The Zybach Collection · Jedediah Smith
Photographic Report of June 14, 2023 JSS Umpqua Memorial Field Trip
Bob Zybach, Chair, JSS Umpqua Memorial Committee; with David Gould, Coos Bay Timber Operators, and Dale Hanson, Pacific Memorials · 15 June 2023
Nine photographs with the creator’s captions, made on a field trip to the Main Rock quarry at North Bend to choose the stone for the memorial, and to look at the existing state highway marker. The last pages set out the reasoning for an inset bronze plaque and print the roll of names proposed for it.
- Extent
- 9 pages, 726 words of text
- Held
- 1 page is withheld from this edition pending review. Each keeps its number and its anchor.
- The creator’s file
- Zybach-JSS_20230615.pdf, 8.8M — in his own folder.
Photographic Report of June 14, 2023 JSS Umpqua Memorial Field Trip Bob Zybach, Chair, JSS Umpqua Memorial Committee David Gould, Coos Bay Timber Operators Dale Hanson, Pacific Memorials Here is a rock wall in the Main Rock Quarry, North Bend, Coos County, Oregon. Note the layers of basalt that were formed by undersea volcanic eruptions 10 million or 40 million years ago. The two stones selected by David came from this quarry and were close to the base of this cliff when we met there. JSS Umpqua Memorial -- Zybach, Gould & Hanson 20230615 1
David Gould with the winning rock. Both he and I lobbied heavily for the rock in the background -- partly because of its distinctive shape, but also so an inscription or plaque could be read standing up -- but three others voted for this stone, because "bigger is better" and more traditional (and easier) flat surfaces. Also, Dale said it was the better choice to work with. JSS Umpqua Memorial -- Zybach, Gould & Hanson 20230615 2
Dale is checking out the sanding job David is doing on the rock and making suggestions for next steps. JSS Umpqua Memorial -- Zybach, Gould & Hanson 20230615 3
The sanding is going good, and a determination is made that a 12" x 16" plaque, or similar dimension, will fit fine. Note the Main Rock truck in the background. David has noted that it has small crystals, which makes it a poor choice for inscription. Dale has taken a small sample of the rock for further testing, primarily "hardness." JSS Umpqua Memorial -- Zybach, Gould & Hanson 20230615 4
Dale standing by the current Oregon State Parks Highway 101 Jedediah Smith sign. This is the sign that JSS Board wants to improve the texts and graphics because of concerns about generic content, inaccuracies, and irrelevance. A formal application to update this sign is to be made in August. Current direction is to more accurately and completely describe the local natives, their lifestyles, and the state and national significance of their historic encounters with Smith’s and the Hudson Bay Company’s trappers in 1826-1828. This is one of two(?) standard sign sizes authorized by State Parks for State Highways, and most (all?) are constructed by a single contractor using specified materials. I think that's pretty close, but the main point is that we want to use State standards -- and probably State contractors -- to construct the proposed Umpqua Memorial interpretive sign on Douglas County right-of-way. Note the stone marker in the shade along the left margin, to the left of the large tree. JSS Umpqua Memorial -- Zybach, Gould & Hanson 20230615 5
Dale standing next to the stone marker noted in the previous photo. The following page shows his hand, for scale, next to the plaque. Note that it is inset, 90 years old, and along a major highway and never vandalized. After discussing all alternatives between the three of us, this was the best recommendation we came up with -- an inset, brass (or bronze?) plaque. The objective is to be respectful, with simplicity, large lettering, and elegance as guides. Also, permanence and low maintenance so much as possible. At least two people suggested additional text, but that is probably best left for the nearby informational/interpretive sign. No need to list cause of death or draw any particular attention to Smith, other than his name as employer and as registered cemetery name. JSS Umpqua Memorial -- Zybach, Gould & Hanson 20230615 6
Smith, Jackson & Sublette “Free Trappers” Thomas Daws John Gaiter John Hanna Abraham Laplante Joseph Lapointe Emmanuel Lazarus Toussaint Maréchal Martin McCoy Joseph Palmer Peter Ranne John Robaseu Harrison Rogers Charles Swift Thomas Virgin Died July 14, 1828 Dedicated October 28, 2023 Jedediah Smith Society JSS Umpqua Memorial -- Zybach, Gould & Hanson 20230615 7
Withheld from this edition pending review. The item keeps its place in the register and its permanent link.
Here is the view west of the Umpqua River. Dales is standing near the spot we selected for the memorial rock, and my car is near where we think the proposed sign should be. We think it would be too cluttered if they were side-by-side, and maybe even further separation would be good, placing the sign near the log scaling shack, a short walk from the rock -- one a memorial, the other an historical marker. JSS Umpqua Memorial -- Zybach, Gould & Hanson 20230615 9
Provenance
- Author
- Bob Zybach, Chair, JSS Umpqua Memorial Committee; with David Gould, Coos Bay Timber Operators, and Dale Hanson, Pacific Memorials
- Date
- 15 June 2023
- Rights
- In copyright. The creator publishes this himself; the Library’s copy is a display copy; permission being recorded.
- How this was made
- Text taken from the creator’s own PDF and printed page by page, unedited. Line breaks follow the page; nothing is joined up, corrected or spelled differently.
How to cite this item
The first line is the citation as it is printed in the original. Use it when you cite the work itself. Use the second when you cite this page.
- As printed
- Zybach, Bob. Photographic Report of June 14, 2023 JSS Umpqua Memorial Field Trip. 15 June 2023. NW Maps Co. / Oregon Websites and Watershed Project, Inc.
- This page
- Zybach, 2023. 9 pages. America's School Trust Library, The Zybach Collection. https://schooltrusts.org/collections/zybach/jedediah-smith/writings/report-1-stone-selection/
- Cite this passage
- Zybach, 2023, page 1 — Zybach-JSS_20230615.pdf:1
https://schooltrusts.org/collections/zybach/jedediah-smith/writings/report-1-stone-selection/#p1 Every page has its own anchor: append #p and the number.
More on citing this collection: How to cite the Zybach Collection.
