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ST PAUL, OREGON      USA

Galeria

A Google click can give you a lot more information or photographs on this special Marion County Community.  The photographs here are a quick glance and also share what will be covered in our story segment “Remembering St. Paul, Oregon 1948-1960.”.  The galleria will be expanding weekly.  To the right is the Banner that has been proudly exhibited for more than a 75 years during the 4th of July Rodeo Promotional Activities.

I can only imagine how the “100” Anniversary will be celebrated.  GOD willing my website will continue to be updated by one of my G-kids….. ☺

Knights of Columbus Building (Below Left) In the early years this building was rented to Tejanos when they had a celebration i.e., wedding, baptism, quinceaňera and so on. (Click images for a larger view.)

Ed Davidson’s (Right) camp was a home for 100’s of migrants.  Including the Ortiz, Salinas, Leyva, Bustamante, Gonzalez, Ramirez, Zepeda and many more and ALL from TEXAS.

 

 

 

One of the favorite recreational days for Mexican Families is the 4th of July; most can relate to the life style as many came from rancho-communities and agricultural pueblos.

 

The Shamrock Tavern is the back drop for this 4th of July parade photo.  Below is the corner that used to be filled by “The Rodeo Tavern”..It now sits in the back.

 

People tend to seek the same location to watch the parade.  To many, it has become an annual ritual; a good place to reconnect with old friends.  The man standing is Leon Saldana (RIP) born in Arizona and raised in Mexico enjoys the parade with his daughter Lidia (my wife), my daughters and my G-KIDS!

Don Davidson’s Camp, like Ed’s camps was home for 100+ families over the years; among them were:  Salinas, Sifuentez, Banda, Gallegos and many more.

LANDING refers to the boat landing at Horseshoe Lake.  Elaine Smith recalls the lake flooding the San Salvadore area 70 + years ago.

HOPS AND STRAWBERRIES CONTINUE TO BE CULTIVATED AND HARVESTED IN THE SAME MANNER FOR MORE THAN 50 YEARS. 

The hop harvest was the last crop migrants picked before going back home which for the majority Asherton Texas was their destination.  The ritual of their return was much the same as the ritual coming to St. Paul only with a few more   dollar$ in their pocket!

Gabriel Ayala (R) better known as “La Rana” (the frog) ..nickname since he was a child and two other friends in the strawberry field.

Harold Brentano and his dog; a man’s best friend!

A unique family lived in this old shack now engulfed by wild berries and other native plants; their name:  Juan, Juanita, and Juanito…MEDELLIN; more about this unique family in the “Pioneros Capsules.”

Reconnecting with the Bunning Camp from the early 1950’s, Miguel finds a piece of the past that only he can describe and identify with it.

1948  Enrique Barrera “El Bole” (nickname) and Lawrence Bunning-Farmer, one of my dad’s first bosses in the mid-1940.  Below is part of the Bunning’s ranch.  Most of the Barrera’s still live in town.  More about the Barreras’s in the “Pionero Capsules.”

OTHER FAMILIES ARRIVE… In the 50” Russian families began to arrive to the Marion County in significant numbers.  A county of many immigrants and migrants.

 

50+ years later the still photos seem to be the same, but most of the work force finds their way to St. Paul from south of the border.  The farmers have depended on labor whose roots originate south of the border.  Many of the Ashertonians roots can be traced to the northern part of Mexico, as well as Texas and what is now the South.   Families with Spanish last names and some with indigenous blood in the early 1800’s prior to the Treaty of Guadalupe would experience the transition and would essentially be part of two nations within a one generation. 

THE PRIDE OF ST PAUL IS DEPICTED BY THIS PIECE OF INTEGRATED LOCAL SYMBOLS.  One has been placed at each of the entrances to the town.

A VISTA OF A SUNSET OFF BLANCHET RD. WHICH LEADS OUT OF ST. PAUL TOWARDS HORSESHOE LAKE.

 

CHURCH PEWS (holes found in the back)
These are marks left from the Family Name plates that are associated with Preference/Ownership and/or contributions that were given by local parishioners.  For some reason the name plates were removed (this still symbolism is still under research).
Read the story about the St. Paul Church and how it has evolved and seen by the Tejanos and Mexicans by the end of June 2013. 

One of my favorite photographs of the first church where I celebrated mass in 1954 and where my mom and dad- Arturo and Maria  were married and my sister Virginia was baptized; first Mexicans to celebrate the SACRAMENTS at this famous church.