Pendleton, Oregon

 Between Boise and Pendleton, we stopped at the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center.   These people would travel by boat to Independence, Missouri and then join a wagon train to make the 1900 mile trip to the Oregon territory.  They estimate between 200,000 and 500,000 made the trip.  There were approximately 30,000 that died along the way.  This was in the mid to late 1800's.  These travelers were fleeing epidemics and bad economy in the East, and hoping to claim some land of their own.

 Below you can still see the ruts from the wagon trains on the hill behind the museum.

In Pendleton, Oregon of course we toured the Pendleton Woolen Works Factory.  It started back in the early 1900's.  It's very modern factory, and very interesting how these high-tech weaving machines work.

 

 Hamley's western wear store in Pendleton.  Pendleton is the home of the 4th largest rodeo in the states.  This store as well as many others in town were stocking up for the week-long event coming up in September.

We took a tour of the underground in Pendleton.  The Chinese had a laundry and bath house for the cowboys when they came in from the range.  In the 1930's during prohibition, the bar owners would hire a boy to stand guard up above and pull a rope that would ring a warning bell down in the underground.  That would give those partaking in alcohol time to hide before the raid. 

 

 

 

 

After the cowboys got cleaned up, then they would just mosey upstairs to the Cozy Rooms (brothel),  Our tour guide told us a funny story about a Fed-Ex delivery guy.  He had a package to deliver to the brothel.  His buddy offered to take it upstairs to the madam that ran the business.  He thought he would play a trick on the Fed=Ex guy and pretend to be zipping up his pants when he came out of the entrance.  He didn't realize his mother-in-law was sitting in a car across the street.

Above are the rooms that kept the cowboys happy.  Below are the 30 steps to get up to the Cozy Rooms.

 

 The madam that ran the brothel.  She did not participate herself, but took good care of the women that worked for her.  She was a very popular person in Pendleton, well-liked by everyone.  When she died, it was the second largest attended funeral in Pendleton.