This Week in Odessa History

It was just about two months before the Crash of 1929 and the beginning of the Great Depression. Nobody knew what was in store for Odessa and the rest of the world when The Odessa Record rolled off the press on August 23, 1929, 84 years ago this week.

Odessa seemed to be a happy, contented community. Harvest, although not one of the better ones, was over. School was to start with the largest enrollment ever expected.

Oddly, the first day of school would be Labor Day, a legal holiday, and while students would enroll and receive their lesson assignments, they wouldn’t have to work, said school superintendent L.W. Lee.

Odessa’s business climate appeared to be healthy. J.C. Penney had just taken over the W.H. Luher department store, and in a full-page ad in The Record that week the firm stated that while it had been selling off Luher stock in the previous few weeks, its Odessa outlet now had become an official full-fledged J.C. Penney store. Penney’s was to survive in Odessa for the next 12 years. The store occupied the complete ground floor of the present V.F.W. building, then known as the Finney Building.

As was wont to happen during the era of early automobile travel, there was an interesting accident, of which The Record gave full coverage, under the head “Two Good Cars Ruined.” The report stated:

“A head-on crash when drivers refused to give road practically ruined two good cars, a Pontiac and a Graham-Page Monday west of town last night. The Pontiac as owned by a man named Jenson from Marlin, and the Graham-Page by a Seattle man who refused to give his name.

“Birge’s wrecker brought the wrecks to Odessa, and they may be seen at that garage. Mr. Birge says that while there was not a glass broken in either car, neither of them is worth the cost of repairs necessary to put them on the road again. At the garage, both drivers admitted that they had refused to give right of way to the other.”

In other news reported in The Record on the eve of The Crash, the attendance at the annual Odessa picnic the previous Sunday at Spokane’s Natatorium park was smaller than the previous year, but it was pronounced as just about the best picnic of the 12 which had been held since the get-together of Odessa people in Spokane had been instituted. More people from Odessa went to Spokane to attend this picnic than ever before, but the former Odessa residents living in Spokane failed to show up in their usual numbers. The previous year, about 250 had attended. In 1929, there were 180.

That same week, the Pacific Telephone and Telegraph company had a crew of six men building a new telephone line the entire length of the town which would remove the utility poles from First avenue. They were being installed in the alleys behind Odessa’s main street in a program which The Record reported “would make Odessa’s appearance one of the most modern of any town the size in the state.” The project was said by the telephone company to cost $7,500.

While Odessa had no golf course then, it did have golfers, who won a silver cup that week, which had been offered by the National Union Life Insurance Company of Spokane. Local golfers played on a scab-rock course on the north hill west of the water tank. They did attain a high degree of proficiency for they won the cup in competition with Spokane golfers. The match in which they competed had been in connection with the Odessa picnic in Spokane. Odessa golfers trimmed their opponents by a score of 11 to 1.

Strangely, the October stock market crash was never reported in The Record. Its repercussions took months to be felt in Odessa. Few if any local residents speculated in stocks and bonds and so when Wall Street hit the bottom, there was no cause for panic here.

The Great Depression gradually took its toll, though. Odessa’s bank closed. Businesses withered. The years 1930, 1931 and 1932 brought the Odessa region the worst wheat harvest it has ever known.

The community survived, however. No one had any money. Merchants carried town residents and farmers with liberal credit. And farm families found a way to get along with the meat, milk, butter and vegetables they could produce for their own use and to barter for other staples.

100 Years Ago

From The Odessa Record

August 23, 1912

The matter of establishing a small public park in Odessa was discussed at Tuesday night’s meeting of the town council and the mayor and councilmen are understood to be in favor of such a move, providing a desirable site can be secured at reasonable figures. The plan is to secure a plot of ground about half the size of a city block and improve the same by the planting of trees and grass. It is believed that a small park can be maintained at a small expense and will prove a source of much joy and pride to the citizens.

75 Years Ago

From The Odessa Record

August 19,1937

A harvest crew, using Odessa Trading company equipment, left on Wednesday to thresh 900 acres of wheat near Palisades. The crew was accompanied by J.C. Raugust and Frank Smith, who will aid in setting up the machinery. Members of the crew include Karl Kiehn, foreman; Con Stroh, header puncher; Gilbert Geissler, tractor driver and J.G. Halliday, sack sewer.

25 Years Ago

From The Odessa Record

August 27, 1987

Donald James, administrator of Memorial Hospital here since April 1986, has announced his resignation to become administrator of North Valley Hospital in Tonasket.

Carol Schott has been named interim administrator for Memorial Hospital. She has been assistant administrator for the past 5½ years.

After winning time trials Friday and Saturday by relatively large time margins, Craig Smith of Odessa garnered the number-one finish in the pro-alcohol dragster class at the World Finals last weekend in Spokane.

10 Years Ago

From The Odessa Record

August 22, 2002

Odessa Memorial Healthcare Center will have another doctor beginning in mid February, 2003. Dr. Gian (John) Giuliani has signed an employment agreement with OMH.

Bids for the construction and excavation of Seed Rite and Lyons Tile were the main topic of conversation at the meeting of the Public Development Authority.

The Odessa enhancement project is progressing right along. It seems like the streets and sidewalks have been torn up forever, but not really. It has only been four weeks. Halme Construction is working fast and furious to complete this job in time for the Deutschesfest. The week of August 12, Halme Construction began trenching electrical conduit and water lines for the street lights and irrigation system. Curb and gutter installation is set tentatively for August 26 to 28.

Deutschesfest is fast approaching as there are only 5 Fridays until the big event begins.