(SLSE Railroad)

Skagit River Journal

of History & Folklore
Subscribers Edition, where 450 of 700 stories originate
The most in-depth, comprehensive site about the Skagit

Covers from British Columbia to Puget Sound. Counties covered: Skagit, Whatcom, Island, San Juan, Snohomish & BC. An evolving history dedicated to committing random acts of historical kindness
Noel V. Bourasaw, editor (bullet) 810 Central Ave., Sedro-Woolley, Washington, 98284
Home of the Tarheel Stomp (bullet) Mortimer Cook slept here & named the town Bug

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Archives for subscribers, Issues 44-52

Archives 1-32
Archives 33-43
Archives 44-52

Menu of Historical Delicacies,
Issue 52, Winter 2010

(Blanchard 1913)
4th of July
Blanchard, 1913


(Jacobin)
Johnny Jacobin,
"Frog Boy"


(Ball House)
The Ball House fell
14 years ago
(click thumbnails
for story)

This issue's in-depth research resulted in an updated section about Blanchard, town and family, with the help of descendant Margaret Toth
Profile of Blanchard
town and family

Index/portals to Blanchard
& Edward R. Murrow

Descendants and pioneer
memories
, including those of native Florence
Smith Lowe, 98 in 2010

More descendant memories
of Blanchard & Edward R. Murrow

John Henry Fravel, original namesake of Blanchard & foreman of the NW Washington telegraph line, 1860s
The murder/suicide mystery of Garfield Minkler, of Lyman
Johnny Jacobin, Frog Boy, performed amazing feats against amazing physical odds
The oft-photographed Ball House near Padilla falls to the wind in January 1996
Our introduction to history of farming the fantastic Skagit County soil
Memoirs and poetry
Les Palmer's childhood memories of Sedro-Woolley and his connection with the Northern Pacific railroad tracks
Jon Jech, a descendant of the Jech family that built the Sedro-Woolley Ford dealership/Museum, writes about Hart's Island, the symbol of old Sedro and Sterling

Menu of Historical Delicacies,
Issue 51, October-December 2009

(Ella Nicholls)
Ella Nicholls
in part 3

(Gar Green family)
Gar Green's family, part 6 (click on those thumbnails for the stories)
We start a year-long process of adding dozens more profiles of pioneers and their descendants and old-timers among us. In this issue, 99 brief profiles of volunteers to the Skagit RSVP corps
Part 1 (18)
Part 2 (18)
Part 3 (18)
Part 4 (14)
Part 5 (15)
Part 6 (16)
Updated history of early Northwest schools
Earliest Skagit and Whatcom Schools, updated
Eloise Ingman Stendal recalls Meadow School
Merry Christmas to all. Read about pioneer Christmas celebrations on the Skagit River.
History of the Eagles Aerie, Sedro-Woolley. Mystery solved; it began in 1902, not 1923. Prepared for the Aerie, reproduced here in an extensive .pdf form, with history of the state and national Eagles, the fraternal lodge that began in Seattle in 1898.
Samuel Shea, Rockport area homesteader & bar and pool owner
We correct the record: Lorenzo Lyman, upriver town founder, was a lawyer, not a doctor.
More Issue 51 stories: Handy new portals
(bullet) 1. Odds and Ends Portal, includes stories that are brief, introductory or are in draft form.
(bullet) 2. Memoirs Portal for finding autobiographies and vignettes.


Menu of Historical Delicacies,
Issue 50, June-September 2009

(Seattle, 1880 Snow)
1880 Snow

(Nellie Coupe)
Nellie Coupe

(Skagit Steelhead)
Howard Miller's steelhead
Clippings from the 1880 Seattle Intelligencer newspaper that report on the Ruby Creek Gold Rush
Part One, January-May
Part Two, May-December
Schools history, Whatcom and Skagit
First schools in Whatcom County and the area that became Skagit County in 1883 — updated with new data
Biography of Nellie Coupe, an educator who made an impact on both Island and Whatcom counties.
Profile of the Seabury family and Lloyd Seabury,
1970s Skagit author
Skiyou pioneer Lloyd Seabury recalls the rampaging 1909 flood
Lloyd Seabury recalls his neighbors, the Van Fleets, and the 1900 Skiyou neighborhood
Ron Strickland's fine 1984 book, River Pigs and Cayuses,
is long out of print. Here are four stories from it.
Look for it in used-book stores.
Mark Gilkey, the Skagit River gambler as a youth.
Ralph Parker of Lyman explains the moonshine business
Howard Miller guides you through the steelhead of the Skagit River
Glee Davis and his family at Cedar Bar
The Truth newsletter about evil liquor, ca. 1900 in Woolley.

Menu of Historical Delicacies,
Issue 49, April-May 2009

(Coon Chicken)
The Coon Chicken Inn near Bothell

(Chief Sealth)
Chief Sealth
Stan Stapp reminds us of the Coon Chicken Inn
and Cotton Club
between Seattle and Bothell


Early Sedro and Woolley
Albert G. Mosier recalls platting the three towns
Harry L. Devin recalls how the three railroads formed the town lines
1903 story of the 1898 merger that formed Sedro-Woolley
Junius Brutus Alexander, wealthy Sedro pioneer
who pushed for the 1898 merger


Northwestern Skagit County
1932 Obituary of Louisa Ann Conner, namesake of LaConner
Obituary and profile of prominent Padilla pioneer Edgar A. Sisson
Profiles and civil war memories of Northwest County and Padilla-area pioneers Ed Wells, A.G. Tillinghast and R.H. Ball
Indians, Chief Sealth and Dr. Henry A. Smith
Chief Sealth/Seattle's famous 1854 speech, in Dr. Henry A. Smith's words
Dr. Henry A. Smith, Seattle pioneer, famous for recording the Chief's speech. By David M. Buerge
Native Seattle, by Coll Thrush, about Seattle's native population, including Dr. Smith and Chief Sealth.

Menu of Historical Delicacies,
Issue 48, February 2009


(Clothier)
Harrison Clothier

(Woolley Saloon)
Woolley Saloon

(Fred Hegg)
Fred Hegg
Harrison Clothier and Edward G. English,
founders of Mount Vernon
Part One, the early years
Part Two, logging, going separate ways
Ed English kidnapped in 1908 and his obituary

The first saloons in Sedro-Woolley,
Skagit County and up the Skagit River


F.A. Hegg and sons, Woolley's most famous grocers
Part One, Fred Hegg from Minnesota to Woolley
Part Two, Fred and sons become leading grocers
Earl "Fuzz" Hegg excels and his Fuzzy Wuzzy Grocery

Gust Gilbertson opens Sedro-Woolley J.C. Penney store, 1915
How J.C. Penney came from Missouri to Number One retailer

Menu of Historical Delicacies,
Double Issue 46 & 47, January 2009


(Logging undercut)

(Bessie Rudene)

(Threshing hay)
Issue 46
Illustrated History of Skagit and Snohomish Counties, 1906
This issue is devoted to our most ambitious project so far, the transcription of chapters from the 1906 book that is the most important resource book for Skagit County historians, authors, genealogists and students. We have transcribed the first two chapters of the Skagit County section, nearly 75 pages in all. But most important, we have annotated each chapter with extensive footnotes that will illuminate pioneers, towns and events and provide links for background reading. This will be a double issue, with one chapter per issue.
Introduction to the Illustrated History, with facts about the book that you may not have learned before, and background on its creators, along with a caveat for readers.
Chapter One of Skagit County settlement. Part One of this chapter introduces you to the first settlers, especially on Fidalgo Island, and the first women to brave the wilderness.
Chapter One of Skagit County settlement. Part Two of this chapter introduces you to more settlers, especially those on the south fork of the Skagit River and the area of the log jams where Mount Vernon would rise.
Issue 47
Chapter Two of Skagit County, 1874-83. Part One of this chapter shares details of settlement, logging and early agriculture, and reviews the process of removing the log jams that shut off the upper stretches of the river from exploration.
Chapter Two of Skagit County, 1874-83. Part Two of this chapter shares details of the first upriver settlement, sternwheeler steamboats and early mining discoveries, including the exciting, if brief, 1880 gold rush to Ruby Creek, settlement, logging and early agriculture, and reviews the process of removing the log jams that shut off the upper stretches of the river from exploration.

Menu of Historical Delicacies,
Issue 45, September-October 2008

(KKK Wedding)
KKK Wedding
Ku Klux Klan in the Northwest, 1920s
Claudia Lowman writes about the Klan in Anacortes, 1926
Gabriel Mayer writes about the Klan in Bellingham in the 1920s
KKK stages a wedding and dedicates a church altar in Sedro-Woolley in 1924-26
(Nooksack Tower)
Nooksack Tower, 1940
Fire Lookout Towers & Firefighting in the Northwest
Introduction to firewatchers and their towers in the North Cascades
Maxine Meyers wrote about her season on Mount Josephine
Dr. Quentin C. Belles recalls upriver firefighting in the 1940s
William Entwistle wrote about the history of Northwest firefighting
(Josie Bradley)
Josie Bradley
Two Claudia Lowman biographies:
R. Lee Bradley, Padilla farmer and Anacortes Mercantile Co. owner
Josie Bradley, Skagit County's Superintendent of Schools, 1884

Morris Schneider, pioneer Woolley businessman and first Jewish business owner, biography by his granddaughter, Muriel Weissman

Menu of Historical Delicacies,
Issue 44, May-July 2008


Fairhaven & Southern Railroad, first standard-gauge railroad north of Seattle.

(F and S Depot)
The F&S Depot in old Sedro. Click on photo for the F&S story
Fairhaven & Southern Railroad, Part One. Includes information on the alphabet soup of railroads of Whatcom and Skagit counties, the background of the F&S principals, including Nelson Bennett, C.X. Larrabee and John J. Donovan.
F&S, Part Two. Sedro prepares 1888-89, Donovan's horseback ride in the nick of time, details of the Seattle Lake Shore & Eastern, Seattle & Montana and Great Northern lines, James J. Hill and the decline of the F&S, and the decline of the Sedros.
F&S, Part Three. Ray Jordan stories about the F&S Christmas gift to old Sedro; the line's original route from Bellingham Bay; and Journal research into the naming of Fairhaven/Graves Street in Sedro.

Capsule biographies of F&S principals:

(Charles X. Larrabee)
Charles X. Larrabee, the Montana copper magnate, who financed the F&S and bought the Cokedale coal mines. Parts 1 & 2 include: (bullet) Childhood in New York & Wisconsin; (bullet) Brother Samuel Edward "Ed" Larabie; (bullet) Brothers building their fortunes in Montana and Portland; (bullet) Larrabee's financing of Fairhaven boom and the Fairhaven Hotel; (bullet) marriage to Frances Payne; (bullet) their philanthropy.

    Three stories associated with this topic are being extensively updated with last-minute research information and photos:
(bullet) Larrabee Part 3: documents & external profiles of Larrabee family and Cyrus Gates
(bullet) John J. Donovan, the civil engineer who determined the F&S route, and became a famous lumberman on his own


The origins of Lyman, upper Skagit River

(Lyman 1889)
Lyman 1889. Click on photo for story
Lyman, Part One: earliest settlers and homesteaders, including A.R. Williamson, Valentine Adam and Henry Cooper and town namesake, Lorenzo Lyman. earliest businesses, the Skagit River's effect on the town, the Otto Klement and Birdsey Minkler eras
Lyman, Part Two: Flynn and Meyers families; capsule histories of 24 early families

Lyman pioneers, including news of converting Minkler Mansion to City Hall

(Clara Bartlett Cooper)
Clara Bartlett Cooper.
Lorenzo Lyman, country doctor and namesake of Lyman, updated with research about Dr. Lyman.
Birdsey Minkler, Part One: his early years in Wisconsin and California, homesteading and his mill at Birdsview, and details of his 1911 funeral. Totally updated.
Birdsey Minkler, Part Two: his family moves to Lyman in 1887, death of his wives; mill at Minkler Lake; the Minkler children marry. Totally updated.
Please report any broken links so we can update them


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(bullet) Our newest sponsor, Plumeria Bay, is based in Birdsview, just a short walk away from the Royal family's famous Stumpranch, and is your source for the finest down comforters, pillows, featherbeds andduvet covers and bed linens. Order directly from their website and learn more about this intriguing local business.
(bullet) Oliver-Hammer Clothes Shop at 817 Metcalf Street in downtown Sedro-Woolley, 90 years continually in business.
(bullet) Peace and quiet at the Alpine RV Park, just north of Marblemount on Hwy 20, day, week or month, perfect for hunting or fishing. Park your RV or pitch a tent — for as little as $5 per night — by the Skagit River, just a short drive from Winthrop or Sedro-Woolley. Alpine is doubling in capacity for RVs and camping in 2011.
(bullet) Joy's Sedro-Woolley Bakery-Cafe at 823 Metcalf Street in downtown Sedro-Woolley.
(bullet) Check out Sedro-Woolley First section for links to all stories and reasons to shop here first
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