HR Cemetery Tales features first black family, Jose's Taco House, Japanese American

Actors to bring stories of past Hood River families back to life

From Hood River County Heritage Council:

Cemetery Tales has gone virtual this year. 

This popular annual theatrical performance about influential members of our community from the past has been created on video. Typically a live performance, Cemetery Tales 2021 is a professional video production available for online viewing October 1-3. This year marks the 11th production of Cemetery Tales, an event created by The History Museum of Hood River County featuring local actors and volunteers. 

Cemetery Tales is a fundraiser for the Hood River County Heritage Council, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that runs The History Museum. The COVID-19 pandemic prevented the production of Cemetery Tales in 2020 and has shifted this year’s production to a virtual format. The museum hopes to reach a broader audience through this online video production. Screenings are being planned at senior living communities around the Gorge, and public in-person screenings are in the works as well, for this fall/ winter.

The individuals portrayed this year represent the diversity of those who have lived in Hood River County, including early white settlers in the 1850s; the first Black family to live in Hood River in the 1870s; a Japanese-American man born in Parkdale but affected by internment and racism during and after WWII; and one of the first Mexican-American families to settle here in the late 1960s who opened the beloved Jose’s Taco House.  (see the full list of characters below)

Scriptwriter/ producer E. Michael Friend said, “As a writer, these are the kind of true stories I love to tell. They help us have a better understanding of who we are today by giving us perspective both good and bad into the decisions made by our forebears.”  

 Actor Jim Yue shared, "Portraying Ray Sato was such a life-changing experience for me. His story of having to endure racism and discrimination is unfortunately just as relevant today as it was 80 years ago. The names and faces change from generation to generation but fear and disinformation can still make people do terrible things to their friends and neighbors."

 Director/ producer Joe Garoutte reflected on the project: “This year’s video rendition of Cemetery Tales strives to connect the stories and struggles of our historical residents, but moreover I hope to illuminate how similar we all are at our cores, at a human level. We see and experience so much division right now, and in so many ways it is not new. We need to recognize that. If at every opportunity we have conversations about our similarities instead of our differences, about our common goals instead of our selfish interests, and if we also recognize that helping out and standing up for our fellow humans is crucial to our healthy survival, we may someday unite more completely as a species.”

Tickets are on sale now at ShowTix4U.com (www.bit.ly/CTales2021) or visit the museum website for more info: www.hoodriverhistorymuseum.org.  Video on demand via ShowTix4U.com is available October 1st through 3rd, and the video can be viewed for a 48-hour period once you start watching. Tickets are $15 (individual) or $25 (family/group). Or, take advantage of a discounted annual museum membership special: $40 (individual ticket + membership) or $65 (family ticket + membership).

2021 Cemetery Tales Characters:

Nathaniel Coe

Mary Coe

• Nathaniel and Mary Coe were the first white settlers in Hood River to stay, arriving in 1854. Nathaniel had previously been appointed the postmaster for the Oregon Territory.  The Coes were the first to plant fruit trees in the Hood River Valley.

Henry Coe

• Henry Coe was the youngest son of Nathaniel and Mary, arriving in Hood River as a young boy. He later wrote a series of newspaper articles about his experiences with the Native Americans who lived in this area. Henry platted the city of Hood River in 1881 with his brother Eugene and worked as a riverboat captain on the Columbia River.

Reuben Crawford

• Reuben Crawford was a ship caulker and former slave who purchased his and his wife’s freedom in 1862 in St Louis. He and his wife Vina and their children were the first Black family to live in Hood River, arriving in 1869 from California, then moving to Portland in the early 1870s, where he continued his work as ship caulker. He was a founding member (in 1884) of the first African American Odd Fellows lodge in Oregon, among many other community involvements.

Hattie Redmond

• Hattie Redmond was Reuben Crawford’s daughter who lived in Hood River as a young girl. Hattie went on to be a leader in the Black suffrage movement in Portland. She was also a leader at the Mt. Olivet Baptist church in Portland, as her father had been before her.

Cap McCan at center

• Cap McCan came to Hood River in 1910 and opened one of the first car dealerships, Tip-Top Auto Co.; he built a track on his property so new car buyers could practice driving. After moving to Portland/ Forest Grove and dabbling in horse racing, he resettled in Hood River in 1916 to become an orchardist and all-around interesting local character.

Arline (Winchell) Moore

• Arline (Winchell) Moore was the daughter of an early pioneer family, born (1887) and raised in Pine Grove. She ran Moore Electric in downtown Hood River and helped Japanese Americans during and after WWII internment, as well as assisting Native Americans in the area. 

Ray Sato

• Ray Sato was a Japanese-American Nisei (second generation), born in Parkdale in 1917 and sent to an internment camp during World War II. He was one of the first three young Nisei men who returned to Hood River after WWII ended, when the Japanese-American community experienced racism and hate in Hood River. Ray continued his family’s orchard business in Parkdale after the war.

Jose and Maria Castilla

• Jose and Maria Castilla came to Hood River in 1969 and opened one of the first Mexican restaurants in Hood River, the beloved Jose’s Taco House. Jose and Maria provided support in many ways, not the least of which was delicious food and a friendly environment, to the Mexican-American community in Hood River.