A Wild Bear Fight on the Grand Ronde
A local hunter witnesses a brutal showdown between a cinnamon and a black bear in the Asotin County mountains.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Frank Hansen, of Hansen's Ferry post office, witnessed a fight between two bears one day last week in the mountains along the Grand Ronde river and succeeded in getting one of the combatants. Mr. Hansen was out hunting and from a distance observed a cinnamon bear coming down the mountain side going in the direction of a deep gulch. About this time a black bear made his appearance from the brush in a gorge, and observing the approach of his opponent, he gave a growl and made straight for him. The two met in an upright position and tore and clawed each other for some time. The black bear was seemingly getting the worst of the bargain and turned to re-enter the brush, but was stopped by a well-aimed shot from the rifle in the hands of Mr. Hansen. At the crack of the gun, the cinnamon took up the mountain and was soon lost sight of in the heavy timber. The bear dressed something over 600 pounds. Mr. Hansen had a good view of the combat from his position, which he describes as fierce while it lasted.
“The two met in an upright position and tore and clawed each other for some time.”
While this account reflects a time of unfettered frontier hunting, it captures the rugged, untamed spirit of the Washington Territory era. Today, the Grand Ronde region remains a critical corridor for wildlife, though managing human-bear conflict has evolved from sport hunting into a focus on conservation and coexistence.
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