What I really want to tell my readers this week is what happened to several well-known doctors who served in Bandon and Coos Counties in the 1920s, 30s, and 40s. Because of this, I decided to share a picture of the Ellingson building that was bought by a group of doctors, dentists, and druggists in 1928. Arthur Gale, Dr. RV Leep, Dr. FA Voge and Dr. RE Donahey. Although Dr. RH Mast was not part of the purchase, he was instrumental in setting up a makeshift hospital after the fire. Today the Arcade Tavern is located there on the corner of First and Alabama. If you look closely, you can see Dr. See Leep’s office on the second floor above the drugstore. At the end of Alabama is the state bank building that survived the fire and is now known as the Masonic Building.
The first tragedy occurred in late June 1929 when Dr. Leep, 41, with three doctors from Portland, Ed Capps and Archie Rosa, both from Bandon, hunted sea lions on Cape Blanco Reef. As they neared the large rocks they were supposed to land on, the water turned rough and Dr. Leep suggested putting on lifebuoys. Apparently he put down his shotgun without removing the grenades. They later decided to tie up the guns to drag them up the side of a bank. A man yelled at the men and asked if the guns were loaded, but because of the strong wind, the guy understood Dr. Apparently not Leep. And while she was moving the guns, the gun fired, killing Dr. Leep immediately.
Dr. Leep, who owned Leep Hospital in Bandon, grew up in Myrtle Point, where his father was a doctor. He began practicing medicine in Bandon in 1911.
Another of the medical building owners, Dr. Gale, had practiced in Bandon for the past 22 years and was one of the locals who fought the September 26, 1936 fire and helped the sick and injured while keeping his home and office cleared of the flames. It is believed that inhaling smoke and heat weakened his lungs. He died two months later at the age of 58.
Three years later, in October 1939, Dr. Mast, 43, owner of Mast Hospital in Myrtle Point, when he accidentally fell from a window on the eighth floor of the Portland Congress Hotel. He and Mrs. Mast had been in Portland for the weekend. She was sleeping when he was opening the window when he lost his balance.
He graduated from Coquille High School and the U. of O. Medical School and has practiced at Myrtle Point for the past 17 years, although he has often been with Dr. EF Lucas, our beloved bandon doctor, who is his fellow student in medical school. After the fire he came to Bandon immediately and set up a makeshift hospital in the Bob Otto Court, where he volunteered his services to help people.
Another homeowner, Dr. Voge, died of carbon monoxide poisoning in his Portland garage at the age of 65.
Another well-known dentist in Bandon, Dr. SC Endicott, committed suicide on the day of his wife’s funeral in 1947.
The second photo I share is of the medical building that was erected immediately after the fire on Second Street (now home to the Winter River Books) by OC Shindler and Dr. Lucas was built. It was quite a contrast to what they’d lost in the fire.
I recently bought this interesting but very old postcard (picture number 3) showing a three-masted schooner leaving the port of Bandon and a ship outside the canal.
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There were two very disturbing posts on Facebook on Sunday, including one that appeared in Coos Bay’s Mingus Park when a veteran was attacked and the attacker allegedly walked free.
Previously, a man had posted that his young wife was attacked in broad daylight on the 11th and Oak in Eugene as she was leaving a doctor’s appointment. A homeless man attacked her and threw her to the ground. She saw him reach for something in his pocket and was able to escape. A short time later, two blocks away, another woman was attacked by a homeless man, this time the victim was stabbed and ended up in the hospital.
The Mingus incident happened earlier this week when a 25-year-old Navy veteran was walking his dog. He was pushed violently against the bridge and his head hit a guardrail. The attacker kicked him furiously and shouted profanity. At this point a good Samaritan happened to be walking towards the bridge. She saw what the guy was doing and yelled at him to stop. He started shouting profanity at the poor lady, who anxiously left the scene and called the police.
Here’s the disturbing part: The Facebook post said, “When the Coos Bay police were there, they took the report from witnesses and me, where I was told by a police officer that the attacker was me attacked “was” I will not go to jail, “although I explicitly stated that I wanted to bring charges. I have been told that it is not because of the Coos Bay officials, but rather the sheriff, whose policy is “not to arrest low-level assaults” only when there is a weapon implicated in an attack. That’s what the taxpayers get from the local sheriff and Coos County police? ”The poster asked who was the victim of the crime.
I would say I don’t believe it, but I’ve heard of too many crimes in the Coos Bay area where the suspect won’t go to jail.
It’s time the people of this county started asking questions. If it’s not safe to walk in broad daylight, we need to know.
I also know that Bandon Dunes Golf Resorts transfers thousands of dollars to the sheriff’s office each year from taxes voluntarily collected by their subtenants. Time for a full accounting of how that money is being used.
If the priorities for how the money is spent to fund the sheriff’s office must change, so be it. The safety of our citizens must come first.
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I am sorry to learn that Reinhard Schoepel, a longtime resident of Bandon, died last week at the age of 80. Schoepel owned Reinhard’s Foreign Car Service at Fillmore for several years before retiring. His survivors include his daughter Stacia Duval and granddaughter Kaleigh from The Rolling Pin.
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The long-closed Dave’s TV building in Old Town Bandon is finally on the market. Mindy Boston of Century 21, Best Realty listed the 1,800-square-foot building for $ 300,000.
It was one of the first buildings erected by Haga and Church, grocers, after the fire; It later served as Croxall & Perry Grocery for many years before being bought by the late Dave Elliott, whose family now owns it.
Another commercial building for sale is Mary Ellingson’s 3,000-square-foot Bandon Florist building on the corner of 11th and Alabama. It’s listed for $ 595,000. I understand she plans to close the store if the store doesn’t sell.
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I heard from Nona Scott this week that the apartment number she got for her mother Barbara Dodrill was wrong. The number is 292. Barbara’s address is again 1005 NE 17th Ave., Apt. 292, Hillsboro, Ore., 97124.
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It was nice to read that Josh Minkler, son of Jim and Salena Minkler, is being celebrated as an Evans Fellow at the University of Oregon. Josh attended Bandon High School and played at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort. Today he is studying business administration at the University of Oregon.
The Minklers are a special family, and it’s great to hear Josh is now a Chick Evans Scholar, a full study and residential scholarship given to exemplary young caddies of outstanding character.
His father is a senior pastor at Seabird Chapel. His mother works in the special education department at Ocean Crest Elementary School.
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For the first time in more than a decade, Bandon will host a state playoff game when Oakland comes into town for a 7am game on Friday night (November 5th). The winner of that game will play against the winner of the Grant Union / Lakeview game the next weekend, either Friday or Saturday. The semi-final game will take place on the weekend of 19.-20. November, the final on November 27th.
It seems that Coquille will receive Monroe on Friday evening, but when I wrote that Sunday evening the time had not yet been announced.
Bandon’s football roster, coached by Jordan Sammons, has had an impressive season with a 7-3 record including a heartbreaking two-point loss to Coquille 40-38 and an impressive 14-7 win against Reedsport.
In a previous non-conference game with Oakland last Friday night, the Tigers fell 18-7 but plan to be ready for a rematch this week.
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I have learned that in accordance with the governor’s mandates mandating vaccination of health workers, 154 Southern Coos Hospital and Health District employees are fully vaccinated, while 18 religious exemptions and eight medical exemptions have been granted.
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People are reminded that on Saturday, November 13th, from 10am to 12pm, City Park will have a tree-planting drive hosted by Friends of Bandon Parks.
Christine Hall, chair of the city’s parks and recreation commission, said Bandon lost over 100 trees in City Park, mainly due to storms and the age of the trees.
The event is sponsored by the City of Bandon, Stillwater Natives Nursery, Friends of Bandon Parks and Samantha Stanger, who is the tree donor.