Evidently hiking to the tops of high points around the Willamette Valley was a popular family pastime in the 1920s and 1930s. There are both pictures and stories of groups that climbed Mary’s Peak, Peterson Butte (southwest of Lebanon), Snow Peak (then known as Cleveland Rock, in the foothills east of Lebanon) and others.

Today’s photo shows such an outing, hiking to the top of Cleveland Rock in 1933. This particular outing is interesting because it involves both McClains (Mom’s family) and Wrights (Dad’s family). This is not shocking, or even unique. I imagine such outings happened frequently when the Wrights lived on Goltra Road and the McClains lived within walking distance (if you walked down the railroad tracks) in Tallman. But by 1933 the Wrights were living in Jefferson, no longer close to the McClains. So I presume that the thing that pulled the two families together for this outing was the fact that Mom and Dad were engaged. (This outing may have occurred was on July 2, 1933, one week before Mom and Dad’s wedding.)

I’ll take a stab at the names, but I’m not certain about all of them. Corrections or alternate suggestions are welcome. From the left: Betty McClain, Lee Scott? Marion Kent, Grandma (Addie) McClain, John Wright (behind), Grandpa (Arthur) McClain, Mina Wright, Irvine Wright, Lee Wright, Florence McClain.

Since Dad is not in the photo, I presume he was behind the camera taking it.

Poor Mom was caught in the indelicate position of using her tongue to work some food out from between her cheek and teeth when the shutter snapped. Cameras have no mercy.