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Skagit River Journal

of History & Folklore
Free Home Page Stories & Photos
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

810 Central Ave., Sedro-Woolley, Washington, 98284
Home of the Tarheel Stomp

Mortimer Cook slept here & named the town Bug
Dedicated to Victor A. Bourasaw, 1901-82, Navy Chief & Pearl Harbor Survivor in The War

Journal readers now have the opportunity to read our exclusive annotated transcripts of the 1906 book, the Illustrated History of Skagit & Snohomish Counties. See why this is often called the "bible" of historians' collection as you read the first two Skagit County chapters with full annotations and photos about the first two decades of settling Skagit County mainland.
For those of you who have been concerned about the news that the editor was hospitalized after discovery of cancer, follow this link to: "editor hospitalized." After radiation and very promising recuperation, Noel is doing very well and getting back to work in June and will soon be back on his bicycle.
We were saddened on June 22 to learn that our old story-telling friend, Jim Harris, has died. We will post the obituary when it is posted.

Having a hard time finding stories on our site? Have you checked out our brand new page about How to Navigate the Journal?

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Welcome to our Free Home Page and 625 photo-features
The New York Times features a video tour of Skagit Valley and Highway 20 over to Twisp.
Now, navigation through our large site is as easy as 1... 2... 3...
Site designed for easiest viewing via IE 6.0-7.0 . . . some art may not show on Firefox, Netscape etc.

In Issue 45 of the optional Journal Subscribers Magazine, you will read three features about the KKK in the Northwest.

See our newest free homepage features:Blanket Bill Jarman June 27 History Show... 1906 History transcriptions... Origins of Lyman... Centennials: Concrete, Lyman, Alaska-Yukon, Historical Society... 1890 profile articles on Sedro & Woolley... Rebirth of Concrete Herald... Cascade Pass Road & Hwy 20... Walter Washington deLacy & 1858 Fraser River Gold Rush road... E.R. Million, early Mount Vernon attorney.... Vi Hilbert, R.I.P.... Hashbrowners in Sedro-Woolley... Ray Jordan's history of Hoogdal... New Book Reviews: Rev. B.N.L. Davis & Mount Vernon Church and Illustrated History of Snohomish... Hammer Mansion & Isabel Hammer... Minkler Mansion new Lyman City Hall?... How Lyman was named in 1880... Woolley's 3-Railroads triangle... Index of 29 Ray Jordan stories... Birth and timeline of Skagit Steel... Dolbeer Donkey & Shay Locomotive... How they marketed booze in Prohibition... Sedro & Woolley merge in 1898/debunking the myth & almost merged in 1891... Birth & Timeline of Skagit Steel of Woolley... Charles J. Wicker arrives Skiyou 1884... Two-Spot Locomotive Sedro-Woolley... KKK in Sedro-Woolley 1920s

New Issue 47, subscribers-paid Journal magazine online: — 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.
Issue 46: — Our subscribers requested that we transcribe the Skagit County portions of the famous 1906 book, Illustrated History of Skagit & Snohomish Counties. In this issue we began the process with the first two chapters, and went one time-consuming step further. We have annotated each chapter with dozens of endnotes about pioneers and places.
Issue 45: — This issue is highlighted by three features about the Ku Klux Klan in its heyday in the Northwest, in the 1920s. And three articles and biographies by Anacortes-native Claudia Lowman... The KKK stories include: a KKK wedding in Sedro-Woolley; the state convention and the KKK activities in Bellingham. You can also read four stories about the Fire Lookout Towers of the North Cascades... Claudia Lowman presents two biographies of siblings, R. Lee Bradley, who owned the Anacortes Mercantile Co.; and Josie Bradley, the first superintendent of schools for the new Skagit County. And Muriel Weissman profiles her grandfather, Morris Schneider, one of the first business-owners in old Woolley and the first Jewish businessman in the area.

Attention: please consider donating
to our research project
Perhaps we have been too reluctant to state the obvious and stick our hand out in the past. We are always woefully under-funded, but we are facing a crucial balloon payment of a loan due, which we must make to continue these free pages at the level they have reached. If you have already donated or are a subscriber, we thank you and do not expect or ask any more. But if you enjoy these pages and want them to grow dramatically over the next year, please consider donating even a small amount to help us keep the shop open. We have a separate subscribers-paid online Journal magazine, now in its seventh year. If you want to donate or subscribe, just click the "Paypal Donate" button to pay by secure credit card, or mail checks to here. Subscriptions are $20/1 year; $35/2 years, or $100 for a "lifetime" 10-year rate. Or you can read details first about how or why to subscribe or donate, by either check or credit card, and how to share gifts with your friends and family. Thank you for your consideration and support. And see our offer of story/photo CDs from our first five years of the magazine. That way you can share what you read with those who do not have a computer. We are "open source" in the best meaning of the term and we want to share this information with all lovers of our God's country history and genealogy. Thank you.

You can read the history websites about our prime sponsors
Would you like information about how to join them?

Oliver-Hammer Clothes Shop at 817 Metcalf Street in downtown Sedro-Woolley, 86 years.

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 by the Skagit River, just a short drive from Winthrop or Sedro-Woolley

Joy's Sedro-Woolley Bakery-Cafe at 823 Metcalf Street in downtown Sedro-Woolley.

Check out Sedro-Woolley First section for links to all stories and reasons to shop here first
or make this your destination on your visit or vacation.

Are you looking to buy or sell a historic property, business or residence?
We may be able to assist. Email us for details.

Did you find what you were seeking? We have helped many people find individual names or places, so email if you have any difficulty.

Tip: Put quotation marks around a specific name or item of two words or more, and then experiment with different combinations of the words without quote marks. We are currently researching some of the names most recently searched for — check the list here. Maybe you have searched for one of them?