The Current Took Three Rafts Through Box Canyon
A crew tried to beach three loaded timber rafts near Ione, but the Pend Oreille River swept them into Box Canyon. The men escaped in a rowboat; the iron cargo was lost and most of the timbers were recovered below the canyon.
Last week Grant Smith Co. sent down three rafts of bridge timbers for the construction work near Ione. Loaded on the barges were about 15 tons of bolts and irons. Wm. Stadelman, George Pelka and Jas. Dunlap went down on the barges from this port. When near Ione they attempted to bring the rafts to shore, but the current was too strong for them and swept the rafts on through Box Canyon, the men making their escape to shore in a rowboat. The rafts were broken up during the passage through the canyon, and all the iron lost, but most of the timbers were captured below the canyon.
“The current was too strong for them and swept the rafts on through Box Canyon, the men making their escape to shore in a rowboat.”
The Pend Oreille River was Newport's highway and its hazard in 1909; bridge timbers moved by water because mountain roads were rough. Today the same corridor is watched for flood risk and heavy freight, though the timber rafts are gone. The story is a reminder that the river that built the town could also take a week's work in a few minutes.
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