The block on North Main Street between Laurel and Manzanita streets has been associated with education in Ashland for 150 years, since the Rev. Skidmore first started a college called “The Academy” in 1872. Briscoe Elementary was dedicated in 1949 and closed in 2004. The school is now owned by the city and leased to the Oregon Child Development Coalition.
At the end of May, faced with the challenges of the pandemic and staffing shortages, Standing Stone served its last Oak Street Amber and closed its doors for good. Floyd and Margaret Whittle would probably be surprised their little leased garage building became a beloved restaurant.
Originally called “Ashland Mills,” Ashland was founded around Abel Helman’s water-powered sawmill on Ashland Creek, later transformed into a flour mill. The Ashland Woolen Mill, on Helman Street, was one of the city’s major employers in the 19th century. As late as the 1950s, Ashland still boasted half a dozen lumber mills.
Ashland boosters in the early 1920s would have none of building a hotel the same size as those of rival towns; they would build the tallest building between San Francisco and Portland!
Lithia Park is often called Ashland’s “crown jewel.” Listed in the National Register of Historic Places, it was among the first public parks in southern Oregon — but, if not for a group of persistent women, things would be much different.
What’s now a treasured-yet-crumbling Ashland landmark started as an attraction at an international exposition in San Francisco more than a century ago.
Ashland residents will have two opportunities to show their solidarity with a national Women’s March at two events on Saturday, Jan. 18, with a formally organized event at Oak Knoll Golf Course following an informal gathering on Ashland Plaza in the morning.
Obituary: During he early 2000s, John Fisher-Smith read short commentaries on JPR’s “Jefferson Daily” about place and value, called “Reflections.” He loved singing with the Peace Choir, and the group’s pilgrimage to Hiroshima, Japan, in 2006 was one of the highlights of his elderhood. A celebration of John’s life will take place at Temple Emek Shalom on April 6, welcoming all who wish to join at 1:45 p.m.
Herbert Rothschild: If HR23 passes and gets signed into law, we will be guaranteeing immunity to the actions of parties over whom we have no legal control.
A bright blue book locker outside the Ashland Family YMCA provides a new, more convenient way to check out materials from the library. The book locker can be accessed 24/7. Books are placed on hold through the library services website, which also has a video showing the book locker installation.
John Marciano and Leslie Dwyer: While hedge funds and rich corporate interests are buying up hospitals across the country and cutting services and staff to increase their profits, the well-being of hospital staff and patients is undermined.
KS Wild Side: With the help of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Wildlife Crossing Pilot Program, the state of Oregon will see its first wildlife overpass built in Ashland’s backyard. The proposed wildlife overpass is located roughly at mile marker 1.7 on Interstate 5, just north of the California border.
(It’s free)
