This week many children, college students and teachers are heading back to school. In Salem in the 19th century the first schoolhouse was a log cabin, and the school year was shorter than it is now, and only for elementary school. By the turn of the century, Salem had grown to have five schools, but they were all of wood, and susceptible to fire. By 1909, the Salem community voted to fund the construction of its first brick school, Garfield school, in order to reduce the risk of fire. While Salem had passed school levy to set aside taxpayer funds to pay for schools, in rural areas across Oregon in the early part of the 20th century one room school houses were still common. The Criterion Schoolhouse (now here in Salem) is an example of this type of school in our community. If you’d like to learn more, please visit https://oregonstatefair.org/attractions/criterion-school/

The first fair for the Oregon Agricultural Society was held at the Clackamas County Fairgrounds, near Oregon City on the 1st, 2d, 3d and 4th days of October in 1861. The Weekly Oregon reported on June 28, 1862 that the Board of Managers for the Oregon State Agricultural Society, meeting in Salem on June 16, 1862, decided to hold the second State Fair at the Fairgrounds of the Marion County Society on the first Wednesday in October for four days. The location near Oregon City was problematic, due to its proximity to the river and flooding. The Weekly Oregon reported on September 20, 1862 that the issue of selecting a permanent location for the State Agricultural Fair was considered at the regular biennial session of the Society at their September 17-18th meeting in 1862, and the Marion County Society Fairgrounds was selected as the permanent location for the Oregon State Fair, where it has been held ever since. There are three designated historic buildings on the Fairgrounds including the Criterion Schoolhouse, the Horse Stadium and the Poultry Building. This year’s fair will be the 163rd year it has been held in Salem and it will run through September 1rst. For more information please visit: oregonstatefair.org

Englewood was the first Park to be purchased by the City in 1926 and how this came about was a bit of a controversial story. Regardless of this controversy, Salem’s first park had been acquired and in 1936 the first Parks Committee was established by the Council. Elisabeth Lord, of Lord and Schryver, was one of three members who were appointed to manage Salem’s first 8 parks. Englewood Park Forest Festival is coming up soon, on August 9, 2025, which started in 2017! To learn more about how the Englewood Park Forest Festival came about you can visit kmuz.org and listen to a Willamette Wake up Interview recorded on August 10 2017 with Laurie Loomis Dietz and Ruth Roberts, Lord and Schryver Conservancy. This year’s annual festival will be held on August 9, 2025 from 10:00am to 4:00pm. To learn more, please visit englewoodforestfestival.org.

100 years ago this week, on July 29, 1925, the first man from Marion County entered prison for violating prohibition laws. He was the first to be sentenced to the Oregon state prison. Amy Platt wrote “The Moon Shines on the Moonshine” An Oregon Bootlegging Story for the Oregon Historical Society in 2020 and she shares a story about a bootlegging adventure on the Oregon coast in 1932 which went awry and resulted in a prison break. To read more about this caper in 1932 as well as many others you can find their story (including mug shots) on the Oregon Secretary of State’s website called Booze and the Big House.

During World War II there was also a Women’s reserve of the US Coast Guard during World War II called SPARS – this was an acronym derived from the Coast Guard’s motto “Semper Paratus” – meaning always ready. SPARs was established in 1942 along with the Army WAC and the Navy WAVES. To learn more about the history of the SPARS, please visit the United States Coast Guard webpage and search for the article by Robin Thomson about SPARS.

Marilyn Johnston, a retired City of Salem Employee, has created a documentary – about her mother Theresa Davis which not only gives some historical insights about the antisemitic discriminatory policies of the time, but she shares her experiences as part of the first twelve recruits including her personal account of their trip to their assigned station in the Midwest. To view the documentary produced by Marilyn Johnston, please visit YouTube and search for her video- My Mother Was a Coast Guard SPAR.

Guide Dogs for the Blind is the Largest guide dog school in North America. Since their founding in 1942, they have raised and trained over 16,000 Guide dogs. Their services are provided free of charge to their Blind clients, including personalized training and ongoing support. Their work improves mobility for their clients, empowering people of all ages who are blind or visually impaired to make their way in the world. If you want to learn more about Guide Dogs for the Blind, please visit guidedogs.com

To read more about the story of Guide Dog Roselle and her owner Michael on September 11, 2001 read Thunder Dog: A Blind Man, His Guide Dog and Triumph of Trust at Ground Zero.

Salem’s Doggie Dash will be held at Salem Riverfront Park on Saturday July 12, 2025. For more information please visit: https://secure.oregonhumane.org/doggiedash/Static/salem

May is when the annual "UFO Festival" in McMinnville is celebrated. This is the second-largest UFO festival in the nation after the one held in Roswell, New Mexico. The McMinnville UFO festival began in 1999 – and was a way to honor the 1950 sighting where two local citizens witness and photographed a UFO. The photos were printed in Life magazine by Paul and Evelyn Trent at their farm outside of McMinnville. On June 8, 1950, Powell's story of the incident—accompanied by the two photos—was published as a front-page story in the McMinnville Telephone-Register. The headline read: "At Long Last—Authentic Photographs Of Flying Saucer. This year they celebrated their 25th Festival. To learn more about this event please visit: ufofest.com. In 1974, the National UFO reporting center was established in Davenport Washington. This is a non-governmental, non profit organization registered in Washington State. Additional sightings continued to be reported – such as the sighting of a UFO over East Salem reported in January 1979 as reported by multiple residents to the Capitol Journal, who said they saw a round glowing object with red flashing lights, hovering in the sky. If you want to learn more about the National UFO reporting center please visit: https://nuforc.org/

April is World Landscape Architecture Month (WLAM). Elizabeth Lord and Edith Schryver practiced landscape architecture together in Salem, Oregon, from 1929 to the 1969. Their firm was the first office of professional women landscape architects on the West Coast.

In Salem, the Lord and Schryver Conservancy works to ensure the home gardens designed by Elisabeth Lord and Edith Schryver are maintained.

To learn more:

Read the Book: “Northwest Gardens of Lord and Schryver”

Visit Lord and Schryver Conservancy: lordschryver.org

New in 2025: Drop by and enjoy Gaiety Hollow Garden at on Wednesdays 10-4 (May thru September).

Watch the Video “Women of Mission”. This video explores the lives of four of Salem's most interesting women: Elizabeth Lord, Edith Schryver, Sally Bush, and Alice Brown. Salem's garden and parks wouldn't be the same without the influence of these important women.

On April 5th we celebrated our 7th annual Qing Ming Festival. Qing Ming is an annual celebration where we honor the Chinese who have lived and worked in our community. This year Salem’s Mayor, Julie Hoy read the Qing Ming Proclamation and swept the Chinese community funerary table at Pioneer’s Cemetery – and also shared her connection of a relative of hers, to Helen Ng Mun Tayne, who was born here in Salem. Helen’s father had come to Salem from China in 1879, and he became a hop grower. Helen Ng Mun Tayne was born on a hop ranch not too far away from Salem’s Pioneer Cemetery on 28 April 1906. Helen served in the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps (WAC) throughout WWII. After the war, Helen continued to serve and she officially retired from the U.S. Army in 1964 as a Chief Warrant Officer 3, after more than 20 years of service. After Helen’s death in 1967 she was buried in Salem’s Pioneer cemetery near her family. Helen’s grave marker is one of four matching family stones that stand in a neat row not too far from the Chinese funerary table. To learn more about her life, and to see a picture please visit: https://www.willametteheritage.org/commemorating-the-life-of-cw3-helen-ng-mun-tayne/

Salem had a Chinatown downtown from the late 19th Century through the early 20th Century. Salem's Chinese contributed significantly to Salem's community and culture during this period, with George Lai Sun serving as a key leader in this community. While Salem's Chinatown is no longer extant downtown, we still have evidence of their culture and tradition, which can still be found within Salem’s Pioneer Cemetery where we continue celebrating the Qing Ming Festival.

To learn more please see the OHQ Article Searching for Salem’s Early Chinese Community as well as Russell Lowe’s book A Willow Tree Becomes a Forest.