THE CITY OF ROSEBURG

In 1851 Aaron Rose arrived in the Roseburg area, via the southern route, crossing the Rocky, Sierra Nevada, and Siskiyou Mountains and negotiating the infamous Cow Creek canyon with his wife Sarah. Rose was a merchant looking for a promising site for his combined store, tavern, butcher shop, and horse sales business that sold to travelers, teamsters, and packers. He purchased the Raimey brothers squatter's rights at the confluence of Deer Creek and the South Umpqua River, then filed for a Donation Land Claim on rising land to the south, securing for himself a fine future town site.

A gristmill on the north side of Deer Creek was operated by William Perry and his partner named Danseth as early as 1851- 52. A mill continued in operation at this site for several decades and was later owned by the Rast and Criteser families; their brand of flour ground at the mill was called "Royal Rose." A brewery at this site and in connection with the grist mill was also a Rast-Criteser family enterprise. (Rast Court in the district is named for this early family). Ferry service across the South Umpqua River in Roseburg began in 1854 with Thomas Owens in charge of the landing at the foot of Douglas Avenue. The first county seat in Douglas County was located in Winchester, about five miles north of Roseburg on the North Umpqua River.

Aaron Rose thought his town was the better site and in 1854 an election was held to determine which location should have this honor. According to local

lore, Rose generously donated refreshments from his tavern to voters who were in favor of the Roseburg location; at any rate, Roseburg carried the day and

the county seat was moved to its present location. Rose and two other local citizens donated a three-acre site at the corner of Douglas Avenue and Main

Street, Courthouse Square, and $1,000 to build a courthouse.

In 1857 the first official plat in the City of Roseburg was completed by J.A. Burnet at the request of Aaron Rose; Burnet used the grid system and included the three-acre courthouse site in the plat. Early businesses in the Roseburg area profited

from the Indian Wars of 1855, which brought many men into Southern Oregon. The first merchant to open a general merchandise store was a Mr. Bradbury who

started his business venture in Roseburg in 1853. Travelers through the area could find accommodations at the Eagle Hotel, built in 1857 on the southwest

corner of Jackson and Washington Streets. This structure was later called the Metropolitan Hotel and was destroyed by fire in 1884. In 1857 the first

courthouse was completed, it was a wooden building which, after serving as a courthouse for 11 years, was moved and used as a store and tin shop for R.S.

and J.C. Sheridan before its demolition.

Another early hotel, constructed in the 1850s, was the American Hotel on the block now occupied by the Roseburg City

Hall. In 1858 it was operated by Addison C.Gibbs and a partner named Spencer; in 1859 it was operated by D.W. and Almira Stearns and J.T. Brown. In later

years the American Hotel had an addition to the north end of the original two-story hotel that faced Main Street. By this time the name had been changed

to the McClallen House.

Around the turn of the century the original section was moved away to a location near Deer Creek. A three-story brick structure was

erected in its place and was also known as the McClallen House. It was later called the Douglas Hotel and was in use until the 1959 Roseburg Blast. A brief

excerpt from the 1901 publication Oregon and the Orient reads as follows: At Roseburg the McClallen House is the leading hotel, in fact, the only one making

pretensions of being a thoroughly modern house. As a matter of fact, it is the best hotel between San Francisco and Portland as attested by the fact of its

general popularity with the traveling public. Messrs. M. Schmidt and Sons assumed proprietorship last May, since which time the house has jumped into

great popularity with all classes.

Roseburg prospered in the 1850s and 60s. The Roseburg population in 1860 was recorded at 789. The Hooker Military Road,

beginning in Scottsburg and eventually reaching into northern California, was surveyed; the road was routed through Roseburg, traveling down Main Street and

up over the hills to the south. Colonel Joe Hooker, chief surveyor of the road and later of Civil War fame, was the guest of honor at a Fourth of July

celebration in Roseburg in 1859. The site of the celebration was an oak grove at the northeast corner of Rose and Washington Streets, for many years the

location for traveling circuses and other entertainments.

The 1859 parade featured a Goddess of Liberty with children representing the states of the

Union. This was particularly meaningful, as Oregon had been accepted into the Union earlier that year. Businesses in Roseburg at that time included the

Sheridan Hardware Store, housed in Roseburg's first brick building at the north end of Jackson Street. A second brick structure was constructed at the

southeast corner of Jackson and Washington Streets in 1868 by Dr. Salathiel Hamilton to serve as a drugstore. Later Hamilton buildings were constructed in 1878 and 1888. Most of the commercial buildings were of wooden construction and did not survive a fire in 1884. Work on the first Episcopal Church in Roseburg began in 1860 on the same site where the Episcopal Church is located today. This was the first church building in Roseburg. Rev. Thomas Hyland was the Episcopalian minister to the congregation at that time. Other churches built were the Catholic Church in 1867 and the Methodist Episcopal church in 1866 or 1868.

Douglas County agriculture was beginning to develop. In 1860 Rockwell rams were brought to the county and in 1868 seventeen wagons loaded with wool were hauled from Roseburg to Scottsburg for shipment by schooner to San Francisco. Roseburg was incorporated as a city in 1872. In the 1870s Roseburg had several

newspapers, The Plaindealer and The Ensign, which expressed the Democratic and Republican viewpoints. In 1871 a shocking encounter occurred in which

"Oregon Style" journalism prevailed, William Thompson, publisher of The Plaindealer, was confronted by H.R. and Thomas Gale, brothers who published

The Ensign. The Gales were armed with pistols and a cane, and struck Thompson. Shots were fired, Thompson collapsed with a bullet lodged behind his eye; H.R.

Gale was critically injured and died some years later of his injuries. The next year, Thompson sold the newspaper and moved to California. With the arrival of

the train in 1872, both residential and commercial construction in the nearby Mill-Pine neighborhood southeast of downtown and adjacent to the railroad

tracks began in earnest. The two-story brick Roseburg Hotel (#201, built in 1903) replaced the wooden Depot Hotel (1874) on a portion of the same lot at

the corner of Lane and Sheridan Streets.

Two surviving residences dating from that era are the Willis House (#174, built in 1874) moved halfway down the

block from its original location at the corner of Cass and Rose and the Rast House (#35, built in 1875) moved slightly to the west with the relocation of

Stephens Street. A second courthouse was built and dedicated in 1870; this was a two-story wood and brick building that was occupied until 1891. It was

located on the Courthouse Square property and faced Main Street to the west. The Presbyterian Church built its first building in 1876 on the corner of Rose

and Cass. The S. Marks & Company building was brick with cast iron and was located on the corner of Washington and Jackson and traditionally housed a

theater. Streetlights were first put up in Roseburg in 1878. Writing in 1884, A.G. Walling said of Roseburg: "There are, taken altogether seven general

mercantile houses, two hardware stores, each having a tin shop attached, two flouring mills, three hotels, one bank, three blacksmith shops, two drug

stores, four variety stores, two jewelers, three millinery shops, two butcher shops, two livery stables, two cabinet shops, three grocery stores, two

restaurants, twelve saloons, two barber shops, two bakeries, six physicians, two dentists, ten lawyers, one foundry, one brewery, one photograph gallery,

two shoe-maker shops, one marble cutter, and several wash houses. The above is not a bad record of business for a city containing but one thousand

inhabitants, all told."

The City of Roseburg continued to grow and prosper in the latter part of the 19th century; Roseburg's population reached 1,234 in

1880. The beginning of the decade was celebrated by the arrival and overnight visit of President and Mrs. Rutherford B. Hayes and their party; they were

guests at the Judge Willis House. Two more churches were available to Roseburg citizens, the Baptist Church completed their building in 1888 at the corner of

Rose and Lane and the United Brethren Church was finished in 1889. Many new buildings in downtown Roseburg were built in the 1880s to accommodate the growing population. They included the Douglas County Bank on the east side of Jackson Street in 1883; the McClallen Hotel addition, the only threestory building in town, in 1887; the Valley Hotel (#49, built in 1885) on the corner of Washington and Jackson; and the Sheridan Brothers three brick buildings

adjoining their hardware store at Jackson and Oak in 1889. Another Marsters building on Jackson (#89) was a two-story structure finished in 1888. Also

constructed was the Caro Building (#104, built in 1885) on the corner of Washington and Jackson, which housed the General Land Office. The most popular

building style was the one or two-story storefront with offices or apartments on the second floor.

Buildings associated with the railroad were the

roundhouse, which was located south of the depot on the west side of the tracks near Woodward Avenue and Flint Street, and four large warehouses built near the tracks. Agriculture continued to play a part in the local economy and was made much more efficient with the opportunity to ship agricultural and lumber goods by rail. The year of 1878 was a good wheat year; wagons from Camas Valley backed up a quarter mile waiting to unload at the warehouses. Logging and

milling of lumber had been part of the economic picture in Douglas County since its very early settlement. Lumber for a house was considered a mark of

distinction and a step up from a log house. With the invention in 1881 of the donkey engine, a method of yarding logs, mill work increased. Transportation of

logs was problematical and the most convenient way to ship logs was by water, hence the prosperous operation of the mill at Gardiner near the mouth of the

Umpqua. Transportation in other areas improved also; locally the Lane Street Bridge across the South Umpqua River was completed in 1884. In 1882 the last

California-Oregon stagecoach passed through Roseburg.

A major fire in downtown Roseburg in 1884 destroyed many of the early wooden buildings and encouraged the use of brick for a building material. Several brick factories turned out a record number of bricks; they included George Collins whose kiln was near the depot, William Rose who made the bricks for the new courthouse, and the Thomas Grisdale brick kiln which made the bricks for the Marks and Hamilton buildings in 1878. In 1890 Roseburg's population had risen to 1,472. Some of the buildings constructed in the last decade of the 19th century were the Roseburg City Hall (1892) which continued in use until 1959; the State Soldier's Home (1896) on the west side of the river, a three-story brick structure designed by William C. Knighton; the Parrott House (1891) at the south edge of town and still intact; and a railroad depot which was completed in 1899. Downtown

buildings included the Odd Fellows Hall (#161, built in 1892) at the corner of Cass and Jackson, and Fisher's Department Store and the Singleton Storefront

(#97 and #98, built in!893) on the west side of Jackson Street. Other buildings on the west side of Jackson were the two Wilder Clothing stores (#101 &

102, built in 1890). The Sheridan Street Market building and rooming house (#197, built in 1895) was constructed in answer to increased population and

activity in the railroad area. Residences constructed during this era include the Rast House (#35, built in!875) and the Howell-Kohlhagen House (#216, built

in 1882).

The progression of growth generally occurred as follows: (1) the east side of Jackson Street between Washington and Oak, (2) the west side of Jackson

between Washington and Oak (3) the west side of Jackson between Washington and Douglas, (4) east side of Jackson between Oak and Cass, (5) the west side of Jackson between Oak and Cass, and (6) both sides of Jackson between Cass and Lane. Development on Lane and Stephens Streets was mainly after the turn of the century. In 1891 an addition to the wood and brick courthouse was constructed; it was an extensive project and resulted in a nearly new building. In 1898 a

fire destroyed the county courthouse and a decision was made to build a newbuilding using the old foundation and walls that were still intact. An

elaborate three-story structure that was oriented to Douglas Street to the south was the result and was dedicated in 1899. By 1900 Roseburg's population

had risen to 1,690. One of Roseburg's most distinguished and handsome buildings, the Douglas National Bank (#83, built in 1902) established by R.A.

Booth of Eugene and J.H. Booth of Roseburg, was built on the corner of Oak and Jackson.

Construction of downtown buildings continued, moving south to the next block on Jackson Street where the two-story Kohlhagen Building (#132, built in 1906-08) dominated the west side of the street. Another substantial structure was the three-story Masonic Temple (#136, built in 1909). Smaller storefronts filled the rest of the blocks; development turned the corner of Cass and

Jackson Streets and continued to the west on Cass Street with the construction of the Kohlhagen Meat Market (#167, built in 1909) one of the very earliest

structures using concrete block with a rusticated stone face (made to resemble stone). Fraternal and religious buildings of a well-designed nature were also

represented. The brick First Presbyterian Church (#217, built in 1909) was also built in this decade. Also constructed were the Masonic Temple (#136, built in

1909) and still in its original condition and the Elks Temple (#157, built in 1905) which has received many changes. A new residential style of building

also came on the scene, the Bungalow, which offered many examples in a more modest size, yet with stylish details, than some earlier styles of houses.

There are many examples still in use in the downtown area.

Across the river, Mercy Hospital was established in Roseburg. There was some logging for local

purposes and shipping of lumber, but agriculture continued to be the main source of income for the local economy. Hops were a popular crop, requiring a

labor-intensive picking in the fall. Turkeys were grown to be shipped far and wide; in 1902 approximately 11,000 turkeys were shipped from Douglas County to

markets in San Francisco and Portland. Prunes were a third major crop with almost all of the tonnage being dried for preservation; in 1904 ninety-one

carloads of dried prunes were shipped from the Roseburg depot.

In 1910, with its population reaching 4,738, more than doubling in one decade, Roseburg's

buildings took on a decidedly upscale tone. The Perkins Building (# 175, built in 1913) a four-story structure faced with buff-colored brick on its two

prominent sides, was designed by Portland architect Emil Schacht for Julian Perkins. The Federal Building, or Old Post Office (#128, built in 1916) also

faced with buff brick, was situated across the street, also on Cass Avenue; this building had many fine details that are still in good condition. These two

buildings, along with the Grand Hotel (#122, built in 1910) led to the development of Cass Avenue as an important connecting street. With the growing

population, the Umpqua Hotel (#133, built in 1912) led the way with its first-class five-story facade covered with buff-colored brick and located on

Oak and Jackson Streets in the heart of downtown Roseburg. The Valley Hotel (#49, built in 1885) on Jackson Street, received another story for a total of

three and a new stucco facade in 1916. The Bunglow continued to be the house style of choice. The Harding House (#150, built in 1920) on Lane Street is a

good example.

Agricultural commerce continued to be the economic mainstay of the community. In a nationwide trend, small tracts of land, ranging in size

from five to perhaps fifty acres, were offered for sale as "orchard tracts" with the prospect of a profitable fruit orchard, perhaps peaches,

apples, pears, or cherries. Some of these tracts were laid out in west Roseburg on fairly level ground and sold; not all were successful and the land was

eventually developed for housing. Prunes continued to be an important crop with many small wood-fired dryers preserving the harvest; Douglas County grew more than twenty percent of the prune crop in the state during these years. Prunes were picked mainly by children and school did not start until late September when the prune harvest was over. Grains, including corn, oats, wheat, barley, and rye, were important crops. In the decade between 1910 and 1920, the number of bushels produced per year rose from 1,043,05 to 1,297,350. Fruit crops such as strawberries and melons were also grown and shipped by train to larger markets. Livestock for the production of meat and wool were additional cash crops, as were turkeys. Outlying lumber mills depended on the railroad for transportation of their product.

The population of Roseburg remained quite stable at between 4,000 and 5,000 for the next 30 years; in 1920 it was 4,258. This decade saw the widespread use of two different building materials in Roseburg's commercial districts: rusticated stone-faced concrete block (often referred to as "manufactured stone") and a light-colored brick. The "manufactured stone" was made locally by F.F. Tat" Patterson and was used extensively. A good example of a "manufactured stone" structure is the Rapp Brothers Building (#187, built in 1923), which has been painted. The light-colored brick was used for as many as ten substantial one and two-story buildings in Roseburg, such as the Newland Building (#185, built in 1920) on Stephens and Oak, plus the Perkins Building (#175, built in 1913). Major projects included several auto dealerships and garages, such as the Lockwood Motors Building (#125, built in 1920) with Art Deco details on the corner of Oak and Rose Streets and the Connelly Chrysler Agency (#11, built in 1920) on Jackson street. The Rose Hotel (#212, built in c.1925) continued the trend in large hotel buildings to accommodate the prosperous traveler. Doctors and dentists co-operated in financing the rather high-style Medical Arts Building (#82, built in 1928). A major church building, the First Christian Church (#60, built in 1928) on Douglas Avenue was a major building. The Kohlhagen Apartments (#221, built in 1923) were the first example of a large, upper income apartment house in Roseburg. The automobile era was ushered in and transportation problems eased with the completion of the first border-to-border highway, Highway 99, in 1922. That highway passed directly through Roseburg, following Stephens Street, linking it to both Portland and points south in California.

Roseburg was well prepared for this development with new automobile facilities springing up on Rose and Stephens Street. The 1920s saw the emergence of a new era of small logging operations all over the Northwest and specifically in Douglas County. These were the small logging companies called

"gyppos" who operated with portable equipment, buying timber as they went, and moving on to new sites as the timber supply dwindled. These small

mill owners found it was easier to take the mill to the logs than the logs to the mill. They employed few people, but were numerous; some faded with time and

others continued in production and became major lumber producers. By the 1930s many gyppo loggers only cut timber, then hauled it to a mill for processing.

Short line railroads were also popular for hauling logs.

Agricultural records show that 1920 was the peak year for prune production; the highest price for

prunes was paid in 1919 when growers received twenty-two cents per pound; in 1932, that figure had dropped to three cents per pound. Agricultural crops

expanded locally to include berry and nut crops and also grapes. In 1920, 280 acres of strawberries were planted locally. Livestock continued to be a strong

part of the economy; horses were still used by most farmers for cultivation. Wool, mohair, beef and turkeys were top producers with the number of cattle in

1920 listed at 20,983; horses at 6,432; swine at 12,128; sheep at 76,874; and goats at 32,887. By 1930 the economy in Douglas County, along with the rest of

the country, had taken a definite downturn. The Roseburg population grew slightly to 4,362. Only two privately-financed major buildings were constructed

in the 1930s in Roseburg, the Episcopal Church (#145, built in 1938) and the Old Safeway Store on Cass Avenue (#155, built in 1938). Residential growth was

also slow. With the full effects of the 1927 Natron Cutoff leaving Roseburg rail traffic out of the old north-south route to California, railroad traffic

declined leaving many families without their source of income.

The 1938 Roseburg City Directory shows far fewer people living in the Mill-Pine area near

the railroad in 1938 than in 1922 and only seven percent of these residents were employed by the railroad. Roseburg's economy was bolstered in the 1930s by

the federal government when Roseburg was selected as the site for a new Veterans Administration Hospital. The Old Soldiers Home, built in 1896, was

overcrowded. Dr. Earle B. Stewart and W.C. Harding, Roseburg Chamber of Commerce secretary, led the effort in Roseburg's bid for this new facility.

They were assisted by Oregon's congressional delegation, and after some last minute scrambles, the nod was given to Roseburg for the large construction

project on 410 acres on the west side of Roseburg. Buildings included three hospitals, three convalescent buildings, service structures, and residences for

the manager, nurses, and officers, and a bridge across the South Umpqua River with a total cost of $2.5 million. Work commenced in 1932 and in May 1933, the

first sixty-nine patients moved into the facility. The Veteran's Administration continues to be an important factor in Roseburg's economy. In 1957, Federal

offices for the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service were also constructed on part of the acreage.

Agricultural and timber resources continued to be the mainstay of the local economy. Prunes were still a good cash crop, but turkeys had assumed a much more important role in the economy; an annual "Turkey Show" was held in Oakland during the 1930s with such curiosities as a wedding dress made entirely of turkey feathers adding to the

publicity. In 1933 the U.S. Forest Service classified eighty-eight percent of the county area as forestland. Douglas fir occupied ninety percent of the

timber area, growing in all parts of the county. The thirties marked the beginning of the Roseburg Lumber Company, started by Kenneth Ford in 1936. From

a modest beginning, Ford bought up timberlands for delinquent taxes and amassed thousands of acres. His Roseburg Lumber Company plant at Dillard became the world's largest wood products manufacturing facility in the 1970s. Ford continued to accumulate timberlands, often buying revested O&C Lands at

auction. His logging operations and lumber mill provided a stable income for hundreds of Douglas County families.

In 1940 Roseburg's population still

hovered in the 4,000 range with the total census figure coming in at 4,924. Very little building took place during the first half of the decade, due to the

war effort. Two small downtown buildings were constructed on Jackson Street, Tiny's Saw Shop (#57, built in 1940) and the Hisdale Battery Shop (#58, built

in 1940). After the war, construction continued with an emphasis on the auto. Two car showrooms were built, the Roseburg Motor Garage (#106, built in 1947)

on Rose Street and Hansen Motor Company (#126, built in 1947) on Oak Street.

Annual reports of forest land and agricultural lands in the 1940s indicate that

Douglas County had 1,683,400 acres of productive forest land with more than 44 billion board feet of uncut timber and 120,720 acres of non-productive land.

There were 678,422 acres of agricultural land. By 1950, Roseburg's population had almost doubled to 8,390 in one decade, (part of this growth was due to

annexations) and would grow to 12,200 by 1960. For the first time, timber and lumber products became the number one industry in the county as the number of

mills in the county grew from 54 in 1940 to 134 in 1950, pushing agriculture in the number two position. New products such as plywood utilized more of the

timber harvest and sawdust, bark, and wood chips became sellable as valuable commodities, particularly after new laws limited the use of wigwam burners,

which had taken care of the wood waste products for many years.

The surge in building and residential construction after World War II brought about a

remarkable growth in the number of local mills, with other related businesses, such as large equipment companies, industrial supplies, and logging contractors

and truckers. Agriculture continued to be a strong economic factor in the area with livestock products representing nearly two-thirds of the agricultural

income. The 3,199 farms in the county averaged over 212 acres and three-fourths of the farmers owned their farms. By 1950 Roseburg had recovered economically and was essentially a very prosperous place. Quoting from material supplied by the Roseburg Chamber of Commerce that year: Timber, then, is the key to the future of industry in Douglas County. Sawmills and other types of wood processing plants are being built so rapidly that it would be difficult to

quote a figure representing the total now in operation or under construction. A recent survey of plants in the central and eastern part of the Umpqua drainage

basin revealed more than 370 in that area, with logs being supplied by more than 500 logging operations using more than 600 logging trucks to transport

logs to the mills and railroads.

In spite of Roseburg's rapid population growth during the 1950s, there was little new construction in the downtown area. New

businesses moved into old buildings on Jackson Street and the business area expanded only slightly. The new Penney's store (#165, built in 1954) on Jackson

Street and the Newberry Building (#159, built in 1955) also on Jackson Street were welcome additions. A new building was constructed on the corner of Cass

and Jackson for the Ricketts Music Store (#166, built in 1955). Some small offices were built toward the north end of Jackson Street across from the

present City Hall. New office buildings were most often constructed as one-story buildings using concrete block as the main building material.

THE BLAST

On August 7,1959 an event of extraordinary significance occurred in Roseburg, Oregon when a truck loaded with dynamite was accidentally ignited and exploded. The truck was parked near the heart of downtown Roseburg and damage was widespread. This event, unarguably the most significant event in Roseburg's history, changed the face of much of downtown to what it is today and is important enough to justify a Criterion Consideration G exception. Downtown Roseburg was drastically changed on Friday, August 7, 1959 when two tons of dynamite and four and one-half tons of "Carparill" (nitro-carbon-nitrate), ignited and exploded, shattered buildings, landscapes, and lives. A truck, destined for the Gerretsen Powder Magazine northeast of Roseburg, was loaded with explosives used for road construction.

The driver of the truck, George Rutherford, had parked the truck by the Gerretsen Building Supply building on Oak and Pine Streets, along the western

edge of downtown and adjacent to the railroad tracks, early in the evening and checked into a local hotel and prepared for bed. Unable to sleep, he returned

to the truck, checked it over to his satisfaction and returned to the hotel. The driver later claimed he had received permission from someone in the

Gerretsen building to park there and thought the truck would be checked on an hourly basis by a merchant policeman. The truck was wellmarked with the words 'Pacific Powder Company' in foot-high letters on each side of the truck; the front, rear, and sides were also marked with hinged signs 30 inches long

reading "Explosives' in letters five inches high. Shortly after midnight, a fire had started in one of the Gerretsen Building Supply structures. Because

of the contents of the building - lumber, paint, paint remover, and a barrel of white gasoline - the fire was exceptionally hot. It was first noticed by a

millworker around 12:30 a.m. who was returning home after his shift. He had picked up his wife at his parents' home and upon seeing the blaze, sent his

wife to call in the alarm while he went to see the extent of the blaze.

The first alarm was called in at 1:05 a.m. August 7; a general alarm went out at

1:06 a.m. At that time the Roseburg fire department consisted of sixteen paid firemen and fifteen volunteers. The usual procedure was for a general alarm to

be sounded in two different parts of the city for a building blaze, then firemen would call the station to find the location of the fire and report directly to the scene. The first fire truck arrived at Gerretsen's Building Supply with Assistant Fire Chief Roy McFarland and Fireman Lyle Westcott driving the American La France, 1,000 gpm pumping apparatus. A 2V2-inch hose was laid, then another of the same size; however the fire was so hot, Fireman Westcott was taken to Mercy Hospital across the river suffering from burns to his hands. By this time, most of the Building Supply structure was involved in the fire, and the millworker who had first noticed the blaze, Dennis Tandy, was trying to open the door of the explosives truck to drive it away. In the next brief moment, 1:14 a.m., an explosion rocked the city of Roseburg leveling eight blocks near the detonation, damaging buildings in a fifty-block area.

Assistant Chief McFarland had died at the scene of explosion, as had a policeman, Donald DeSues. Upon hearing the news of the explosion, the Fire Chief, Mills suffered a heart attack. The remaining firemen rallied as blazing debris flew through the air landing on the roofs of many of the surrounding buildings that were still standing. Shortly before 2:00 a.m., a decision was made to hold the fire line at southeast Stephens Street on the east and Cass Avenue on the south. By this time, first crews from Sutherlin, Myrtle Creek, Winston-Dillard, the Veterans' Administration, and Springfield and Eugene had come to aid the

effort, sending trucks and crews to assist in the control of blazes throughout the downtown. The fire lines held, and by morning the fires were either out or

under control. By morning it was confirmed that twelve people had died (a thirteenth victim died a week later; the fourteenth victim died a year later

from injuries received in the blast), another 125 had been injured. An estimated twelve blocks had been wiped out, twenty-eight to thirty blocks had

sustained serious damage, and another ten to twelve blocks sustained moderate damage.

The initial cost estimates for damage were set at $12 million. As soon as it was possible to travel throughout the streets of the downtown business district, State Fire Marshall Deputies began a catalogue of damage to the

business section and perimeter dwelling area. The survey included an inspection of 256 buildings, three of which were metal, fifty-three wood framed and 185

masonry. It appeared that of the 256 buildings, 126 had complete glass damage, ninety-three had heavy glass damage and thirty-seven were considered as light glass damage. Twenty buildings were completely destroyed and ninety suffered heavy structural damage; 146 were lightly damaged structurally. In addition to structural and glass damage, many buildings suffered damage to exterior and interior walls, roofs, and furnishings. Within a few days of the explosion, the Retail Merchants Association voted to re-open downtown businesses at the same time (with the exception of the seriously damaged buildings) and stage a grand opening entitled "Operation Cleanup." On August 15, 150 small businesses were open again, following inspections and safety clearances, despite the damage and the repairs under construction. Although a number of businesses were able to reopen while repairs were underway, a larger number were unable to reopen for weeks or months to come.

Repairs continued for several months and included things from window replacement to complete remodeling. As the rebuilding continued, the costs mounted. Examples of the damage estimates include the Douglas County Farm Bureau Cooperative Building at $750,000; the Grand Hotel at $200,000; the Umpqua Hotel at $200,000; Central Junior High School at $650,000; the Douglas County Courthouse at $150,000; the Elks Lodge at $35-40,000; the First Presbyterian Church at $35,000; Southern Pacific Railroad buildings and cars at $100,00; Mercy Hospital (across the river) at $70,000; Krier-Cooch Plumbing at $20-35,000; Family Finance Corporation office at $10-20,000; the Coca-Cola Bottling plant at $115,000; the Gerretsen building at $400,000; Robertson's Shell Service Station at $20-35,000; and the Unrath residence at $15,000. The city fire truck destroyed in the explosion cost $26,000.

Eighty-five percent of the damage to businesses was covered by insurance. A number of buildings were either leveled by the blast or damaged beyond repair

and eventually demolished. Examples of these include the Central Junior High School (the last to be demolished in 1962); the Pals Motor Company Building

(leveled); the Douglas County Farm Bureau Cooperative Building (leveled); the F&W Floor Covering building (leveled); the Family Finance building (leveled);

Pine Court Apartments (eventually demolished); the Old Douglas Hotel (demolished 1960); the First Methodist Church sanctuary (demolished 1960); and

the old City Hall (demolished after condemnation in late December 1959).

Other buildings were condemned, including the Roseburg Armory and the Umpqua Hotel, but were saved and reconstructed. Shortly after the Blast, Governor Hatfield visited Roseburg and called it the "worst disaster in Oregon's history." After some investigation, he announced, however, that Roseburg would not qualify for federal disaster funds. In order to qualify, the state must have spent a million dollars on disaster relief in the last twelve months, something the state had not done. By the end of August, the Interstate Commerce Commission began to look at tightening restrictions on the transport of explosives, a probe that eventually ended in additional laws governing how and where explosives can be transported. In early September, the Douglas County grand jury indicted the Pacific Powder Company on several counts. Numerous lawsuits were also filed against the company. By December of 1959 Roseburg had decided to apply for an Urban Renewal Grant to implement a disaster recovery/redevelopment plan. About a year before the Blast, the City of Roseburg had engaged the Bureau of Municipal Research and Service at the University of Oregon to present a plan for development in Roseburg. When the blast occurred, the basic research for this plan was redirected, partly by the timber industry, to become a Disaster recovery Plan.

As presented to the City of Roseburg in October 1959, the plan addressed the following issues (1) the South Umpqua River crossing, (2) a street plan, (3) a land use plan, and (4) methods for implementing the plans. The plan was never formally adopted, however the city did follow some of the recommendations that were made, i.e. the one-way street grid still follows the plan with very slight variations, the Stephens-Pine Street couplet for Highway 99 was implemented, and a park on the east bank of the South Umpqua River was designed. Suggestions that were not adopted included the bridge across the South Umpqua as an extension of Diamond Lake Boulevard, the closure of Rose Street to become a shopper's mall, and the construction of several blocks of garden apartments between Stephens and Pine Streets starting at Mosher Street and going south for five or six blocks. Pedestrian walkways were encouraged and an underpass for the railroad was discussed. The plan encouraged the use of urban renewal funds, but no funds were ever received and the local business owners adopted a "Do-It-Yourself' campaign, securing private capital for rebuilding of the blast area. An interesting note: Richard Neutra, the distinguished California architect and planner, expressed an interest in the recovery/redevelopment plan for Roseburg and visited Roseburg on October 19,1959 to discuss the plan with the city business leaders.

According to the local newspaper, he served as the "guiding spirit" for the rebuilding plans and advised Roseburg to turn the disaster into an asset. A year later a local newspaper article was headlined with 'A Sparkling New City Is Rising From Ruins." Many general examples of local merchants fixing their buildings were given. Some major, but older buildings dating from the 1880s and 90s remained empty and gutted; others had enough repair work to be back to a useful production. One example of a complete exterior restructuring was the Caro Building at the corner of Jackson and Washington, which was severely damaged. New walls were constructed for the front facade and corner; an entirely different building with a modern aspect appeared, and remains so today. Since code required that fireproof materials be used, stucco was a popular choice for the second level and sometimes the original cornice was preserved. Several two-story structures had the top story removed and became one-story buildings with a new facade. One example is the building on the corner of Pine and Cass, which had been a meeting hall for the Maccabees on the second floor and through many commercial uses at the street level.

Extensive damage required the removal of the second floor and a stone covering was applied to the front facade. Many buildings changed hands as businesses

took advantage of insurance money to build larger or more appropriate structures. The new Roseburg branch of the United States National Bank of Portland was built on the site of the old City Hall. The Oregon State Employment Office opted to construct a new building in 1961, after a temporary

relocation following the Blast proved impractical. The Umpqua Valley Appliance store, which was destroyed in the Blast, built a new two-story building on the

site of two other damaged buildings that were demolished. The Douglas Inn, a two-story modern motel and office building, was built in 1961 on the site of

Pal Motors by the owners of Pal Motors, a business that was leveled in the Blast. The last major demolition and new building (within the district) following the Blast occurred in 1961, when the Central Junior High School was finally razed and a new Safeway Store was built on the site (in 1962) The city and state highway departments took the opportunity to reroute a portion of Highway 99 following the Blast. A new couplet just south of Douglas Street designated Pine Street as the southbound lanes and Stephens Street the northbound lanes of Highway 99 through the Roseburg business district. City of Roseburg funds paid sixty percent or $225,000 for the highway work.

Two years after the Blast, the newspaper reported "a tourist would have to look hard to find blast evidence.... new buildings, new hopes and new dreams have risen from the rubble, and Roseburg has become one of the most modern-looking cities in southern Oregon." In November 1961, the court settlements were finalized when the explosives company agreed to pay $1,199,265, an amount that equaled its assets plus some future revenues. The damage to Roseburg's architectural heritage resulted in many changes, some major and some minor.

This catastrophic event changed the face of downtown Roseburg to what it is today.

SUMMARY

Roseburg's Downtown Historic District has served as the city's primary commercial district and as the economic, government, and transportation center since the city's founding in 1857. Roseburg's apparently seamless progress was stopped short in August of 1959 when a catastrophic dynamite blast leveled several blocks, damaged most of the structures in the downtown business area and killed fourteen people. With no federal funds to assist with repair and redevelopment, local merchants followed their own course of rehabilitation. The old downtown took on a different look as stabilization and rehabilitation followed over the next couple years. Roseburg was truly a city rising from the ashes. The downtown continued to serve as the city center a number of years. Eventually, new commercial development along Harvard Boulevard and the development of shopping centers, such as the Garden Valley Shopping Center in 1971, pulled businesses away from the downtown. It is in part due to this out-migration of businesses that the downtown has retained such a high level of integrity from the period immediately following the blast.

SOURCE: https://npgallery.nps.gov/GetAsset/47c1f75b-bb3f-4ba3-bcd3-548a87ece64c