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BETTER FRUIT 



Page 21 



THE PORTLAND ROSE SHOW TWELVE YEARS OLD 



IT was in the year 1876 that first I 

 begart to take notice of and to 

 develop a keen interest in roses in 

 Portland. We had that year been mar- 

 ried, and Mrs. Sibson joined with several 

 friends and neighbors in a club to send 

 East for several collections of roses. 

 They were miserable little hothouse- 

 grown plants that we received, and most 

 of them could not survive the shock of 

 outside planting, and soon perished and 

 died. Still I am sure this adventure first 

 aroused an unexepected interest in roses 

 within me, which must heretofore have 

 lain dormant, but which thereafter grew 

 and developed until my rose garden 

 became a hobby, which occupied a great 

 deal of thought and most of my spare 

 time. Finally, thirty years later, it 

 landed me in the rose business as a life 

 occupation. 



At the time I speak of, and later, I 

 secured and studied any literature on the 

 subject that I heard of. In 1883 a friend 

 presented me with "A Book About 

 Roses," by S. Reynolds Hole. This book 

 is a classic — an idyll. In my opinion no 

 book about roses has ever approached 

 the beauty and usefulness of this. Its 

 study added fuel to the fire, and led to 

 the ambition and desire to develop the 

 very best there was to be gotten out of 

 roses through intensive cultivation and 

 continuous care. There were also other 

 lovers of roses in Portland at that time, 

 and much pleasure was obtained from 

 mutual visits to each other's rose gar- 

 dens, and I am sure the kindly interest, 

 admiration or criticism resulting were 

 to each an incentive to endeavor to attain 

 perfection. 



Among these early fanciers were some 

 who still love and cultivate their roses, 

 while others have already passed on to 

 the Elysian gardens. A few names of 

 successful cultivators may be of interest 

 to older residents, and among others the 

 following now occur to me: Professor 

 Bolander, a true and learned lover of all 

 that was beautiful in nature; Mrs. B. 

 Killin, F. V. Holman, Andrew Saling, 

 George Forsythe, Mrs. H. Everding, Mr. 

 Bartell, all of whom have directly or 

 indirectly had a part in the development 

 of the rose in Portland. 



While considerable interest was thus 

 displayed in rose culture it was not until 

 the year 1899 that the first real rose show 

 was held. The day was May 21, and the 

 place was the drill hall of the Bishop 

 Scott Academy. This show was given 

 under the auspices of the ladies of Trin- 

 ity Church, assisted by other ladies of the 

 city, and the affair was a most unquali- 

 fied success. While the number of 

 exhibits was small compared with more 

 recent shows the splendid size and 

 quality of the flowers displayed had 

 without a question much to do with 

 awakening a general interest in rose 

 culture in Portland. The second rose 

 show was held June 10, 1890. In my 

 scrap book I find a clipping from The 

 Oregonian concerning it, which I quote: 



BY WILLIAM S. SIBSON, PORTLAND, OREGON 



"Prizes were awarded for the best col- 

 lection of twelve roses, the best collec- 

 tion of six and the best general collection. 

 The second prize was taken by Mrs. 

 W. S, Ladd, and the third by Mrs, H. J. 

 Corbett. A noticeable thing was that the 

 flowers were arranged in exactly the 

 same manner as they are shown in the 

 Royal Horticultural Exhibit at the Crys- 

 tal Palace in London." 



The next rose show was held on June 

 13, 1891. No show was held in 1892, but 

 on June 21 to 24, 1893, the most ambi- 

 tious afifair so far attempted, was held 

 at the old Exposition Building on Wash- 

 ington Street, under the auspices and 

 patronage of the Oregon State Horticul- 

 tural Society. Prizes were generously 

 donated by the society to the value of 

 $500. The Oregonian contained a full 

 report of the afifair, and a condensed 

 account was printed in a valuable and 

 popular paper then published in Chicago, 

 entitled, "Gardening." It was edited by 

 William Falconer, who for years was 

 superintendent of the famous Dosoris 

 Gardens, belonging to Mr. Dana, on 

 Long Island, New York. With the fol- 

 lowing statement was also printed a 

 photograph of one of the prize-winning 

 exhibits at the show; thus were Portland 

 roses already becoming famous: 



"The first annual flower show of the 

 Oregon State Horticultural Society was 

 held at the Exposition Building in this 

 city June 21 to 24. The spaceous hall 

 was beautifully decorated, and the numer- 

 ous exhibits and designs of native flora, 

 tuberous and other begonias, sweet peas, 

 pelargoniums, pansies, roses, etc., were 

 enthusiastically admired by some six 

 thousand people. The society offered 

 prizes amounting to $500. The first day 

 was specially designated for the rose 

 show. Exhibits were made in regula- 

 tion boxes (three feet nine inches by 

 one foot six inches top measurement), 

 with zinc tubes, moss, etc., and prizes 

 were offered to amateurs for the best 

 twelve, the best six and the best general 

 collection, and to professionals for the 

 best general exhibit. This climate is pre- 

 eminently adapted for the culture of 

 roses, and the fine display of the choicest 

 exhibition varieties of hybrid remontants 

 in their perfection of color, size and fra- 

 grance was a revelation to all, and espe- 

 cially to Eastern visitors." 



This was the first and last rose show 

 officially patronized by the Oregon State 

 Horticultural Society. I am sure, how- 

 ever, that it was not for lack of interest, 

 but more probably for lack of means, for 

 the then president of the society, Dr. 

 J. R. Cardwell, was ever a true admirer 

 of the rose, and always willing and anx- 

 ious to assist in its development and 

 improvement. 



Incidentally I repeat that the above 

 show was held on June 21 to 24. 1893. 

 To illustrate the uncertainty and irregu- 

 larity of the rose blooming season in 

 Portland, I will mention a note I find 

 in my garden book, saying: "The show 

 would have been better five or six days 



later," and another remark, "No roses 

 on Decoration Day this year." The lat- 

 ter remark occurs again in 1896. Such 

 conditions would have been very awk- 

 ward, to say the least, had the date of 

 our rose show been fixed ahead for early 

 June, as it sometimes is these pres- 

 ent days. 



During the next few years several 

 good rose shows were held, and, as I 

 recollect, always with increasing patron- 

 age and success, financially and other- 

 wise. Since the year 1890 the population 

 of the City of Portland has been multi- 

 plied by five. Within the same period 

 the number of roses grown in and about 

 the city has increased by millions. How 

 much wealth this development and love 

 of roses has indirectly added to the 

 intrinsic value of her property — how 

 many people it has added to her popula- 

 tion, and how much has it tended to the 

 enormous advancements the city has 

 made since the days we speak of — who 

 shall say! 



In 1905 came the Lewis and Clark 

 Exposition, and the Rose Show in the 

 Auditorium Building on June 3 of that 

 year will be ever memorable to those 

 who had the good fortune to attend it. 

 The following clipping from the Ore- 

 gonian of that day will be of interest to 

 many: 



"The committee on Rose Day of the 

 Portland Rose Society takes this means 

 of tendering thanks to all those who so 

 ably assisted in making the display an 

 unqualified success. 



"It especially desires to thank the press 

 of this city for its generous advertising 

 and free notices of the event; to Theo- 

 dore Hardee, H. E. Dosch, Oskar Huber 

 and other officials of the exposition for 

 their unvarying courtesy and assistance; 

 to the judges who so ably performed 

 their arduous duties, and to George 

 Often, under whose direction the Audi- 

 torium was transformed into a bower of 

 beauty. The committee also wishes to 

 thank the members of the Rose Society 

 for their untiring assistance in collecting 

 and arranging such masses of roses, and 

 particularly to the multitude of friends 

 who so generously donated their choicest 

 specimens and other flowers. The com- 

 mittee fully appreciated the assistance 

 given by Messrs. Martin & Forbes and 

 Clarke Bros, for the costly and beauti- 

 ful displays made by them. Finally, 

 thanks are tendered to L. Allen Lewis 

 and W. P. Olds for their kind contribu- 

 tion of the necessary jars for the Rose 

 Show. The committee is composed of 

 William S. Sibson, Mrs. George H. Lam- 

 berson, Frederick V. Holman, Mrs. B. 

 Killin and Thomas G. Green." 



Since the great event above referred 

 to the Rose Shows of the Portland Rose 

 Society have been made a part of the 

 magnificent entertainment provided an- 

 nually by the Portland Rose Festival 

 Association. To say these shows have 

 been successful would be scant praise. 

 They have, in reality, been the great 



