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Dedicated to Dorris
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| H&N photo by Andrew Mariman Conrad Koppenhafer, the owner of Butte Valley Saddle Shop, works on a pair of chaps in his store on Main Street in Dorris. The leather worker has been in the California town for 17 years, specializing in custom-made saddles which he sells all over the West. “This is really a good area,” he says of Dorris. |
May 30, 2007
Residents of this small California town like to boast they have the tallest American flagpole and the nicest people around.
The flagpole is the first thing you see when driving to Dorris from either direction on Highway 97. The Dorris Lions Club began the project in 1993, and after three years of fundraising, the 200-foot pole was erected on the city hall lawn.
It is dedicated to all American war veterans and is technically the tallest flagpole west of the Mississippi River. It is 36 inches wide at its base and is buried in 22 feet of concrete.
Hometown pride
It doesn't take long to realize Dorris' people are a legitimate claim to fame, too. They're easygoing folks who love the pace of rural life.
Shelly Ferr, who serves as city clerk and finance clerk, is typical of those who wouldn't trade Dorris for any other place.
“I pretty much know everyone,” she said. “Our crime rate isn't high, and it's a very safe feeling. This is home.”
Her 87-year-old mother also lives in town, giving the clerk another reason to stay close by.
At city hall, Ferr acts as unofficial an information source for visitors driving through town. She can suggest good camping spots and the best place to get a tasty piece of pie.
City administrator Carol McKay chuckles at the multi-dimensional job descriptions. She says everyone wears several hats in Dorris' local government.
“We have to,” she said. “There are so few of us.”
“Carol and I chase dogs and cats,” Ferr said. “We do just about everything.”
As much as they love their town, McKay and Ferr dealt with a big city problem recently - vandalism. The public restrooms in a park adjacent to city hall were hit about two weeks ago, forcing the facility to be locked. But with typical small-town hospitality, Ferr cheerfully directs visitors to restrooms inside the municipal building.
The same friendly service waits at the True Value Hardware store, where former owner Wayne Frost is manager.
“I still treat it like it's mine,” he said, meaning customer satisfaction is paramount. “When a customer comes in there's a name, not just a number. I like a small community where you know everybody.”
The store is a meeting place for locals, whether they need some motor oil, a candy bar or just want to socialize.
“People come in and BS and lie to each other,” Frost said with a grin.
He describes the store's inventory as “diversified,” which is putting it mildly. There are basketballs, cans of paint, wrenches, rubber boots, socks, work gloves and even flower bouquets in a refrigerated case. There also is a “hall of fame” on a wall that includes hunters' trophy photos.
Frost moved to Dorris from Tulelake in 1974, and shows his sense of humor with a toy shotgun mounted on the store wall. A sign beneath it reads, “Loaned out for weddings.”
The town has a couple of Mexican restaurants, three other restaurants serving American and Italian fare and even a drive-through espresso shop called “Moody Brews.”
One of Dorris' newest additions is an attractive library building that opened last November.
The town's history is linked with the railroad, which entered Butte Valley in 1907 and was extended to Dorris a year later, the same year Dorris was incorporated. The railroad tunnel through Dorris Hill to the north was completed in 1909, according to history compiled online by the Butte Valley Chamber of Commerce.
The first city hall was built in 1928 for $3,750. Five buildings were destroyed in a 1928 fire, but another fire six years later did considerably more damage. An afternoon blaze sparked on July 28, 1934, at Associated Lumber and Box Co. just south of Dorris and crossed the highway, where it ignited an auto camp.
Strong winds carried flames to the downtown area, destroying 22 businesses and 50 homes. At that time, firefighting capability consisted of a water barrel on a cart with a hand pump. The town acquired a fire truck three years later and formed a volunteer fire department.
Today, Dorris features a successful merchant whose products have a tie with the community's early days. Conrad Koppenhafer sells handmade saddles and tack to customers throughout the West.
He has a photo on his shop wall showing President Reagan holding one of his custom-made saddles.
A native of southwest Colorado, Koppenhafer came to Dorris 17 years ago and has no plans to leave. He is the only saddle maker in Siskiyou County, and has an 18-month backlog of orders, with customers stretching as far south as Carmel, Calif.
Koppenhafer said he was interested in crafts in high school, although his work was mainly belts and billfolds. He developed a love of horses because his father had the horse riding concession at Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado. After breaking a leg in rodeo competition, Koppenhafer went to saddle-making school and found his true profession,
It took him a while longer to find his true home, after a stint in Elko and Reno, Nev., along with Fort Worth, Texas.
“This is really a good area,” he said last week while working on a piece of leather. “We live a sheltered existence, but I kind of like it. It's better than living in downtown L.A.”
- Steve Kadel
Residents of this small California town like to boast they have the tallest American flagpole and the nicest people around.
The flagpole is the first thing you see when driving to Dorris from either direction on Highway 97. The Dorris Lions Club began the project in 1993, and after three years of fundraising, the 200-foot pole was erected on the city hall lawn.
It is dedicated to all American war veterans and is technically the tallest flagpole west of the Mississippi River. It is 36 inches wide at its base and is buried in 22 feet of concrete.
Hometown pride
It doesn't take long to realize Dorris' people are a legitimate claim to fame, too. They're easygoing folks who love the pace of rural life.
Shelly Ferr, who serves as city clerk and finance clerk, is typical of those who wouldn't trade Dorris for any other place.
“I pretty much know everyone,” she said. “Our crime rate isn't high, and it's a very safe feeling. This is home.”
Her 87-year-old mother also lives in town, giving the clerk another reason to stay close by.
At city hall, Ferr acts as unofficial an information source for visitors driving through town. She can suggest good camping spots and the best place to get a tasty piece of pie.
City administrator Carol McKay chuckles at the multi-dimensional job descriptions. She says everyone wears several hats in Dorris' local government.
“We have to,” she said. “There are so few of us.”
“Carol and I chase dogs and cats,” Ferr said. “We do just about everything.”
As much as they love their town, McKay and Ferr dealt with a big city problem recently - vandalism. The public restrooms in a park adjacent to city hall were hit about two weeks ago, forcing the facility to be locked. But with typical small-town hospitality, Ferr cheerfully directs visitors to restrooms inside the municipal building.
The same friendly service waits at the True Value Hardware store, where former owner Wayne Frost is manager.
“I still treat it like it's mine,” he said, meaning customer satisfaction is paramount. “When a customer comes in there's a name, not just a number. I like a small community where you know everybody.”
The store is a meeting place for locals, whether they need some motor oil, a candy bar or just want to socialize.
“People come in and BS and lie to each other,” Frost said with a grin.
He describes the store's inventory as “diversified,” which is putting it mildly. There are basketballs, cans of paint, wrenches, rubber boots, socks, work gloves and even flower bouquets in a refrigerated case. There also is a “hall of fame” on a wall that includes hunters' trophy photos.
Frost moved to Dorris from Tulelake in 1974, and shows his sense of humor with a toy shotgun mounted on the store wall. A sign beneath it reads, “Loaned out for weddings.”
The town has a couple of Mexican restaurants, three other restaurants serving American and Italian fare and even a drive-through espresso shop called “Moody Brews.”
One of Dorris' newest additions is an attractive library building that opened last November.
The town's history is linked with the railroad, which entered Butte Valley in 1907 and was extended to Dorris a year later, the same year Dorris was incorporated. The railroad tunnel through Dorris Hill to the north was completed in 1909, according to history compiled online by the Butte Valley Chamber of Commerce.
The first city hall was built in 1928 for $3,750. Five buildings were destroyed in a 1928 fire, but another fire six years later did considerably more damage. An afternoon blaze sparked on July 28, 1934, at Associated Lumber and Box Co. just south of Dorris and crossed the highway, where it ignited an auto camp.
Strong winds carried flames to the downtown area, destroying 22 businesses and 50 homes. At that time, firefighting capability consisted of a water barrel on a cart with a hand pump. The town acquired a fire truck three years later and formed a volunteer fire department.
Today, Dorris features a successful merchant whose products have a tie with the community's early days. Conrad Koppenhafer sells handmade saddles and tack to customers throughout the West.
He has a photo on his shop wall showing President Reagan holding one of his custom-made saddles.
A native of southwest Colorado, Koppenhafer came to Dorris 17 years ago and has no plans to leave. He is the only saddle maker in Siskiyou County, and has an 18-month backlog of orders, with customers stretching as far south as Carmel, Calif.
Koppenhafer said he was interested in crafts in high school, although his work was mainly belts and billfolds. He developed a love of horses because his father had the horse riding concession at Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado. After breaking a leg in rodeo competition, Koppenhafer went to saddle-making school and found his true profession,
It took him a while longer to find his true home, after a stint in Elko and Reno, Nev., along with Fort Worth, Texas.
“This is really a good area,” he said last week while working on a piece of leather. “We live a sheltered existence, but I kind of like it. It's better than living in downtown L.A.”
- Steve Kadel
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