Securing the Creeks Before the Spring Thaw
Taxpayers rally to prevent the overflow of Mill and Yellowhawk creeks with a joint city-county funding appeal.
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.
John Thoney, Charles L. Whitney, and Harry A. Reynolds appeared before the board of county commissioners today and presented a petition signed by 81 taxpayers and residents living near the junction of Mill and Yellowhawk creeks. They asked the county to appropriate $300 to assist in repairing the banks of the two streams to prevent them from overflowing in the spring. It was stated that there is great danger of the banks washing out, which would turn all the water into the Yellowhawk, causing it to overflow and damage farmers along the stream. The commissioners offered to provide $200 if the city contributes the same amount and the interested parties raise the final $200, as the project is estimated to cost $600.
“There was great danger of the banks washing out and in that event all the water would be turned into the Yellowhawk.”
Flood mitigation and managing the complex interplay between urban development and natural waterways remain a perennial challenge for Walla Walla, echoing this 1904 effort to coordinate city and county funding for infrastructure safety.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.