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The Oregon Journal, Portland, OR., August 24, 1935, page __
"Impressions and Observations of the Journal Man"
By Fred Lockley

"I was born at what is now Hood River, on May 21, 1857," said Mrs. Edward Underwood when I interviewed her at her home at Underwood, Wash. "Amos Underwood settled here first. My husband, Edward Underwood, who was his brother, came a little later. Amos took up the claim on which the town of Underwood is located. My husband took up a claim a little back from the river. This, his first claim, is now known as the Goddard place. The second place he owned is the property of Louie Thun. My husband owned a wood ranch on the mountain. They cut wood on his place and slid it down the river bank, loaded it on a scow, and when the wind was blowing up the Columbia they sailed up to The Dalles, with a sold the wood. My husband and Amos ran a saloon here for some years.
"My maiden name was Isabelle Lear. My father, William K. Lear, was born in Virginia. He was a soldier under General Philip H. Sheridan. As you know, Sheridan commanded a company of regulars at the time the Yakimas and Klickitat attacked the white people at the Cascades, late in March, 1856.
"My mother and my grandmother were members of the Cascade tribe. My grandfather, Chief Chenoweth, was a member of the Hood River tribe of Indians. When the Yakimas and Klickitats attacked the Cascades they escaped, and the Cascade Indians were left to bear the brunt of punishment for the attack. The Cascade Indians had always been friendly with the whites. My grandfather, Chief Chenoweth, had saved Mr. Hamilton, for whom Hamilton Creek and Hamilton mountain were named, from being killed by Indians. Chief Chenoweth and eight other Cascade Indians were hanged. Indians do not write history, and while the white men, at the time the incidents occur, may know the facts, the history is written by the white men, so the Indian side is rarely known or told. You will usually find that when a treaty is made with the Indians the white men expect the Indians to observe it to the letter, while the white men observe the treaty if it is to their interest to do so; otherwise, they will violate it.
Naturally, the Indians are restless when no dependence can be placed on the word of the white men. If Indians wrote their side of the Indian wars it would frequently be found that they were caused either by the bad faith of the white men or by acts of aggression of the whites. When white men are killed there must be a victim sacrificed to atone. Chief Chenoweth, though a friend of the whites, was a victim of the vengeance of the white men.
"My father was here only a short time, and left this part of the country before my birth. In fact, I did not see my father until I was married and had children. Many young army officers who served in Oregon and Washington prior to the Civil war had Indian wives. It was a custom at that time, and there are a large number of half-breed Indians in Oregon and Washington whose fathers later became distinguished army officers during the Civil war.
"My mother died here about 30 years ago.
"Here is an account book kept by my husband and dated at Little White Salmon, the accounts starting in 1869. At that time my husband was running a wood camp and had a store here. The names in this book will be very familiar to old-timers. There are the accounts of Bob Hogan and of Barr and Clark, who were wood choppers. Here are the accounts of Mr. Stranahan and of William Crivistor, who had a ranch about where the saw mill was later built, west of Underwood. His account is for June, 1869. Here is O.P. Hathway's account. He was a scow hand and wood chopper. William Clark, Charley King and John Irvine, whose accounts you notice on this page, were wood choppers. Here are the accounts of Henry Gulick, who owned a ranch, and of O. Kelly and Forbes, both wood choppers. Here is one of Henry Williams, a teamster, and here are three more wood choppers -- Baker, Bailey and Wilkinson.
"I learned to cook when I was a girl. I helped Mother cook from the time I was 12 until I was married at the age of 16. As soon as I was married I began cooking for the wood choppers my husband employed. My daughter, Grace, was postmaster here in the early days. When I was a little girl we used oil for lights - either seal oil, bear oil or Steelhead salmon oil. In those days there were lots of surgeon, seal and salmon in the Columbia river.
"My husband was a 11 years older than I. He was 27 and I 16 when we were married. He was born in Iowa on March 31, 1846. My daughter Lavisa was born on September 1, 1872; Grace, December 14, 1875; Maggie, June 17, 1878; Cornelia, June 9, 1880; William, October 30, 1882; Lafayette, March 30, 1886; Elsie, January 15, 1888; Lottie, October 6, 1890; Kate, April 21, 1893; Corbett, February 9, 1896; Isabell, March 14, 1905. I have 14 grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren.