Doing Oregon, one courthouse at a time

Our youngest son, Nathan is visiting the 37 courthouses in Oregon with the intent to create a book.

He received his bachelor and master degrees from the University of Oregon.

For the past 25 years he has been teaching at a private school in Portland.

He proposed getting a sabbatical from teaching to do the book and was granted a leave.

Nathan got the idea after stopping by and taking photos of the courthouse in Davenport.

All of his active life as far back as high school, he has had something to do with photography.

When I was involved with a Seahawk publication, Nathan was our photographer.

Anyhow, after he was granted the leave to do the book, he talked with his brother Paul, and the two decided to travel together to visit the courthouses. Paul would drive and Nathan would be free to take the photos and talk with officials at the courthouses.

Their first leg of the task is just finished, and about a dozen of the 37 places have been done.

Another dozen have been scheduled, and they will soon be on their way again.

The first trip put 1,500 miles on their vehicle and it snowed on them almost every day.

It should be better this time.

County courthouses are usually associated with the history of the area.

A few of them on the first trip were relatively new because of seismic damage, so the buildings were modern looking.

Probably the toughest part of the project is getting access.

Usually, when they understand the project, the county officials are supportive, Nathan says.

The plan is to organize a third trip to complete the visits.

So I get to travel the state with them without leaving home.

I have traveled Oregon north south and east and west, but still haven’t been to all the places they will be going.

While living in Bothell, I was invited to fly to a resort in the making near Bend. About eight reporters went, and I know it was thought we would write about the opening.

Years later, my wife and I found ourselves near Prairie City on a fire crew with OK Cascade. We were there for 20 days.

While Nathan was at Eugene at university my wife and I would visit him and do the route down the Oregon Coast.  We stayed at Newport so we could visit a beach where we often found agates. On one occasion, after eating at a favorite restaurant there, I felt ill and went outside for fresh air. When the family came out, I was sprawled on the sidewalk and firemen were working on me. I apparently had passed out.

I remember when we were returning to Palouse in the wintertime after my father had passed, my car slid off the road near LaGrande, and I had to work hard to get it back on the road.

Not all my ventures in Oregon were bad, just a few.

While writing for the Statesman, I traveled to Vale a couple of times. Then Vale won the state football title for their size schools. I would drive to Vale, about 75 miles from Boise, and after the game put the pedal to the metal in order to get back before deadline to write my story.

So, I am hopeful the boys will not have too many miscues to contend with as they complete their visits to the courthouses.