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The Dalles Chronicle, August 31, 1906, page 3

AN HISTORIC LANDMARK
The Old Shoe Factory Is Changed Into A Modern Saloon, With All Its Attractions
REMINISCENCES OF THE PAST
The North Dalles Land Boom Recalled, And Some Of Its Baleful Consequences

The old shoe factory on the Washington side of the river is about to be changed into a saloon, and this will awakened in the minds of many the oft-repeated story of the North Dalles and Grand Dalles land boom when that rock-ribbed and sand and sun-scorched region attracted the attention of the people of some of our Eastern cities. Coroner lots tthere sold for all the way from $150 to $300, and glass, corset, box and other factories were projected.
Thousands of copies of the pamphlet were scattered broadcast, describing the excellencies of this favored region. On the front page was a wood-cut of the Grand Dalles, from a painting by a celebrated German artist. In this picture an elegant and substantial bridge spanned the Columbia, leading to and from The Dalles; clusters of beautiful cottages dotted the North Bank of the river; three lines of railroad entered Grand Dalles from imaginary passes through the Klickitat hills; large factories were seen smoking at every street corner in the new town, and in the suburbs were seen a dozen locomotives conveying three well-laden ships across the complete ship railway. All these have been placed on the canvas by the master brush of the painter, and when transferred to the wood-cut, made an attractive and beautiful front peace for the little pamphlet.
This land or town-boom attracted many to North or Grand Dalles. Some desired to be put off at Celilo - they could easily walk down to The Dalles and across the river on the bridge. Others came as foremen of the shoe factory, or manager of the glass factory, or superintendent of the other industries which existed only in the imagination of the promoter. A few remained in The Dalles with us, and some returned to their Eastern homes, heaping maledictions upon the swindling projector of the inflated boom. It might be stated that pictures of fruit, taken from orchards near The Dalles, with the camera close to the tree - so that apples and pears appeared almost the size of watermelons -- were shown as products of Grand Dalles.
Many came as home-seekers to this little paradise on the north bank of the Columbia. Widows gave their earnings to purchase lots in the new Arcadia, and men left positions that were paying $125 to $150 a month to grow up with the new country. There were many pathetic stories told by those deceived and deluded people, and The Dalles supported some by charitable donations, after The Grand Dalles land boom had swallowed the last dollar they had.
But the boom collapsed, and the old shoe factory has been inhabited by bats and reodents for many years. It was merely a shell and was often expected to blow down during the prevalence of some of our strong winds. The box factory looks like a three-storied shack, and the corset shop has been supported by props on the east side.
The old structures have been put to some use since the building of the north bank road -- to house some of the employees, and now the old shoe factory is used for a purpose that the promoter of Grand Dalles would have violently opposed. But times change, and the people change, too. The past is only recalled by differences that now exist to what they were ten and twenty years ago. Let us hope there will be no more false land booms like the one that brought loss and sorrow to many who invested in Grand Dalles.