Chapter 10 - Baseball and Vacations

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They also had ladies' races, long dresses and all, to the evident delight of the preponderantly male population.

But one time there occurred a massive land slide just below the site of the town of Roosevelt, effectively damming up the mountain stream, and creating a mountain lake at the townsite. So, unlike many early day camps which were burned out, Roosevelt was permanently drowned out. (Date of photos probably about 1904 - 1907)

In late summer groups of Nez Perce Indians with their horses and squaws (wrapped in blankets) moved through town on their way to fishing and hunting grounds.
Building, R. to L.: (1) Red Light House; (2) Blue Goose Saloon; (3) Lapp Merchandise Store; (4) Express Office; (5) Hardware & Novelty Store; (6) Elk City Bank.

On a sunnier day another group of the Nez Perce heads for the back country. This shot shows the rough plank board walks, - man hopping mud puddles to reach one of them. (About 1908)

The late spring of 1908 was a period of beautiful, crisp sunny weather. After a long, cold winter working in and about the mines, a group of regular boarders at, the hotel determined that it was time for them to take a vacation. Young Strong, being mascot and batboy for the Buster baseball team, had gained some favor among the men, so, with his parents permission, the group invited him to join them. The vacation was to be a camping trip to "The Hot Springs", many years later designated a Post Office, and named "Red River Hot Springs". At the time, the "Springs" was accessible only by overland trails a rather easy one day journey to the north east from Elk City. The spot was a comfortable little mountain vale surrounded by forests of fir and pine trees. There were two or three old abandoned log cabins, abandoned, that is, except for the uses campers made of them during the summer months. From the rocky Cliffs on the east side 'of the little cove, hot springs with temperatures of 140 to 150 degrees bubbled forth in considerable volume. Curiously enough, within feet of the hot springs, there were cold springs gushing from the rocks in equal volume. In fact these springs were the head waters of one fork of the Red River.