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The Klickitat County Agriculturist, July 26, 1935, page 1

THE TOKAY RANCH AT MARYHILL

Although the Rev. Will T. Jordan, proprietor of the Tokay ranch at Maryhill, will celebrate his 78th birthday next December 4, he is still in active charge of the Tokay ranch, says Fred Lockley in the Oregon Journal of July 18.
"My wife and I came to this 220-acre ranch, (25 years ago) where we found a full play for our activities. We have a ten acres in grapes. Our principal varieties are Rose of Peru, Tokay and Muscat. We have four acres of peaches, principally the Hale. We also have pears, apples, cherries, apricots, plums and prunes. Other profitable side lines are raspberries and asparagus.
"I have one advantage over many other farmers in that I supplement my income by performing marriage ceremonies. People come from all around this part of the country to be married. Not long ago a couple came from Portland because I had performed the marriage ceremony for the bride's parents, at Denver. People have even come here from California to be married.
"There is a statement that will be hard for you to believe, and yet I have records to confirm what I say. I shipped 52 tons of grapes, all by parcel post. Here you see that I paid out $955 in postage during three months. In addition, I paid out that year $4200 for labor and, of course, a considerable sum for boxes. I received $160 per ton for my grapes. After paying all expenses I cleared $4100 on my grapes that year. That was in the early 1920s
"That same year I was paid $30 a ton for my alfalfa. I got four crops, and sold 40 tons from my five acres. Naturally, it was irrigated, for without irrigation you are not apt to get over two crops. We have unfailing springs on our place and our 12-horse-power Stover engine pumps 650 gallons per minute. We operate a three-inch pump have two miles of pipe, so I can absolutely control the water supply and do not need to depend on rainfall.
"I am following in the footsteps of my father, Francis Marion Jordan, who was a Baptist minister. My first pastorate was in North Carolina. I came to Oregon 48 years ago and became pastor of the Baptist church at McMinnville. Bertha May Maddock, who was a student at McMinnville college, attended the Baptist church and was organist for the Sunday school. She and I were married on the June 26, 1888.
"While a farmer's income may not be quite so large in cash as a professional man in Portland, nevertheless, we have no rent to pay, no bills for water, no bills for milk or meat, and during the 25 years we have been here I have bought only three cords of wood. When a fruit tree becomes a star boarder I dig it up and use it for fire wood. We also get driftwood from the Columbia river during high water."