount of surface from which the water must drain through the single channel might transform it in a few hours from a bright pellucid mountain creek into a veritable river of turbid torrents. The most famous floods were those of 1887, 1894, and 1897. That of 1894 was the greatest in a general way in the Columbia and Snake and all their tributaries ever known by white men, and according to Indians has not been equaled for many years, possibly several centuries. Nearly the whole of the lower part of Asotin was covered and the road between Asotin and Clarkston was under water in numerous places. So far as destruction from the creek was concerned, however, the flood of May 20, 1897, was the most disastrous of any. This was due to a cloud burst covering most of the upper sources of the creek. Since there was but a gentle rain at Asotin there was no conception of what was impending from above, until the roaring of the torrent heralded its approach. For a distance of fifteen miles the bed of the stream was swept clean. All the bridges were carried out and many of the houses, gardens, and other property destroyed.

Mr. Baumeister points out in his beautiful yard, with its stone wall ten feet high on the creek margin, how the water rose high above the top of the wall. Considering the irresistible force of a column of water fifteen or eighteen feet high rushing down that steep descent and considering the destruction of property it seems strange indeed that there were no human lives lost. It seems to have been by a series of fortunate happenings that those in peril were in positions to save themselves. The schoolhouse in the Hopwood District was swept away, but the teacher, hearing the tumult, had led the children to the hillside just in time.

The most notable fires in the history of Asotin Town were on February 3, 1886, in which the Pioneer Hotel belonging to Mrs. Lile was destroyed, and that of March 15, 1893, in which the City Hotel, belonging to Mrs. Myers, was burned. The feature of the second fire which gave it great notoriety was that a man named Frank Sherry perished in the flames. It appeared that Charles E. Myers, the husband of the woman who conducted the hotel, but who had been separated from her, had been found not guilty of killing a man some years before as result of difficulty about his first wife. The sentiment upon the discovery of the death of Sherry became intense in the town and it was reported to officers that there was a plan for lynching Myers, who had become charged with having fired the hotel in order to punish his wife and a man of whom he was jealous. The Sentinel, in speaking of the event in its issue of March 31st, declares that the reports of purposed lynching are exaggerated and that the people of the place have no other thought than a fair trial. As a matter of fact, Myers was conveyed to Dayton. He was subsequently tried for murder. The case was remarkable in that it was appealed twice to the Supreme Court and on the first appeal was retried. The verdict of guilty was affirmed in both cases. Petitions for pardon were sent to Gov. John H. McGraw, but he declined to stop the course of judicial decision, and Myers, without at any time having confessed the crime, was executed on September 30, 1895, two and a half years after the alleged crime. The execution took place at Pomeroy, and in accordance with the barbarous and horrible law then prevailing was public, and it is stated that hundreds of men, women and children were present.