By Luke Ellington
In looking at the history of Orondo, its close ties to the Entiat Valley make the two communities appear as one. Unlike today, many Orondo settlers of the 19th century traveled daily across the mighty Columbia to get supplies, hunt and trap, work, or just to have dinner with friends. The distinction between the two sides of the river was less clear before Rocky Reach Dam and the formation of Lake Entiat. After the dam was built, the ferries could no longer travel back and forth, and sides had to be chosen. With many of the pioneering names still present in Orondo, the riverfront land just miles north of East Wenatchee must have much to offer. It only takes one bight of fruit from an Orondo fruit stand to understand the choice.
In 1868, near the end of Doner and George W. Parish’s trip from Ellensburg to the Entiat country, the two rugged pioneers came across a large black man washing his gold in an old Chinese mining ditch. Big Antoine had been educated in England as a valet and spoke English, French, Spanish, and “Indian.” He had escaped slavery in San Francisco and been hiding in the Entiat/Orondo area, unaware that the Civil War had ended over two years prior. After being chased away from his mining operation by a man named Indian Silico, Big Antoine eventually ended up in Portland Oregon, where he died. The small orchard of peach trees he left behind is said to have been a plentiful source of food for the early settlers and steamboat crews. (If you have any information concerning Big Antoine, his trees or his travels, please E-mail Luke Ellington at Duballstar1384@hotmail.com)
Daroga Park, just north of OrondoThough pioneering settlers of numerous races and creeds have called Orondo home, the present community faithfully praises the founding efforts of John Brown Smith. It was after a failed wheat crop in 1884, just miles east of Waterville, that J. B. Smith traveled to the Columbia River and claimed his highly-prized Orondo Grove. Much of that land now sits under Lake Entiat behind Palisade’s schools.
Finding too much “humbuggery” in the practice of medicine, Dr. J. B. Smith focused on building a town. He made friends with the local Native Americans, ventured to find gold, and focused on crop growing. In 1887, J. B. Smith platted the original townsite of Orondo and named it in honor of a chief from the fabled continent of Atlantis. The town was coined, “the town which held the key,” and hopes were high for the handful of families living in the area. Dr. J. B. Smith not only founded the original townsite of Orondo but also began publication of the community’s first and only newspaper: the Orondo News. Started as a promotion scheme for the town, the paper was published for 14 months. J. B. Smith also stocked his general store with $3,000 in goods and established the Orondo post office, of which he was the postmaster. To boost the community’s growth, Smith donated a second addition of land in 1888 and a third in 1889. He would become a State Legislator between 1893 and 1897 and live in Orondo until his death in 1917.
Big Bend Empire Post’s advertisement February 16, 1888 reads: "A glance at the map of Washington Territory will convince the eagle eye of the business man that Orondo holds the key to the future of great magnitude. A history of the Big Bend cannot be written without Orondo unlocking her stores of wealth contained in the rolling water of the mighty Columbia River in her long journey from the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific Ocean. A line drawn eastward from the Puget Sound, near the Sixth Standard Parallel, will pass almost directly through Seattle, Orondo, Davenport and Spokane Falls, the four depots of industry that stand at the gateways of Puget Sound, the Columbia river and the Rocky Mountains that by virtue of their natural positions will control the commerce and manufacturers of Central Washington."
After the terrible winter of 1889, which killed cattle by the hundreds, Orondo saw a change as the Spencer family opened the town’s first hotel. That same year, the Thompson’s opened their drug store and W. S. Gehr opened his mercantile business in Orondo. A detailed memorandum written by one of Orondo’s pioneering men around this time gives current Orondo residents a unique glance back into their own past. J. C. Bonar’s memorandum keeps record from his first trip to Orondo in 1887 to his death in 1892. In it, he recorded going to Orondo shops and buying windows for $1.70, kerosene oil at $.60 per gallon, and a stove for $35. During the winter of 1889, he recorded building a stable for Adams at $1.50 per day. During Bonar’s life, he named many of the surrounding tributaries including Roaring Creek, Mad River, Muddy Creek, and Quartz Creek. Information on many of the people and places listed above, including parts of Bonar’s memorandum, can be found in A History of the Big Bend Country (on reference in the Wenatchee Public Library).In 1893, to the great dismay of Orondo’s founders, the railroads were built on the Entiat side of the Columbia. Though Orondo lost residents and businesses, many retained their initial hope for the community. W. S. Gehr, along with J. F. Hunt, Henry Lawshe, and H. M. Cheatham organized the Orondo Shipping Company. Several stages a day traveled to and from Waterville, and heavy shipments of grain were sent to Wenatchee by way of steamers that worked the Columbia. However, as construction for the Rocky Reach Hydroelectric Dam began in 1958, steam ferries could no longer traverse that stretch of the Columbia and the business was ruined. Many acres of Orondo were consumed by the waters of Lake Entiat, much like Atlantis was into the Ocean. Orondo, however, could not be sunk.
Remains of Lois’s Drive-In The Market Place
Today, Orondo thrives upon its agriculture and a community effort to provide quality education for its kids. A new elementary school, built in 1990, replaced the 1912 schoolhouse. The graduating 7th graders get their choice between joining the Chelan, Eastmont or Waterville school districts. There is no “downtown” to speak of in Orondo, but if you’re in the market for a pear, peach, cherry or apple, the farmer’s market-like community of Orondo cannot be beat. Travelers heading north along Highway 97 toward Lake Chelan, Daroga Park, Orondo River Park, or to Orondo itself, take advantage of the majestically green scenery and sweet tastes that the abundant orchards supply. And though there are many fruit stands along the road, there might not be any orchardist more well known for his pioneering efforts than Auvil Fruit Company’s founder, Grady Auvil.
Roadside sign along Highway 97 Grady and “Grady’s Granny’s”
Since the founding of Auvil Fruit in 1928 with his two brothers, Grady Auvil was a Pacific Northwest leader in fruit production practices and had an eye for market opportunities. His efforts not only brought the “GEE WHIZ” label fame, but increased the quality of fruit in Orondo and the Pacific Northwest. Grady Auvil is most well known for introducing the Granny Smith apple to Washington and received the Washington Medal of Merit from Governor Gary Locke for that and other achievements. The award, given in 1998, is the highest honor given in Washington State.
For many Highway 97 travelers, especially in the summer months, Orondo is just another town along the way to Lake Chelan¾yet another gas station and restroom. But before you write it off, take advantage of the slower speed limit and find the fruit stand that’s just right for you. The fruit is sweet with the rich history of a community built and maintained by true pioneers. Orondo may not be the “key” that it was once on track to be, but for many it is a little slice of riverside heaven.
Jerry Sonney, a 78-year-old World War II veteran from Orondo, has seen many changes in Orondo throughout his life. As a fourth generation Orondo resident, Jerry can trace his great grandfather’s arrival in Orondo to a time when only a handful of families farmed that stretch of the Columbia River. And though Jerry’s wife, Thelma, has lived in Orondo “only 65 years,” the both of them share a vast wealth of knowledge about the place where they raised their family and still call home.
Thelma and Jerry Sonney
Having grown up in Orondo during the Great Depression, Jerry remembers an Orondo and a world that was much different than it is today. He described the depression as tough time for everyone but also as a time when people were more grateful for what they had. “People that worked in the orchard had different reasons then,” Jerry said matter-of-factly. During that time, teenagers worked next to educated people from all sorts of backgrounds. In 1938, though, an influx of Arkansas immigrants took control of labor in the orchards. Jerry commented on the cyclical nature of the industry. Today, many of the orchards in Orondo are owned by Arkansas natives who hire Hispanic laborers, whom are beginning to buy orchards themselves.
Though Orondo itself has not grown much in size since Jerry’s youth, the use of Highway 97 has increased greatly. While speaking about the changes in Orondo’s history, Jerry said laughing, “We used to play football on the highway before school. Now you can’t walk across the highway.” The Sonneys added that cars weren’t as good when they first came out, so people didn’t just drive around for no reason. Entertainment had to be all homemade. Thelma remembers an Orondo when ice cream socials, box socials, and dances at the Grange were big events. Jerry was quick to add in, “and baseball.”
One of the most interesting stories the Sonneys told was about Orondo’s first school bus driver, John Sloop. In 1928, John Sloop was hired to drive Orondo school’s green bus. The Sonneys laughed just thinking about him. Apparently the man chewed so much tobacco that the side of the school bus was constantly splattered with brown spit. “They ended up painting the bus brown,” said Jerry laughing. Sloop also raised hogs and chickens on the school playground, where he piled rotting cull apples for feed. Jerry added that even with tobacco juice all over him, the kids still loved him and took turns sitting in his lap. The Sonneys agreed that things like that just don’t go on anymore in a world so worried about liability. Jerry said that “the depression was the end of a lot of things,” but it was clear in talking to the happy couple that they have fond memories of a time when life was more simple.
Mike Utley’s story is one of determination and drive. The 39-year-old Orondo resident and ex Detroit Lion suffered a debilitating injury in 1991 while playing against the Rams. Having fractured his 6th and 7th cervical vertebrae, Mike was left paralyzed but not without hope. He is nationally famous for his courageous and ever-positive “Thumbs Up!” gesture, which he held up as he was carried off the field. Today, that symbol is a trademark for the Mike Utley Foundation in its quest to fight spinal cord injuries since 1991.
The Mike Utley Foundation Basics: “The Mike Utley Foundation is dedicated to finding a cure for spinal cord injuries. It is committed to providing financial support of selected research, rehabilitation and education programs on spinal cord injuries. It is further committed to provide motivational and emotional support for individuals who have been disabled with such injuries. The Foundation will seek financial assistance through special events, fundraising, including direct mail, and corporate and individual support throughout the United States and Canada.” - from http://www.mikeutley.org/
Pictures of Mike Utley, founder of the Mike Utley Foundation
The Mike Utley foundation is responsible for an array of events including the increasingly popular DAM2DAM Thumbs Up! Bike Tour, which allows riders of all abilities to choose between 25, 50, and 100 mile routes between Rocky Reach and Wells dams. That beautiful stretch of river is also one on which Mike has lived for over seven years, after moving up from Colorado. He says the first time he heard of Orondo was from a friend at school in Seattle. Mike remembers looking at his friend’s driver license and reading, “next to church” as the address. Years later when the chance arose, Utley knew life on Lake Entiat was for him.
When you meet Mike Utley, your eyes are first drawn to his massive arms and then to his genial smile. The last thing you see is his wheelchair. In fact, Mike has been fighting for years to make sure that his chair never holds him back. Some of the extreme activities Mike enjoys include skiing, skydiving, kayaking, scuba diving, handcycling, waterskiing, and boating, though he says he’s at an age now where he enjoys coasting in the boat with his wife over high-speed boating. “If you sustain an injury like this, you have to choose to live,” Mike said. With a smile on his face, he added, “and I choose to live in Orondo.”
