On May 5, 1945, six Southern Oregon picnickers were killed by one of many balloon bombs indiscriminately launched by Japan. While it was the only balloon known to have caused injuries in the mainland United States, I decided to share a short post about this event because of a family connection. At that time, my grandfather, Leo Rand, was serving as a young pastor at the Christian Missionary Alliance Church in Wolf Creek, Oregon. He and my grandmother, Helen Rand, both knew the adult named Elsie Mitchell who lost her life, and they may have likely known others as well. They certainly knew Rev. Archie Mitchell who witnessed the explosion from a distance. (Wikipedia has a well-researched article on this topic. It's also a good source to visit for alternative resources.)
What prompted me to remember this piece of Oregon history was a very nice video I recently watched by Steve from Sidetrack Adventures. I invite you to take a look at his journey below to this site situated near the town of Bly.
