The Town on Wheels
As White Bluffs migrates toward the hill, the Columbia hotel prepares for its literal trek to the new townsite.
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.
A farewell dance is billed at the Columbia hotel Saturday night. Good music by Mr. and Mrs. J. E. Newby is assured and the management promise to spare no pains to make the evening preeminently pleasurable. After this week the hotel will be conducted at the new location on the hill, while the old landmark will be put on the skids and started on its journey westward to the new town.
“the old landmark will be put on the skids and started on its journey westward to the new town.”
In the early 20th century, entire wood-frame buildings in the Columbia Basin were frequently put on rollers or skids to be relocated as town centers shifted. This mobility defined a landscape that was constantly being reshaped by developers and railroad expansion.
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