Down the Siletz

Come travel down the Siletz River with six-year-old Orrice Brown, her family of five, travel trunks, cookware, washboards, livestock, a pet canary, and a terrier named Clyde. The year was 1916 and they were moving from a farm near Corvallis to the northern end of Lincoln County, now known as Roads End. Orrice Brown (Addler) told this epic story in 1993 at the age of 83, 77 years after the trip. 

Museum Director, Jeff Syrop, will guide you on this journey by using the museum’s historical photographs, maps, and oral histories. You will see what Orrice and her family would have seen as they travelled on wagon roads, floated down the Siletz River to the town of Taft, and took the only “road” north, the beach. After this presentation, you will truly have an understanding of what it was like to move to the coast before the roads and bridges were well established. 

This is a free presentation at the North Lincoln County Historical Museum on Saturday, July 23rd, from 1 pm to 2 pm. Seating is limited to about 35, so come early to ensure a seat. 4907 SW Highway 101 in Taft (south Lincoln City). 

Orrice Brown in 1922