Story Photos
 Photo Tom Bennett John Markham of Arch Cape on Saturday strips bark off a log that will be used for the new Fort Clatsop at the Clatsop County Fairgrounds. |
Fort Clatsop rising again
Tuesday, December 13, 2005 6:55 AM PST
By Associated Press
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E-mail this articleASTORIA, Ore. (AP) -- Using simple tools like shovels, draw knives and axes, volunteers from Oregon and other states have begun building a new replica of the Lewis and Clark expedition's Fort Clatsop, two months after its predecessor -- also a replica and a top tourist draw -- burned.
The initial work is being done at Clatsop County Fairgrounds, where volunteers are stripping logs that were donated by area timber companies. The logs will be hauled to the Lewis and Clark National Historical Park to be assembled on the site of the burned replica in March 2006.
Modern mechanical de-barkers could peel logs more easily than doing it with hand tools, but a more labor-intensive approach was exactly what organizers wanted, according to project manager Pete Field.
Rough tools give the logs a hand-hewn look, something that the designers are aiming for to make the new replica look more historically accurate than the other replica, which was built in 1955 and burned Oct. 3 in an accidental fire.
The Lewis and Clark expedition spent the miserable winter of 1805-1806 at Fort Clatsop before setting out on their journey home.
Chip Jenkins, superintendent of the Lewis and Clark National Historical Park, says the new fort would cost about $700,000 if the National Park Service had to pay for the work through a standard government contract. But because of donated labor, tools, logs and other materials, the actual cost will be much lower, Jenkins said.
"Literally every day something else gets donated," he said.
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