It’s likely that I rode past Crane in my dad’s pickup once or twice when I was a kid. He liked to explore out-of-the-way places, and Crane is nothing if not out-of-the-way. But I’m pretty sure I’d never actually been into Crane before. Highway 78 goes right by Crane on its way between Burns and the Owyhee River country of southeast Oregon, but to actually see the town you have to leave the highway. And since the only gas station/market/diner is on the highway, why would you? Part of the reason we do this is to have an answer for that question: A football game.
Located about 25 miles southeast of Burns, Crane was named for Crane Creek, which runs out of the mountains a few miles east of town. The creek itself was named for the sandhill cranes that used to be common in the area and are still plentiful in the Malheur Wildlife Refuge just a few miles to the west. There was a post office in Crane as early as 1895, but the town really got going in 1916, when it became the end of the line for the railroad from Ontario. This meant it was a major shipping and supply point for ranchers all over eastern Oregon. The school was opened in 1920, and at one point the town had 5 restaurants, 4 hotels, and a movie theater. Crane’s heyday was always on borrowed time, though, and as soon as the railroad to Burns was completed in 1924, Burns became the place that benefited from being the end of the line. By the time the high school began boarding students in 1931, Crane’s decline was well underway. Modern Crane reminds me of a company town, like Valsetz was, except this company happens to be a school district. At one time, the school existed because of the town, but these days the town exists because of the school, and if you took the school away now, there wouldn’t be much left of Crane.
Crane is the only high school in Harney County outside of Burns, and is the only high school in the Harney County Union High School District. The service area for the district is massive: At more than 7,500 square miles, it’s larger than the entire state of New Jersey. Even drawing students from such distances, the high school only serves about 100 students, with about 2/3 of them boarding at the school. I remember my dad telling of one family back in the day that lived so far away that they flew their children to school each week in their private airplane, but I don’t know if he was just pulling my leg or not.
It made sense for Crane to play on a Thursday night, because their school is not in session on Friday. Any Friday. They get a three-day weekend every week. This allows students to drive home for the weekend, or have their parents make the drive to Crane and pick them up, and I bet the staff don’t complain much about that schedule either. Another thing that probably doesn’t bother them is having the school district provide housing for them, and meals. It would be a pretty sweet deal if you don’t mind the isolation, which these days sounds pretty tempting, to be honest. I’m sure Mrs. Ednold would warm to it, eventually. Or strangle me. One or the other.
Crane competes in Special District 2 of the 1A 8-man division. They lost their Week 0 game to St. Paul, but rebounded last week to thump Grant Union 59-6. For this game, they would be hosting the Cove Leopards in the first league game for both teams. The Leopards were also 1-1, having beaten Enterprise 14-0 last week. The Mustangs lost a close contest to Lost River in the state championship game last season after making it to the quarter-finals the previous two years. They also lost the championship game to Powers in 1998, and lost both the 2015 and 2016 championships to Dufur, by 4 points each time.
There is some serious wide open space once you head out of Burns on highway 78. We didn’t intend to pick up a hitchhiker on the way, but halfway to Crane a bird flew directly into our car. Sadly, it was a contest the bird was never going to win, and he ended up lodged in the grill and made the rest of the trip with us. It was still there when we pulled into the parking lot of the Crane High School football field and gave the nice lady $6 each to enter. During the transaction she noticed our feathered friend and offered to remove him, which I declined, thinking that would be a rather gory job. I assured her I could handle it myself, but when she offered again before we drove away, I took her up on her offer. To be clear, this wasn’t one of those birds I see pecking the seeds from my birdfeeder at home. It happened too fast to make a positive identification, but it could have been a hawk or an owl. And she just plucked that thing right off! She introduced herself as a school matron, which I took to be maybe like a house-mother of sorts, so she’s probably seen all manner of strange things, but the two or three times I thanked her still don’t feel like enough.
We found a parking spot facing the field, as most of the parking spots are, and I got out to get the lay of the land and take a few pictures. There was the campus just to the east, a church a block or two away to the north, and… not a whole lot else. The natural grass field has a nice set of large aluminum bleachers on the west side for the home fans, located outside the nice rubber 8-lane running track that encircles the field. A smaller set of mobile bleachers sat in the middle of the track on the east side for the visitors. Beyond the track on the visitors’ side is a snack bar with a press box above it.
There was a good turnout for the game, with the stands mostly full, random small standing groups of fans arranged on the track, and many who chose to watch from the comfort of their cars. There was no band or cheerleaders, but the game was quite a community event, and the attendance easily exceeded the official population of the town (116 in 2020). My guess is that the company-town effect and the boarding of students draw families to Crane games that in other places might find other things to do.
Once the game began, it was apparent from the beginning that the boys from Cove would be no match for the Mustangs. Crane could run and they could throw, and they were as good on the defensive side as they were on offense. They had some big players, and they had some quick players, and a few big, quick players, and the Leopards just couldn’t stop them. The Mustangs put up 44 points in the first quarter and cruised to a 58-6 halftime lead.
During halftime, as if to emphasize Crane’s dominance, their Athletic Director was presented with this year’s OSAA Cup, awarded to the school in each class with the best overall athletic performances in the previous school year, both boys and girls. The Mustangs seem to be a powerhouse in just about every sport, particularly basketball, and if they finally get over the hump this year in football I won’t be surprised.
The trophy presentation was followed by a live auction conducted at midfield. A quarter beef was up for bid, and for the few minutes it lasted I sat frozen in my seat, hardly daring to breathe. It ended up raising $700 for Mustang athletics, and I don’t know if that’s a steal or a rip-off, but it was more than I had on me.
When it was safe to move again, I made my way to the snack bar for my coffee and popcorn. They were both good, but nothing special. It did give me a chance to see the back wall of the snack bar where it looks like donors have the privilege of displaying their cattle brands. I didn’t see a Pc back there, and wondered for a second whether my purchase would make me eligible to add one to the bunch, but I decided not to mention it.
I’m glad I got that coffee, though, because what had been a very comfortable day had turned downright cold when the sun went down, and by the second half the temperature was in the mid-40’s. So, it was fortunate that the game clock ran continuously the rest of the way. That didn’t stop the Mustangs from extending their lead, but it did decrease their opportunities, and the final score was a relatively reasonable 72-12.
It was another Crane victory, and I’m glad we were there to see it, but I probably won’t be back. Crane is in a beautiful little spot at the base of a mesa, and the people seemed to be very nice, but most of what makes Crane so unique is its remoteness. I bet that team from Cove isn’t too excited about making that trip again, either.
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