Laurel Gerkman
As It Was ContributorLaurel Gerkman is originally from Canada. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in Geography from Humboldt State. This fed a lifelong curiosity of observing physical and human landscapes—always wondering “why.” Laurel, retired from real estate sales, has lived in Gold Beach for 20-years. Her research efforts as a volunteer for the Curry Historical Society produced numerous newsletter articles and exhibits and earned her a reputation as a seasoned local history buff. She remains intrigued by the hardy people who originally came to inhabit this rugged, isolated, and spectacular region, and enjoys seeking stories that weave these elements together. Laurel is the author of Renderings from the Gold Beach Pioneer Cemetery, a 50-page booklet containing a walking tour and snippets about the lives and times of folks buried there. She is also a contributing writer to Oregon Coast Magazine.
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On Jan. 1, 1906, Carrie Guerin married Allen H. Boice at Langlois Ore. The bride told her friends, “I’m going to have a dozen children.”The babies soon…
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In late December 1917, Thomas Rilea traveled from Portland to Agness, Ore., to spend Christmas with his family. He rode a train south to West Force…
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On Dec. 20, 1924, the Wedderburn, Ore., Social Art Club presented the comedy titled “My Friend from India” at the community hall.Most of the audience came…
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In 1908, Frank Lowery was an accomplished river boatman when he began running the mail route from Gold Beach to Agness, Ore. He earned the nickname “Old…
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Driving home one day in 1941, Archie McVay of Harbor, Ore., saw Willis Belknap walking beside the road.Belknap was a popular figure in the community,…
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In November 1924, the bow from a wrecked ship burned in the harbor at Port Orford, Ore., freeing tons of salvageable metal, including spikes and drift…
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On a stormy day in 1934, the Southern Oregon coastal town of Gold Beach held an Armistice Day program in the community hall, followed by an outdoor…
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In October 1881, a distinctive gravestone arrived in Port Orford aboard a ship from San Francisco for delivery to the town’s founder, Capt. William…
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On October 5, 1942, a Japanese submarine torpedoed the SS Larry Doheny, which sank off the Southern Oregon Coast near Gold Beach.The 430-foot oil tanker…
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There are no complete records for the Brother Jonathan Cemetery in Crescent City, Calif., located on an early burial site described in the 1920s by a…
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In the early days, isolated Curry County settlers built schools that serviced several neighboring homesteads. Students of all ages walked or rode horses…
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On Sept. 9, 1942, Japanese pilot Nobuo Fujita dropped incendiary bombs near the town of Brookings, Ore.Fujita’s World War II mission was to start massive…