Flora, Oregon--ghost town

Stella and I were recently in Enterprise, Oregon visiting Stella's mom and some of her family. One of the things we wanted to do was visit Flora, a "town" about 40 miles North of Enterprise and about ten miles from the Washington border. My brother, Roger, joined with us for that little expedition to explore the area where my Grandma Jessie Shumate (Botts) grew up with her parents and seven siblings. The last time we were there was when my family went there in 1964 to visit my Uncle George, who was still living in the old family home. The town wasn't much then, and is even less now. In fact, after the post office shut down in 1966, the town became un-incorporated. It is officially a ghost town now. Anyway, the purpose of our expedition was to see what was left of the town, see if we could find where the Botts homestead was, and check out the cemetery for grave sites of ancestors.


On the way to Flora, there was a beautiful viewpoint of Joseph Canyon. I would guess the canyon is 2000 feet deep and was the winter home of Chief Joseph. He would go down into the canyon every winter, where it was warmer. He couldn't figure out why the homesteaders would stay up on the plateau in the winter, where it was so cold. The homesteaders, in turn, couldn't figure out where the Indians went every winter. This photo in no way shows the grandeur of the canyon. I dislike the word "awesome," so I will say that it was awe-inspiring.


The first thing that Roger, Stella, & I did was to visit the cemetery. The Flora Cemetery is overgrown with all sorts of vegetation, and is very small, about the size of a football field. It was established in 1891 when a frontiersman donated a corner of his homestead for the cemetery.




















These are the headstones of my great-grandfather and great- grandmother. It was quite a reverent feeling to be at the graves of so many of my ancestors. To think of what they went through was very humbling. It was a good feeling to know that their temple work has been done and that I will one day have the opportunity to personally thank them for their lives.


After the cemetery, we went on the hunt for Uncle George's place. We went down some little dirt roads that seemed to go nowhere. Actually, we were in the middle of nowhere, which explains roads going nowhere. The old homestead was not where we thought it was, but I'm guessing it collapsed some time ago. However, we did find the Lost Prairie School (pictured above). It was built in 1910 and opened with a total of six students! The building off to the left is the wood shed. We found many similar one-room school buildings out in the middle of obscure fields. Most, like this one, had metal roofs on them and are now being used as storage buildings by the owners of their property.

We then went back to Flora to "take in the sights." Here are a few of them.

The Flora (Methodist) Church. It was built in 1896

A couple of old houses located on what used to be Main Street

1908 Blacksmith shop of Durwood Conley (the husband of my grandmother's sister)

It was quite a unique experience to go to a place which remains pretty much the same as when my ancestors lived there. It helped me to appreciate their lives just a little bit more and the legacy they left. I hated to leave there, but at least I have the knowledge that if I travel there again, the town will pretty much be the same.

Enterprise, Oregon

We just got back from spending a week away from home. One of the places we went to was Enterprise, Oregon, which is located in the very Northeastern corner of Oregon, to visit Stella's mom and PJ and Shawna (Stella's niece) and their family. Enterprise is a beautiful town located at the foot of the Wallowa Mountains. There would be worse things than to wake up to this view every day.


We got there in the evening and were having a barbecue on their back deck when dark clouds started to roll in. Fast! In a few minutes it was raining in a way that it doesn't rain in Tacoma, and we had the added pleasure of lightning and thunder. It was beautiful. And powerful. It makes me think of the power of God who creates all of those things. Shawna and PJ are wonderful hosts and we are grateful for the generosity of them and their children. It is also more fun to visit Enterprise than Wendell, Idaho, which is where they lived before.

The next day we went to Wallowa Lake, which is also beautiful. We rented a pontoon boat and explored the lake. It was fun and nobody fell overboard.


OK, so we look kinda weird or bored, but we were having a wonderful time. Honest.


Because of the large amount of snowfall this past winter (it snowed last month), and the hot weather, the Wallowa River, which feeds the lake, was near overflowing. In fact, some of the campgrounds were flooded. We are planning on having a family reunion here next year, which promises to be a lot of fun. There is a tram which goes 3700' up the side of a mountain. It is said to be the steepest in the nation. I honestly want to try that one out.

On the way to Wallowa Lake, we went through the town of Joseph. It is a little bit touristy, but in a tasteful sort of way (?). We had a nice lunch at a 60's diner and checked out most of the stores. The town has a western feel and is known for its bronze sculptures. I am not a great fan of western art, but I thought these were impressive.