Multnomah-Morrow County OR Archives Biographies.....Hynd, Robert Forbes October 26, 1866 - May 26, 1921
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File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by:
Ila L. Wakley iwakley@msn.com October 27, 2008, 12:02 am

Author: The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company

     ROBERT FORBES HYND.  The adventurous spirit of Robert Forbes Hynd took 
him to many parts of the world, and in the school of hard knocks he learned 
many valuable lessons which enabled him to cope with life's problems and 
trials. When he came to Oregon he had no assets save youth, energy and 
determination, and with these he made good, becoming one of the foremost live-
stock men of the state, while he also figured conspicuously in other lines of 
business. Courageous and self-reliant, he hewed his way through a forest of 
difficulties and worthily won the distinctive title of self-made man. The 
latter part of his life was spent in Portland, which was honored by his 
citizenship.

     A native of Scotland, Mr. Hynd was born October 26, 1866, and was a son 
of James and Jessie Hynd. At the age of fourteen he left home and for two 
years followed the roving life of a sailor. During that period he had the 
opportunity of seeing many of the great ports of the world, but Portland 
pleased him the most and he decided that some day he would return to the city 
and establish his home here. In 1882 he went to the province of Ontario, 
Canada, and worked as a common laborer in Arthur for five years. He then came 
to Oregon and secured a job on the first Columbia river jetty. Later he was a 
deck hand on Willamette river boats and while employed in that capacity he had 
an experience which changed the whole course of his career. When in Portland 
he purchased a ticket for the old Marquam Grand Theater and during the course 
of the entertainment the following question was asked by one of the 
actors: "Young man, what are you doing with your life?" This remark turned Mr. 
Hynd's thoughts into a serious channel and he determined to make the most of 
the qualities with which nature had endowed him. Going to eastern Oregon, he 
obtained work near Heppner and no one thought that the farm hand of those days 
was destined to become one of the most influential men of that region. For 
some time he was employed on ranches in that district, saving the greater part 
of his earnings, and in 1889 he was able to buy a small band of sheep. These 
he sold a year later and formed a partnership with W. B. Barrett, with whom he 
was associated in the sheep business until 1893, when he located in Heppner, 
becoming manager of the Morrow County Warehouse Company. A little later he 
formed the Heppner Milling Company, of which he became the active head, and 
developed an extensive industry, shipping most of the product to the orient. 
He also organized the Penland Live Stock Company, of which he was secretary 
and treasurer, and also furthered the progress of that corporation to a 
notable extent. The firm operated on a large scale, having twenty-five 
thousand sheep and thirty-five thousand acres of grazing land. Six years after 
its inception the business was sold to Minor Brothers and it is still a 
thriving concern. Meanwhile Mr. Hynd continued as manager of the Heppner 
Warehouse and Milling companies and during that time between three and four 
million pounds of wool were shipped yearly from Heppner. He also organized the 
Farmers Elevator Company, which is still in existence, and constantly expanded 
the scope of his activities. He seemed to know intuitively just when the time 
was ripe for the institution of a new business project, and his unusual 
foresight and sagacity enabled him to avoid the many pitfalls into which 
unrestricted progressiveness is so frequently led and to focus his energies in 
directions where fruition was certain. At all times he was guided and 
controlled by an accurate sense of business exigency, and his name was a 
guarantee of the stability and success of every business with which he was 
connected. Although Mr. Hynd received but little schooling in his youth, he 
made up the deficiency later by self-study and was rated among the best 
bookkeepers in eastern Oregon, qualifying for the work by taking a 
correspondence course. He was a man of tireless energy, painstaking and 
thorough in all that he undertook, and he never stopped short of the 
attainment of his objective. During the disastrous flood of 1903 he sustained 
great losses but his indomitable spirit enabled him to surmount all obstacles 
and difficulties and press steadily onward and upward. In 1911 he came to 
Portland and here spent the remainder of his life, passing away May 26, 1921, 
when fifty-four years of age.

     Mr. Hynd's first wife was Miss Zoe Sigsbee, who had been a teacher in the 
Heppner schools, and they were the parents of two children, who were drowned 
during the flood of June, 1903. The mother also lost her life at that time, 
and Mr. Hynd was seriously injured. In 1904 he returned to Scotland and 
married Miss Agnes Brown, an old friend of the family. Her parents, William 
and Elizabeth (Stormont) Brown, lived in Arbroath, and her father was a master 
mariner. Captain Brown owned a number of sailing vessels and after abandoning 
a seafaring life was made harbormaster. By his second marriage Mr. Hynd had 
three children: Robert, who was connected with the Reserve Officers' Training 
Corps at Vancouver in 1928 and who is now attending the University of Oregon; 
William, also a student; and Elizabeth, who will graduate from the University 
of Washington in 1930.

     Mr. Hynd became a Mason while residing in Heppner and was identified with 
the Scottish Rite and the Shrine in Portland. He was one of the officers of 
the Piedmont Presbyterian church of this city and an earnest, effective worker 
in its behalf. His religion was carried into his daily life, in which it found 
beautiful expression. In all of his business dealings he was scrupulously 
honest and as a citizen he was loyal, progressive and public-spirited. He was 
true to the ties of home and friendship and never failed to recognize and 
appreciate the good in others. His was an admirable character, worthy of all 
praise, and his record should serve as a source of encouragement and 
inspiration to all who strive toward a high level of accomplishment.


Additional Comments:
History of the Columbia River Valley From The Dalles to the Sea, Vol. II, 
Pages 550-553

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