World's sole editor and publisher. He was elected president of the Oregon Press Conference in 1934.
A paper appropriately named the Surf was started by M. A. Simpson in 1913. There were already two papers in the field, and the Surf was silent within the year.
The great event in the life of the Western World was the disaster of September, 1936, when the town was wiped out by forest fire. The World, under the direction of Mr. Felsheim, did not miss an issue. A little extra was printed immediately after the flames had died down, and the next issue came out on time, through the cooperation of Sheldon F. Sackett's Coos Bay Times. Through a freak of the flames and the superior construction of the World's building, the plant survived with slight damage.
The paper devoted itself wholeheartedly to the promotion of the rebuilding of the town, leading in the fight for state and federal aid in the reconstruction of Bandon as a model city.
Myrtle Point.—Orvil Dodge, newspaper man and historian of Coos and Curry counties, was editor of the first newspaper published in Myrtle Point. The date of its appearance was December 3, 1889, and the name was the West Oregonian. W. L. Dixon, a merchant, was owner, and Dr. August Gussenhover business manager.
The plant was shipped out of San Francisco by Schooner to Coquille and from there to Myrtle Point by river boat.
The little town had not more than 300 inhabitants at the time, and the paper had to struggle. It did, however, enjoy the enthusiastic support of the people, who gave earlier expression to their feelings by swarming out en masse to welcome the arrival of the newspaper plant with the Washington hand-press as its most impressive unit.
The people turned to and helped unload the "heavy" press and move it upstairs into a small frame building which was to serve as the paper's quarters. E. C. Roberts, who was part owner of the paper for several years, recalls that G. M. (Watt) Short, later an attorney, was employed as foreman and J. H. Roberts (father of E. C.) compositor. Later the Myrtle Point Board of Trade purchased the paper and turned it over to Orvil Dodge as editor. J. H. Roberts bought the paper, moved it into upper story of his brick store building, then sold it to Dodge, who in turn sold to W. O. Phillips, who moved it to quarters over Mrs. Daniel Giles' millinery store. He failed to make the paper click, and Mr. Roberts had to take it back. In 1895 Roberts sold it to Lamb & Lawrence (B. F.), who moved the plant away to Coquille for the Bulletin, which Lawrence had just bought.
Myrtle Point was now without a newspaper, but not for long. E. P. Thorp and W. C. Conner, who had been running the little Enterprise at Riddle for two years, saw a better opportunity at
