The mysterious disappearance of a historical marker, dating back to the 1800s, has been solved by some dedicated historians and city staffers.
A missing stone obelisk marking the 11th mile east of the Willamette River, on Stark Street, dating back to 1854, was discovered after a two-month search. The obelisk, normally on Stark near 197th Avenue, went missing after a car accident broke it from its base.
The marker was originally one of 14 along the roadway, and is listed by the city of Gresham’s Cultural Resources Inventory as a “Class 2 Landmark.” Stark Street, originally called Baseline Road, follows the original Willamette baseline from which government surveyors sectioned the Pacific Northwest.
The hunt for the missing obelisk began when a member of the Gresham Historical Society noticed it was missing. Board Member Anne Endicott contacted Skuyler Jacobs, program technician with the city of Gresham, to ensure it hadn’t been removed by official decree. That pair then began scouring for leads, eventually learning a car had veered off the road the night of Sept. 12, ending up in the shrubs near where the mile marker had stood. The police report did not include any mention of the marker.