Payette County ID Archives News.....The Good Ol' Days' at Washoe September 7, 1983 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/id/idfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Patty Theurer seymour784@yahoo.com March 12, 2006, 2:10 am Independent Enterprise September 7, 1983 Independent Enterprise Payette, Idaho Wednesday, September 7, 1983 The Good Ol’ Days’ at Washoe By Dan Gallagher WASHOE-Before the advent of the television, the video game, or the microwave oven, Payette County people went about their daily work and had fun, too. The Independent Enterprise met with some long-time residents who remember life in the Washoe and Payette area in the early years of the century. Ralph Shamberger moved to Washoe from Coeur d’Alene as a young boy in 1904. Shamberger has served as a county commissioner for a number of years. The Washoe School was built around 1906 and housed about 75 students in eight grades in the two rooms, he said. While school officials attempted to keep the kids in class, occasionally the students took time off to help their fathers in the fields. There were all kinds of crops and dairy operations on Washoe at the time. Payette was the hub of activities for the entire area. People would travel for miles to dance there on Saturday night. The railroad station was built on the present site and featured a beautiful flower garden on a hillock with the work “Payette” landscaped in for the passengers to see, said Lucille Shepard. The metal elk in front of the Payette City Hall stood in front of a pool at the station where horses were watered. Every year, the Chatauqua would come to Payette. This was a traveling show with famous singers, orators, and actors of the time who set up a tent where the Kiwanis Park is now. Shamberger said he heard one speaker swear there would never be another war after World War 1, because it was too brutal an experience and cost too much. After World War 11 started, the same man returned to speak about the benefits of that war. The Payette River between Payette and Washoe was utilized by the people. A log mill was located there and big log booms would be brought down river for manufacturing boards and other items, said Shamberger. The river overshot its banks in the “big flood of 1910,” he said. In the early 1900’s, the salmon swam freely upriver all the way to Payette, said Shamberger. As a young boy with his brother, he saw an Indian tribe (not sure which tribe) fishing on the banks of the river for the migratory fish. They would place willows into the stream to form a weir that would divert the salmon and then club them when they were in range. Shamberger said he saw a young Indian girl with a fancy silk dress and lots of white makeup, escorted by chaperones. This was the princess of the tribe, he said. They also met a fearsome looking Indian male with pistols and all kinds of trappings who seemed to be the chief of the clan. The boys were afraid, but the Indian put them at ease. Paul Senkbeil did not live at Washoe, but traveled there to work with his thrashing machine. Senkbeil broke his leg in 1936 while working for Idaho Power and was unable to continue employment on the line after that, he said. Senkbeil has kept his thrashing machine intact, he said. Washoe residents had a rougher time in the winter, said Shamberger. In order to get to Payette and back, he had to walk through the fields and his pants legs were often frozen after the jaunt. Instead of watching the “TV” or the stove insert, people would travel down to the Washoe Slough near the plywood plant to skate on the frozen surface. Ice was cut out of the slough for an ice house there. Shepard said a boy drowned at the slough while swimming one summer. One favorite winter sport was called “Shinny on Your Own Side,” said Shamberger. The game was like hockey, but if you were caught on the wrong side of the field, the opposing team would give you a good lashing on the shins with a willow branch, he said. Nearly 200 skaters would be on the pond at one time and would build bonfires on the bank to keep them warm. Jennie Bohannon’s family owned the store that was bought by A. B. Moss, was the Golden Rule store, and is now the Senior Center. The store had all kinds of finery, pots and pans, anything required by the people at the time. She said the cowboys used to tie horses up to metal rings and posts on the sidewalk across the side street there. A round barn that is still standing was used as an auction, but Ontario’s auction gradually overshadowed its operation, said Shamberger. Near the plywood plant was a spray factory where sulphur and lime were mixed to put on the orchards in the area. Shamberger said he remembered workers coming out of the plant with bloodshot eyes and raw skin from the caustic material. A castle was built up the ridge by a Mr. Sherman, said Shamberger. The building closely resembled a real castle with battlements and the like. The structure was finally torn down to make way for another home. “We threw away a lot of things,” said Shepard. Above the Washoe Slough is a small, deserted cemetery with several lava rock tombstones bearing the names of small children and soldiers who died in the 1890’s. Rumors have been around for years that trapper Francois Payette was first buried there because he wanted to rest where he could see the entire river valley named after him. The location of his body has never been found. These and many other people in the valley worked without modern technology, accomplished things at a greater price, and had a good time without Pac Man games or Star Wars movies. 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