Astorians, Eccentric and Extraordinary

by Kirtley, Karen

• ISBN13: 9780870716324
• ISBN10: 0870716328
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-11-30
• Publisher: Oregon State Univ Pr

Summary

In 1993, the New Yorker published Calvin Trillin's memorable article on the eccentric Flavel family of Astoria, the descendants of Captain George Flavel, whose ornate Queen-Anne-style mansion is a tourist draw today. With Trillin's gracious consent, "First Family of Astoria" is reprinted in Part One ofAstorians, Eccentric and Extraordinary,making its first appearance in book form.Part Two carries on the theme with portraits of fifty-five other notable Astorians. Five Oregon writers have captured the essence and the flavor of vivid personalities that include the notorious shanghaier Bridget Grant; the charming scoundrel Mayor Francis Clay Harley; the elusive English "barmaid" Jane Barnes, the first white woman in the Pacific Northwest; and Rolf Klep, who believed he could create a major maritime museum in an economically depressed town--and made it happen.In biology, it is said that the richest life forms reside at the edge of the ecosystem. Astoria epitomizes edges--the edge of the country, the edge of a great river, the edge of the Pacific Ocean, and the edge of our American culture. This book celebrates the larger-than-life quality that has appeared with regularity in the town's two-hundred-year history. As Steve Forrester, publisher of theDaily Astorian,notes in the book's introduction: "Extraordinary people are not necessarily eccentric. But eccentrics are driven to do extraordinary things." Contributors include M. J. Cody, Amy Hoffman Couture, John E. Goodenberger, Nancy Ricker Hoffman, Liisa Penner, and Calvin Trillin.

Table of Contents

Introduction	p. 7
The Magnificent Flavels	p. 11
First Family of Astoria
Other Notable Astorians	p. 45
Coboway	p. 45
Donald McTavish	p. 52
Jane Barnes	p. 55
Robert Shortess	p. 59
John McClure	p. 63
Alexander Lattie	p. 66
John Shively	p. 69
Solomon and Celiast Smith	p. 72
Truman Powers	p. 75
William H. Gray	p. 77
Cyrus Olney	p. 81
Jennie Michel	p. 84
Adam Van Dusen	p. 88
J. G. Hustler	p. 91
P. W. Gillette	p. 95
Bridget Grant	p. 98
Cleveland Rockwell	p. 102
Charlotte Smith	p. 107
Marshall J. Kinney	p. 109
Alfred Kinney	p. 112
Narcissa Kinney	p. 114
Charles William Fulton	p. 115
August Erickson	p. 118
Jack Williams	p. 121
Frank I. Dunbar	p. 123
Herman Wise	p. 126
John A. Buchanan	p. 128
Minnie Hill	p. 130
Joseph Riippa	p. 132
Rose Ingleton	p. 134
Melville T. Wire	p. 136
Maria Raunio	p. 138
Polly McKean Bell	p. 141
Sam Schnitzer	p. 143
Anna Bay	p. 147
John E. Wicks	p. 151
Fritz Elfving	p. 154
Francis Clay Harley	p. 158
Lem Dever	p. 160
David James Ferguson	p. 164
May Miller	p. 166
Joe Dyer	p. 168
Rolf Klep	p. 172
Burnby Bell	p. 176
Emil Richard ôDicöNivala	p. 119
Helmi Huttunen Mellin	p. 183
Edward Harvey	p. 187
Edgar Quinn	p. 189
Sam Churchill	p. 190
Wally Palmberg	p. 193
Charles Haddix	p. 196
Svenson Sisters	p. 198
Michael Foster	p. 202
Liisa Penner	p. 206
Robert Adams	p. 210
About the Authors	p. 217
Index	p. 219
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