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Woot! Woot! We Received an Award!

5/30/2018

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Deb Meaghers receives Virginia P. Green Award from City Councilor Cara Kiser, May 17, 2018 [Photo: City of Salem]
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The Permanent Plaque recognizing the Awardees of the Virginia P. Green Award hangs in City Council Chambers. [Photo: COS]
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Dr. Rick Neahring receives the Benjamin I. Maxwell Award from City Councilor Cara Kiser, May 17, 2018 [Photo: COS]
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The Permanent Plaque recognizing the Awardees of the Benjamin I. Maxwell Award hangs in City Council Chambers. [Photo: COS]
May 17, 2018.

The City of Salem, through its Historic Landmarks Commission, bestows two awards annually to recognize exemplary efforts in the field of local historic preservation. The Virginia P. Green award, is named in honor of a former history teacher who retired to Salem and fell in love with Salem's rich history and still  tirelessly shares that love throughout her new hometown. The Benjamin I. Maxwell Award, named for a longtime Salem Capital Journal newspaper photographer-reporter who documented Salem's life and character over many years, recognizes outstanding contributions to the preservation of Salem’s historic resources.

The recipient of the 2018 Virginia P. Green Award was none other than Salem History Matter's own Deb Meaghers. In bestowing this award, the HLC remarked that "Deb is passionate about history, which is reflected in her life’s work! Deb worked for the City of Salem for many years,
staffing the Historic Landmarks Commission from it infancy. After retirement, her work with the KMUZ radio show, “Salem History Matters”, and her Program Blog have built a bridge between our rich historic legacy and our contemp-orary lives. Deb has co-authored several local history books, including one about West Salem. Salem is very lucky to have Deb within our community. Her work ensures that both residents of Salem and visitors to Oregon’s capital city have an opportunity to connect with our history for many years to come."

The recipient of the Benjamin I. Maxwell Award was Dr. Rick Neahring. The HLC recognized Dr. Nearing "for the nomination and rehabilitation of the Ed
and Marie Viesko House. The Viesko House, constructed in 1924, was nominated in 2016 and is a significant
example of a typical Salem English Cottage. This house is also significant for its association with Ed Viesko. Viesko was a Salem builder who constructed many of Salem’s buildings, including the Meier & Frank Building, the Marion County Courthouse, and Smith Auditorium at
Willamette University. Without property owners like Dr. Neahring, working individually to ensure their homes and their history are recognized and preserved, our Salem Historic Preservation program would not be possible."

Those of you familiar with our radio program and our Blog, will recognize Rick Neahring from the three episodes we produced chronicling, first, his plans for rehabilitating this local treasure, then through the process to nominate the house as a Local Resource, and ultimately through the process undertaken to pursue a National Register nomination.  You may also recall that our co-host, Christy Van Heukelem was actively working with Rick throughout this process, researching Ed Viesko, his family and business, and the many contributions he made in the Salem community, and then documenting that research in the various formats required for the nomination process.
Although successful in achieving Local Resource status, Rick and Christy were not able to fully satisfy the arduously stringent requirements for National Register nomination. However, they were both extremely successful in documenting the many facets of Viesko's rich legacy in our hometown, and highlighting those impacts on the community character that we now enjoy.  Well worth the effort--and well done!   
Awards are soon forgotten; after all, a new one is announced every year. But the work to preserve our rich historic legacy is never forgotten, never without its own rewards. It is the responsibility of one generation to remind and regale the next of their shared history. A bright, promising future can only be ensured by building upon a well-respected and well-grounded past. 
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Historic Cemeteries: City View, a Family Business

5/23/2018

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PictureMt. Crest Abbey Mausoleum, 1914, on the grounds of City View Cemetery [Photo: Salem Heritage Network}
Cemeteries are  typically the silent repositories of the history of  local communities, and historic cemeteries often prove to be the gatekeepers to the treasures of our rich heritage! While strolling through the peaceful grounds, you can discern major components of local history just by reading the headstones: wars, epidemics, notable families, working families, times of plenty, times of trouble.  Our guest today, Rick Hilts of family-owned City View Cemetery & Funeral Home, accepts this responsibility willingly.

PictureRick Hilts [Photo: CVC]
The Hilts Family, first father and mother William  and Fern, and later brothers Rick and Dave, have been operating this long-time Salem business since 1966 when they purchased the business from Fern's uncle and aunt, Herman and Leta Johnston. William Hilts, originally from Kansas, was introduced by friends to Fern Ingram of Albany who was teaching in Coos Bay after graduating from Willamette University. Fern's grandfather, Burl ingram, was a Linn County Commissioner from 1959-1974. They were married in the Congregational Church in Salem, and the rest, as they say, is history.  Rick, whose background was originally in forestry, took over leadership of the business in 1983 due to the ill health and subsequent death of his father. 

The cemetery was founded in 1893 by Jason Porter (J.P.) Frizzell. Mr. Frizzell and his parents had emigrated to Oregon over the Oregon trail and settled in Polk County. J.P. acquired this acreage from the Baskett and Headrick families. Herman Johnston, who previously worked with Forest Lawn Cemetery in Los Angeles, California, was hired by the Frizzell family to manage City View in 1940, and then purchased the business in 1949. It's not known what lead Mr. Frizzell, a farmer from Perrydale, to purchase this acreage in south Salem nor what prompted him to begin a cemetery, but wouldn't it be fun to find this out? But that's best left for another day.
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Mt. Crest Mausoleum [Photo: breakfastonbikes.blogspot.com]
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[Photos, L & R: UO Library]
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Elsinore Theater, 1926, left; Masonic Building, 1912, above.
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1924 Thomas Livesley Home; now known as Mahonia Hall [Photo:Google Images]
City View has areas dedicated to war veterans (American Civil War (GAR), Spanish-American War, on through Viet Nam), infants and young children, and several fraternal organizations. One of the showpieces of the complex is the 1914 Mt. Crest Abbey Mausoleum. This Classic Greek-Roman-style structure is one of a small number of impressive mausoleums built throughout Oregon by the Portland Mausoleum Company. Mt. Crest Abbey was designed in 1913 by young Ellis F. Lawrence, later known as the "father" of architecture in Oregon. Besides being the Dean of Architecture at the University of Oregon from 1914-1946 and designing several buildings on that campus, Mr. Lawrence designed several other buildings in Salem, including the 1926 Elsinore Theater, the 1912 Masonic Building, and the 1924 Thomas Livesley House, aka Mahonia Hall, the official residence of the Oregon governor since 1988.
Several notable individuals are interred in the Mausoleum, including Mary "Indian Mary" Peters (1853-1921), ferry operator and park namesake; Henry Schauer (1918-1997), U.S. Army soldier and recipient of the Medal of Honor; and Larry Norman (1947-2008), Christian musician, singer/songwriter. Also resting in Mt. Crest Abby are the remains of at least eight former Oregon governors. Their photos are displayed below.
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Zenas Moody, 7th Governor, 1882-1887 [Findagrave.com]
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William Paine Lord, 9th Governor, 1895-1899 [FAG]
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Oswald West, 14th Governor, 1911-1915 [CityViewCemetery]
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James Withycombe, 15th Governor, 1915-1911 [CVC]
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Ben W. Olcott, 16th Governor, 1919-1923 [CVC]
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Walter M. Pierce, 17th Governor, 1923-1927 [CVC]
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Isaac L. Patterson, 18th Governor, 1927-1929 [CVC]
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Charles A. Sprague, 22nd Governor, 1939-1943 [CVC]
The Hilts family have long been helping local citizens discover their history. Rick was integral to the recent public archaeology project to uncover the Chinese Shrine in Salem Pioneer Cemetery. Their staff are always willing to assist folks trying to trace their geneology, and they welcome those with FindAGrave.com to locate and photograph headstones. As Rick stated so emphatically, "History is a big part of who we are, and the cemetery is where history resides." 

We encourage you to make a discovery or two about your own heritage by strolling through your local cemeteries, wherever they may be. You won't be disappointed--and you'll get to add to your exercise credits, too. 
~~Posted by Deb Meaghers
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    Deb Meaghers and Christy Van Heukelem, historians and authors, are passionate about the history of Salem and the entire mid-Willamette Valley.  We love sharing our enthusiasm for our rich historic legacy with others.  

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