witober

The Oregonian, Portland, OR., January 22, 1926, page 16

WISHRAM TO BE REVIVED
----------------------------
Railroad to change name of Fallbridge, Wash.
----------------------------

Action Taken to Preserve Indian Terminology With Regard to Town by Columbia

     To record and preserve an old Indian name, dating back to the days of Lewis and Clark, the Spokane, Portland & Seattle railroad company and Oregon Trunk Railway have announced that after February 1 Fallbridge, Wash., will be known as Wishram. This station on these Spokane, Portland & Seattle line, 106 miles east of Portland, is located at Celilo falls, head of those narrow rapids of the Columbia river known in early days as “The Narrows,” now known as The Dalles.
     Announcement of the reversion to the ancient name of the village was made Wednesday by R.H. Crozier, general passenger agent of the Spokane, Portland & Seattle railroad, Mr. Crozier said:
     "Wishram was a unique Indian settlement, as its inhabitants were traders, engaging in regular barter of dried fish, pelts, etc., with the tribes westward along the Columbia river and its tributaries and eastward well into the distant mountains. They had regular wooden buildings which were the only ones seen west of the Illinois country by Lewis and Clark.
     “Lewis and Clark reached this point October 24, 1805, and Wilson Price Hunt, leader of the overhead expedition of John Jacob Astor, on January 31, 1812. They found the Indians at this point to be the most intelligent of any they had encountered west of the Rocky mountains, and that they gained wide-spread news and gossip of the happenings in the Indian life at far-distant points through their trading relationships.
     “The Spokane, Portland & Seattle railway has preserved several aboriginal names along the Columbia river, including Wahclella, a station 44 miles east of Portland, and has restored the Lewis and Clark name to Beacon Rock, which had often been called Castle Rock.