C-SPAN's Bend Weekend | The Source Weekly - Bend, Oregon

C-SPAN's Bend Weekend

This weekend, C-SPAN is going Bend-centric spending two full days covering Central Oregon's history, development, arts and culture. See the press release below for details of the coverage that will air this weekend. You can watch all the coverage on BendBroadband channel 61 and HD channel 661. The content will also be available online at c-span.org.

C-SPAN2’s Book TV — SATURDAY, April 5 at 2:30pm PT/ 4:30 pm ET and C-SPAN3’s American History TV (AHTV) — SUNDAY, April 6 at 11am PT/ 2pm ET.

· Explore John C. Fremont’s expedition through central Oregon. Fremont was an American military officer tapped to map and describe the Oregon Trail in the 1840s. Once he completed his journey, Fremont decided to continue his travels south through Central Oregon, Nevada and California. We’ll travel to a couple of those locations around Bend with photographer Loren Irving — who used maps and Fremont’s journals to retrace his journey and learn more about his adventures.

· Learn about Bend, Oregon’s origins as a mill town. Two of the largest lumber mills of their time were located in Bend. Brooks-Scanlon and Shevlin-Hixon opened in 1916 and were located on opposite sides of the Deschutes River in Bend. Both mills have closed, but were a major part of the city’s economy during much of the 20th century. Kelly Cannon-Miller, Executive Director of the Deschutes Historical Museum explains what life was like while the both mills were in operation and what impact their closing had on the city.

· Bend Developer Bill Smith shows how Bend has recreated itself after its two mills shut down. Hear how the city has survived without the lumber mills.

· Hear about the Deschutes Railroad War. Railroad historian and attorney Martin Hansen talks about the race between two railroad barons to build a railroad line through central Oregon. James Hill and Edward Herriman began building competing lines to cross over the Crooked River Gorge just north of Bend in 1909. James Hill arrived victorious and nailed the golden spike at the Train Depot in Bend. The “Hill” line opened Bend for the lumber industry and made it possible to transport thousands of pounds of lumber from that part of the state.

· Go to downtown Bend to learn about the origins of the Bend Emblem. Kelly Cannon-Miller, Executive Director of the Deschutes Historical Museum talks about the Emblem, which was created as the city logo 100 years ago by the Bend Emblem Club. Club members swore an oath to wear a pin emblazoned with the image until the town reached 100,000 inhabitants. They also employed creative marketing tactics to promote the city. Today the population is nearly 80,000 and the logo shows up all over the city.

· Visit the site where a U.S. Presidential candidate died while trying to save a young Bend boy. Socialist Labor Party Candidate Frank T. Johns was giving a stump speech in Bend when a boy fell into the Deschutes River and was taken downstream. Johns stopped his speech, and jumped into the water to save him. Historian Nate Pedersen explains how the nation reacted to this tragedy and what’s being done today to honor Frank T. Johns’ life.

· Travel to the failed Tumalo Reservoir with Deschutes County Surveyor Mike Berry. In the early 20th century W.A. Laidlaw promised hundreds of settlers in Deschutes County that he could irrigate the land around Bend using funds from the Federal Carey Act. Laidlaw failed to uphold his promise and left the area today’s equivalent of a few million dollars. The state then stepped in and tried to build a reservoir to help irrigate the land in what is now known as Tumalo. The state was never able to successfully irrigate the land promised by Laidlaw, leaving hundreds of settlers without farmable land.

Book TV FEATURES
· Learn about Morse v. Frederick, the Supreme Court case that tackled free speech in an American high school from James Foster, a political science professor at Oregon State University — Cascades. In January 2002, as the Olympic torch was being carried down the main street of Juneau, Alaska, Juneau-Douglas High School senior Joseph Frederick, along with his friends, unraveled a banner reading “BONG HITS 4 JESUS.” The principal, Deborah Morse, ordered Frederick to immediately take down the banner. He refused saying that Morse was violating his First Amendment rights. What followed was a series of lawsuits that eventually made it to the U.S. Supreme Court. In his book, “Bong Hits 4 Jesus: A Perfect Constitutional Storm in Alaska’s Capital”, Foster lays out the timeline of the case as well as examines the boundaries of free speech in a high school setting.

· Hear local author Jane Kirkpatrick recount the journey she and her husband undertook to become modern pioneers in her book “Homestead: Modern Pioneers Pursuing the Edge of Possibility.” Following a family tragedy, Jane and her husband Jerry quit their jobs, purchased a plot of land two and a half hours outside of Bend and decided to try and make a living as modern pioneers. For the next 27 years, Jane and her husband would live in this massive stretch of sagebrush and sand in eastern Oregon experiencing many challenges including flood, fire and a plane crash. “Homestead” chronicles Jane and Jerry’s life in the Oregon desert and what the experience taught her about life and about herself.

· Hear the story of two people confronting the legacy of slavery and racism in America in “Gather at the Table: The Healing Journey of a Daughter of Slavery and a Son of the Slave Trade.” Author Tom DeWolf is the descendent of one of the largest slave trading families in U.S. history and Sharon Morgan, his co-author, is a descendent of slaves from South Side Chicago. Over a three year period, they traveled to visit each other’s families, went to ancestral towns and historic sites all the while engaging in conversation on how race has impacted their lives. Hear DeWolf recount his experience in getting to know Sharon and his view on discussing the issue of race in the U.S. today.

· Visit Atelier 6000, Bend’s local printmaking and bookbinding studio. Here, local authors and artists come together to combine text and art in a unique way. Interim Executive Director, Julie Winter explains the mission of A6 and the benefits of having books put together by hand.

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