Mr. Ron Marlow

These stories came from many sources and were the result of a suggestion made at a meeting in November 2000, of the Payette County Historical Society. The idea was to provide the readers of Payette's Independent Enterprise Newspaper with a glimpse of their rich history. Thanks to Gene Rhinehart and his staff for printing these stories that started in January 2001 and to Frank Hurley of the Independent Enterprise for allowing us to reprint them here.

Mr. Ron Marlow, of Payette, Idaho, spent many hours researching this material. Old newspapers of the area were especially valuable, including articles by May Gilmore.

Mr. Marlow has been a history buff all his life. In Wapello Grade School at Blackfoot his favorite book was a true story called " Uncle Nick Among The Shoshonnes" by Elijah Nicholas Wilson, which was reissued in 2001, as "The White Indian Boy."

Living near the Fort Hall Indian Reservation, Ron became familiar with the area around the Old Fort Hall Military Post and the Oregon Trail. He remembers the old days when Native Americans lived in teepees and came to town on Saturdays on horseback or in wagons. They even road trains free across the Reservation.

Mr. Marlow graduated from Blackfoot High School in 1940, and went on to trade schools at BSU at Boise and ISU in Pocatello, Idaho. After obtaining a pilot's license he flew many research and rescue missions for the Civil Air Patrol. Ron joined the Air Force and served in Hawaii in World War II and in Japan and Korea during the Korean War.

Mr. Marlow retired from the Union Pacific Railroad and moved to Payette, Idaho in 1984. He is active in the Bethany Presbyterian Church in Ontario, Oregon and a member of the Idaho State Historical Society. He is a valued member of the Payette community and has worked to preserve Payette County's history, including restoring one of Payette's historic homes, the N. A Jacobsen House. We thank him for allowing us to share his articles.