Back Home
by Mark E. Walton
There is no better feeling than being back home in Oregon. I first left Oregon in 1972 and in that time, I have been to 16 countries and 49 of the 50 states. Out of all the places I have been, Oregon is the best place to be. The weather is great and geographically the state has everything from the ocean, to the desert with great mountains, and green valleys. My travels within the state have taken me every place except the Steen’s Mountains. As for my favorite part of the state, that is the north eastern section, especially the Wallowas.
I was born in Roseburg at the old Mercy Hospital in 1954. I do remember the big blast of 1959 because we lived close enough to the downtown area that our house shook and all the blinds fell down. My father, who worked for the telephone company and was a volunteer fireman, had to rush into town only to find that his best friend had died trying to save everyone (Roseburg Fire Chief). At the half way point in the first grade, we moved to Florence and that is where I grew up and graduated from Siuslaw High School.
Growing up in Florence was great! This was during the 60’s and 70’s- when there were 28 lumber mills within a 25 mile radius of Florence along with commercial fishing; the town was growing and thriving. We survived the Columbus Day Storm, the tidal wave of ‘64, the record snow fall of February 1969 (3 feet of snow), and the exploding whale (we were on the dune watching the spectacle). We fished, clammed, crabbed, hunted, and grew vegetables that we canned for later use.
As kids, we were always busy with playing in the woods, in the sand dunes, summers swimming at Honeyman State Park, beach combing, running, and growing up in a safe and healthy environment. I would not trade my childhood for anything after seeing how people from other countries and intercity kids live.
To this day, I am still in contact with many of the people I grew up with. And what is amazing is that I encounter even more of these people in my travels around the state. As for our family history, my grandfather (my dads) came by way of Carrington, ND. On my mother’s side, my great-great grandfather came on the Oregon Trail via the Kennedy Wagon Train. My grandfather opened the Photo Lab in Roseburg along with managing the old Umpqua Hotel. My grandfather was also the head photographer at Camp Adair during WW II. My father was a photographer and had his business in Florence and for many years, he was the official photographer of the Elks, Moose, and Rhododendron Festival. My father (Zeke Walton) and I put on the Rhododendron Festival Kids Day events for over 12 years. I too am a photographer; having a great collection of Oregon photographs.
