A Perilous Descent Down Cowychee Hill
When a team of horses spooked on a steep grade, a local farmer had to make a split-second decision to save his family.
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.
George Thomas, while coming down the Cowychee hill in a wagon one day last week, experienced a very thrilling runaway, of which he does not care to have a repetition. His horses not acting well, he had his family dismount and then started down the grade. The animals were extremely fractious, and soon the reins parted. Under full headway, the horses jumped over a precipice. Fortunately, Mr. Thomas escaped without serious injury, but the wagon was wrecked and the horses crippled.
“The animals were extremely fractious, and soon the reins parted. Under full headway, the horses jumped over a precipice.”
Cowychee Hill remains a challenging and scenic transition point for travelers moving between the rural highlands and the Yakima valley floor. While modern engineering has tamed the grade, this account captures the very real dangers faced by early settlers relying on unpredictable horse teams on steep, unpaved roads.
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