The Historacle The Official Newsletter of the Talent Historical Society Volume 22 Issue 4 December 2016 By Belinda Klimek Vos First People - The Takelma I grew up along the banks of Bear homeland and home, and recounted a and gather plants. This pattern is Creek in Talent. As a young girl, I would story, “To the Takelma people, the commonly known as the seasonal often run down the hill behind my house Rogue River is the lifeblood of the Great round. In order to be successful, a to the creek below and imagine an Indian Animal that is the World. The head of large area of land was necessary as well village nestled into the flat acres along the animal is Crater Lake, the neck is as an extensive knowledge of the cycles my section of the creek. It seemed a Boundary Springs where the Rogue of the native plants and animals that perfect spot. There were plenty of oak River starts, the ribs are the two Table lived and grew there. A belief system trees dotting the hillside above, teeming Rocks just upriver from Ti’lomikh that prevented overuse of these limited with acorns each fall; such an idyllic (ancient Takelma village) , the rear end resources was also vital. place to fish, hunt and gather. My is Gold Beach where the Rogue flows In early spring, families would imagination ran wild as I “saw” an Indian into the Pacific Ocean.” He also travel to prime root -gathering and woman making baskets and tending to mentioned that the ribs extended fishing sites where they would find wild small children. I went as far as to try my outward to include the creeks and celery, Miner’s lettuce and other greens. hand at making arrowheads by striking streams that fed the Rogue River. Spring runs of salmon were also pieces of quartz and jasper with another The area around Talent is at the far harvested. The summer months found hard rock. The results were crude, but I end of one of those ribs, and the the Takelma people traveling to higher still remember the sharp scent of spark as Takelma word for Bear Creek is Si -ku - elevations in search of big game, bulbs I hit rock upon rock. The hours slipped ptat meaning dirty water. The Shasta and several kinds of berries including away as I pretended to be a young Indian Tribe occupied the lands just to the blackberries, service berries, maiden free to explore her world; no south. There is some conflict as to the gooseberries and elderberries. Animal school, no clocks, no cares. exact location of the boundary between foods, especially deer, were hunted as For thousands of years, the Takelma the two tribes and it would appear that it well. By early fall, they would return to people lived on the lands that we now call was a disputed zone. The two tribes the mid -elevations to take advantage of Talent. Their traditional homeland intermarried, but didn’t always get the fall salmon runs; drying their catch includes most of the Rogue Valley in along. The Takelma word for Shasta for later consumption. Acorns would southern Oregon, north of Grants Pass to Indian is Wulx , meaning “enemy.” also be gathered, while tarweed fields Sexton Mountain and south to Ashland. According to Doty, “There were were burned to make easy collection of several Takelma villages in the Talent the seeds. Communal deer and elk area, two of the main ones being across drives were also held in the late fall. In the creek from the Beeson House ( at the winter, the Takelma returned to lower intersection of Wagner Ck. Rd. and elevations. Beeson Lane ), and the other at the While the Takelma’s diet was mouth of Wagner Creek.” There are varied, several staple items provided said to be springs near the former the bulk of their nourishment. Acorns Beeson property. All people look for were the most important vegetable food the same resources; water, food and building materials, so it’s not surprising that white settlers valued those locations as well and often located on former Native American home sites. The name Takelma means “the river’s The Takelma were a seasonal people people” and refers specifically to the matching their lives to the changing Rogue River. The Talent Historical temperatures and weather as the year Society was fortunate to have native progressed. They took advantage of storyteller, Thomas Doty, address our food sources as they became available group in August of 2016. He spoke about and in late spring, summer, and early the Native American’s concept of fall traveled to higher elevations to hunt Continued on page 4 1 Museum Hours: Talent Saturday, Sunday & Holiday Mondays Historical 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm Society Memberships since Last Issue New Members: David & Renee Heath Colleen Roberts The Talent Historical Society Maureen Flanagan Battistella Shirley Sullivan Hewitt researches and preserves the Mike & Tammy Dalton Christine Collins history of the Talent area in Ed Colson & Jennifer Laughlin Rebecca Long & Cindy Marotta Sharon Anderson Tim & Judy Cebulla Southern Oregon. We offer a Patrick & Amy Huffman Ed & Sharon Olson collection of historical archives to Dave & Ann Galligan Ken Nelson help local residents and visitors Mike & Julie Serrano Darren & Renee Reedy become better acquainted with Gene & RoseMary Woida Thomas Doty our area’s rich history. John Wahl Bon & Michelle Stewart New Lifetime Memberships: We operate a museum and Michael Mills meeting place located at: Renewals: Linda Cooley John & Kittie Harrison 105 North Market Street Francis Hayman LaVelle Ricks Talent, Oregon Robert Burnett Elizabeth Stark Ruby Garmon Mary Ann Gayton The museum is open Saturday and Mark & Gerlinde Smith -Poelz Stuart Douglas Sunday and Holiday Mondays Dick & Shirl Phillips Kristi Mergenthaler from 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm. Renewing Business Sponsors: Mountain View Estates General Business Address: : Lifetime Memberships Marla Cates & Jan Ritter Margay Garrity P.O. Box 582 Bud & MaryLouise Gleim Al Nijenhuis Talent, OR 97540 Edwin McManus & Family Additional Donation: Phone Number: (541) 512 -8838 Michael Mills in memory of Betsey Dial -Mills John & Kittie Harrison Elizabeth Stark Email: [email protected] Ruby Garmon Dick & Shirl Phillips www.talenthistory.org Honorary Lifetime Memberships Facebook: www.facebook.com/ Bob Casebeer Jan Wright Susan Moulder Katherine Harris talenthistory/ DON’T MISS OUT!! The Historacle is published quarterly. Would you like timely email reminders about upcoming events at the Talent Histori- cal Society? If so, contact us at: [email protected] or call and leave a message at (541) 512 -8838. Or just drop by the museum and leave us your infor- Editor/layout: mation. We’ll email notices out including all the information about upcoming Belinda Klimek Vos events. 2 THS President’s Message - by Ron Medinger Tuesday Evening at the Museum Last night was our monthly Board Meeting. What a great group of people to work with! I thank them each and every one. The Talent Historical Society They said I could still be Board President for one more year and I am honored continues it series of presentations held by their support. on the fourth Tuesday of each month We’ve made much progress in the past two years, but we still have a long from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. path ahead. I’d like to thank each of you who value the Historical Society enough On Sept. 27th, Ben Truwe told to support us with your paid memberships and donations. That allows us to pro- about the life of Pinto Colvig, who was gress down that path together. born in Jacksonville and had a career as If there are any of you who would like to become active participants by work- an actor, newspaper cartoonist and ing on projects or helping down at the museum, please contact me, or any of the circus performer. He was the original Board members. This thing only works by many people coming together and Bozo the Clown. offering what time they may have available to help out. Our Annual Meeting was held on October 25th. Board President, Ron Medinger, gave a State of the Society Address, and Tam Moore spoke about Talent Poker Tour Accessions the Heritage District vote. We did not have a presentation in Our first Talent Poker Tour fund- The following items have been donated November because of the closeness to raising event on October 29th was a to us and have been added to the Muse- Thanksgiving. big success and all those who attended um collection: On December 27th, we will be had a good time. We especially appre- having a Holiday Open House with an ciate Mayor Darby Stricker matching A Fire Chief hat was donated by evening of community sharing and the donation amount for the evening Darin Welburn. caring during this Holiday season. from her discretionary fund account!! Bring a plate of cookies or a dessert/ Thank you so much. Talent High School annuals from snack to be shared with the group. Jan Our second tournament will be held 1940 to 1952 were donated by George Wright will give a presentation on the on Saturday, December 31st beginning Baylor. With the addition of the 1945 Beeson/Toon dollhouse which will be at noon at the Museum. The tourna- annual we now have a complete collec- on display. See the article on page 10 ment is open to THS members only, tion from 1937 to 1960. for more details. with a membership level of Family or Native American, Tom Smith, will above. Family photo albums, The Grem- be joining us on January 24th to give a The No -Limit Texas Hold’em tour- blin , the Talent 7th and 8th grade pa- presentation on tool making and other nament will feature a buy -in of $30.00 per from 1959, The Jolly Roger , Phoe- Native crafts.