This Week in Odessa History

This being National Agriculture Week and the publication date of The Record’s annual Agricultural Progress issue, it seems fitting that we reprint an article in The Record 75 years ago this week on Odessa as a farming center.

The piece was authorized by Fred W. Graham, who was General Agricultural Development agent for the Great Northern Railway, and it originally ran in the railroad’s monthly magazine, then reprinted in The Record’s edition of March 25, 1927.

Reflecting what life was like on the farm in the Odessa area then, the article follows:

Odessa in Lincoln County has given a mighty good account of itself in the past few years.

The flour mill that had been there for many years was bought and dismantled a few years ago. The farmers had successive dry years, and Odessa, which at one time was called the biggest primary wheat shipping station in the country, slipped way down. A number of stores were vacant. These were the conditions that existed a few years ago.

Fortunately, however, Odessa has the most thrifty, hard-working, hard-headed lot of German-Russian farmers. They have been working, digging and getting into dairying a little more all the time, and today Odessa is in good shape and conditions are excellent, and crop prospects are better than for many years.

There are 60 to 65 cream shippers who ship two-thirds of the Odessa cream to the Fernbluff Creamery in Monroe. The balance goes to Seattle, Spokane, Everett and Wenatchee. Three milk shippers shop 200 gallons of milk to the Meadowmoor Dairy in Wenatchee. This milk business alone gives the Great Northern Railway $400 a month in revenue.

Every Odessa farmer has a few cows and some chickens. A few of them have hogs, but there are not many sheep. Poultry is increasing, and there are now lots of chickens on nearly every farm.

Quite a lot of veal is shipped to Seattle, but not much beef cattle.

There have been few farm sales around Odessa. The farm owners have stayed with it, and are winning out. Town property and farms are in good demand, with active sales, mostly to people who have made money here and have faith in the locality.

Improved farms have been bought for $25 to $40 an acre in the past year. There are two good banks in Odessa. Just a few years ago, these banks were borrowers. Now they are lenders. Both banks have large surplus funds. The combined deposits of both banks are nearly $1,000,000.

It seems marvelous that a town and locality like Odessa can transfer itself from a borrowing to a lending community in three or four years.

These are good farmers, who do not like tractors. They do like horses and mules, and these animals are coming back into favor after the tractors have been given a trial. The animals do more efficient work on the sandy soil. Gasoline prices are high, and repairs to tractors are expensive. Farmers raise their own feed and can keep work animals cheaper than tractors.

The horses, mules, dairy stock and poultry furnish cheap fertilizer, which is an important item. Horses have increased 50 percent in three years. Young horses bring $125 each, and teams five years old bring $250 to $300 a pair.

The Odessa country recovered quickly from the war. The farmers have always pursued a half-and-half plan in their farming, or 50 percent in wheat and 50 percent in summer fallow each year.

Odessa has an active commercial club, which meets weekly. The town’s grading radius is 15 miles on three sides and 30 miles on the southwest side. Farm-to-market roads are a major objective of the Commercial Club.

100 Years Ago

From The Odessa Record

March 22, 1912

The time has come for a better understanding and a heartier cooperation between parent and teacher. The proper education for the boys and girls demand it. During the past the parent has been content to stand aside and let the teacher shoulder the whole responsibility, even to the extent of being held responsible for the child’s conduct in going to and from school. The teacher has been compelled to assume this responsibility and when parents were approached concerning any misconduct of their children, they have shifted responsibility by saying: “Look after it yourself, that is what you are paid for.”

All are beginning to realize that the child needs the closest bond of relationship between home and school.

75 Years Ago

From The Odessa Record

March 18, 1937

The Mennonite church at Ruff, inactive for many years, has disbanded and the members will align with the Menno Mennonite church, or with churches of the communities they now live in. The decision was made at a meeting of the congregation on February 28.

The Menno church will receive the new members at the meeting on Sunday morning, March 1, Palm Sunday. The Ruff church had 38 members, only 10 of which are residents of the area at the present time. The property has been put in the hands of the deacons to dispose of. The men are J.C. Jantz, P.C. Jantz and P.P. Dirks.

The Odessa commercial club has 106 paid in memberships for the year of 1937. This membership, in a town of less than 1000 population, is believed to be a record for eastern Washington and possibly the state.

25 Years Ago

From The Odessa Record

March 12, 1987

Odessa community leaders will meet with the Odessa Economic Development Committee in what has become a series of regular monthly meetings.

At the forefront of business to be undertaken is the proposed retirement center, now in the planning state and soon to undergo a feasibility study. The planned centers pro tem development chairman, Jim Walter, is expected to report to the gathering on progress being made in the center’s development.

Six young ladies vied for the title Odessa Junior Miss in the March 15 pageant. The contestants were Deea Schafer, daughter of Linda Schafer; Tammy Carlson, daughter of Melvin and Marilyn Carlson; Juli Stehr, daughter of Delores Deife and Ron Stehr; Shannon Fiess, daughter of Keith and Virginia Fiess; Shellie Green, daughter of Dick and Carol Green, and Dyanne Kramer, daughter or Errol and Mary Kramer.

The 1987 Odessa Junior Miss is Juli Stehr, daughter of Delores Deife of Odessa and Ronald Stehr of Spokane.

10 Years Ago

From The Odessa Record

March 21, 2002

This week, growers were just beginning to get out into the fields to plant spring wheat. Favorable winter weather has left the soil in good shape, with adequate moisture in the ground. Soft white winter wheat is the traditional crop in the Odessa area, but some hard white spring wheat varieties command a higher market price.

USDA’s Market Access Program has increased its funding from $90 million to $200 million to aid farmers, cooperatives and small businesses in conducting market promotion in foreign countries.

The bright spot in Odessa’s economy during the past year has been the opening of the Odessa Industrial Park, developed through a loan/grant of $1 million to the Odessa Public Development Authority from the Community Economic Revitalization Board (CERB) of the Washington State Office of Community Trade and Economic Development. Within a year, four buildings covering a total of 74,000 square feet were erected. Much of the development work was accomplished by in-kind services from the community.