In a cramped backroom “speakeasy,” local Selina Kephart, 64, pushes a shot of whiskey toward me. I shake my head no, despite the old-time legend that a fellow was shot in Shaniko simply because he wouldn’t have a drink with another fellow. Next to me, Craig Nichols, 72, the manager at neighboring R2 Ranch, leans over his guitar to grab his own whiskey from atop a vintage wooden stereo the size of a picnic bench. He takes a slug, tips back his cowboy hat and croons HARDY’s 2022 country-rock murder ballad, “Wait in the Truck,” to an audience of three, adding an extra verse at the end that he wrote himself. Come Back Singing The Central Oregon town of Shaniko — once a hub for wool shipments — went bust more than 100 years ago. But locals are slowly working to bring the ghost town back to life. BY ELLEE THALHEIMER ELLEE THALHEIMER Craig Nichols sings “Wait in the Truck” 44
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