The Covered Wagon
by Bill Miller for
the Mail Tribune
Monday, July 1st 2019
Return with us now to 1924, those
thrilling days of yesteryear when the arrival of a silent movie revived
excitement and memories in the minds of Southern Oregon pioneers.
With organ and orchestra accompaniment,
the “epic” film “The Covered Wagon” arrived for a two-day visit Feb. 29, at
Medford’s Rialto Theater (closed in 1953). Adjusting for inflation, the motion
picture had cost $12 million to produce and would gross $114 million.
Based on a novel by Emerson Hough, “The
Covered Wagon,” promised the “most human and tender story of the hardships and
sufferings of the heroic pioneers that has yet been put in pictorial form.”
Viewers would see a “two-mile wagon train” crossing the plains from Kansas to
Oregon Country. There would be “spectacular scenery, Indian attacks, prairie
fires, a desperate and dangerous river crossing, and the story of a man’s love
and sacrifice for a beautiful girl.”
Wow! A mere two days and four
performances were obviously not enough to satisfy the local population’s
curiosity, so, the motion picture returned for Fair Week in September; four
days with five performances each day.
Medford impresario George Hunt, owner
of the Rialto and Craterian movie theaters, joined with the Mail Tribune to
offer an exciting promotion. Pioneers who had trekked across the country to
Oregon in a covered wagon could have a free ticket to a performance.
All that was required was that the
pioneers register their name, age, address, their arrival date in Oregon, and a
few facts about their trip. The Mail Tribune also encouraged the pioneers to
write a short story about crossing the plains.
One of the biggest surprises during the
ticket giveaway was the reunion of two pioneers who hadn’t seen each other
since they lived in Missouri, 56 years earlier.
Trail resident Perry Foster, 83, came
into the Mail Tribune office one afternoon, closely followed by Jim Griffin of
Boise, Idaho. Griffin, 78, was visiting his sister near Griffin Creek. Their
father, an early pioneer, had named the creek.
The two men were registering with two
separate clerks when Perry Foster gave his name.
Griffin spun around and shouted, “Perry
Foster? Do you remember Jim Griffin?”
“Do I remember Jim Griffin?” Perry
said. “Well, I’ll be damned!”
With a shake of their hands, nearly 60
years melted away. The two old pals were soon slapping backs and swapping
stories, oblivious to everything and everyone. They left the office arm in arm, laughing, still talking, and wasting no time in claiming good seats together at
“The Covered Wagon.”
Pioneers, eager to tell about their
dusty and arduous 2,000-mile walk across the country, flooded the Mail Tribune
office with essays. There were stories of cholera epidemics, Indian attacks,
runaway horses, and the deaths and burials of loved ones.
Tom Collins was 12 years old when he
left Iowa. He remembered losing a half day while watching and waiting as
thousands of
The longest essay came from Judge
William Colvig, who arrived in Oregon in 1851 when he was 7 years old. Colvig
was one of the most respected men in Southern Oregon, and he definitely wasn’t
a fan of “The Covered Wagon.”
“The writer took great liberties with
the historical phase of the subject,” he said.
Next week, Colvig speaks for himself.
Writer Bill Miller is the author of
“History Snoopin’,” a collection of his previous history columns and stories.
Reach him at newsmiller@live.com or WilliamMMiller.com.
