Baseball for the Heppner Flood Victims
Walla Walla turns out for a charity game as the community rallies to aid those devastated by the catastrophic Heppner flood.
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.
Citizens and business men of Walla Walla bought tickets liberally yesterday and today for the benefit baseball games to be played on the Second street grounds tomorrow and Sunday afternoon. Many business men purchased $2.50 to $5.00 worth of tickets. Col. Parker, who is especially enthusiastic in this work, sold $50 worth of tickets alone yesterday. Fifty per cent of the proceeds will be donated to the flood sufferers at Heppner, and one of the largest baseball crowds of the season is expected to attend. Prior to the game, the Ninth Cavalry band will render a half-hour concert at the park, commencing at 3 o'clock. The Walla Walla team will be composed of the best players from the late Inland Empire league, and an exciting contest is anticipated.
“Fifty per cent of the receipts will be donated to the flood sufferers at Heppner.”
The 1903 Heppner flood was the deadliest in Oregon history, killing over 200 people. This account illustrates how local sports served as the primary mechanism for civic disaster relief long before the era of modern federal emergency management.
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