Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1883-12-16


Thirty years ago, whom Tumvater,
Olympia, Steilacoom, Seattle and Port
Townsend vere the only towns on Puget
hamlets Of from foar to
twenty shanties each tho country
north Of Seattle, on the east side of the
Sound, was practically unknown. No
sawmill, no town, no logging camp. no
post Office and no farm was to be found
in all that region, covering an area Of
COCO or 7o00 square miles, the only liv-
ing human beings there being Indians,
then in as wild and primitive a condi-
tion al are today the Indians on the
Yukon river in the heart of Alaska.
This condition of things experienced
small change at the location, a little
later, of q small settlement at What
com, induced by the discovery of coal
there. This did not amount to much,
and the settlement was barely main
tanned until 1853. In that year came
the famous Frazer river gold mining
excitement and the sudden starting up
of big town at Whatcom. Ocean and
Sound steamers called in there for q
time, but only for tine. for the bubble
was soon pricked and Whatcom fat
tened out most completely, and for
number of years was the deadest town
on the coast. Tho only communica-
ii On it had with the outside world was
of irregular and limited character.
Meanwhile few persons had settled
on the islauds and up the Snohomish
av16 thu rnasl IN ~ tho (y0V-
eminent was called into reQcisitiOn to
help and encourage them. A route was
established from Seattle to Whatcom
and contract given to Jack Cosgrove:
familisrly known a. Humboldt Jack, !"
for tho performance of the service. He
undertook it with the sloop Maria, sup
plemsnted BY a whitehall boat. Thee
he used for two years, when he bought
what was left Of the steamer Mary
Woodruff and fitted her up for the
trade, which then showed signs Of
healthy growth. The Mary Woodruff
was . small sidswheel steamer, built BY
John Swan, at Port Madison, in 1861,
and which blew up in 1853, severely in
juring number Of persons on board
and Wrecking tho fortunes Of her own
or. She was rebuilt by C0sgrove, and
for five or six years piled ON the Seat
tle-Whatcom reute, carrying the mail
once q week and all the passengers and
freight. The Mary Woodruff was then
put out of commission, hauled MP on
the beach at Milton, and about q year
ago all that was left Of her hill vas
burned by order Of Captain e. L. Mar
shall.
About the year 1863 the steamer J. B.
Libby was put upon the route. She had
been built at Utsalady in 1863 for Capt.
8. D. Libby. jobbed around for a num-
Der of years, was subsequently length.
eued and fitted up with accommodations
for passengers. She was thought to be
a fine boat for the trade, and more than
sufficient for all its demands. This was
during the steamboat days of Messrs.
John Suffren. John Blythe, George F.
Frye and A. A. Denny, and she was con-
tinued on the route until 1881.
All that country was embraced in the
one mail service until along in tho Z 8,
when Stanwo0d was c1t of and a
route established to Utsalady. Sneho-
mish was served first By a whitehall
boat, Bob Campbell carrying up the
mail for $50 a month, and a similar
branch of the service was established
later on the Skagit. The S&agit service
has since been Topped off, and a separ-
ate route frOM MukllteO established,
and it il only a question OF q year or
two until Snoh0mish will also be Topped
eff.
In1875 Sam. Coulter boughs the j. B.
Libby and her contract, and got An in
crease of service to Snohomish and La
conusr to two trips a week. This was
continued until year and half ago.
when tho second trip was continued ON
to Whatc0m; and now comes the third
trip over the whole route from Seattle
to Whatcom, with probable increase
to daily service at the letting Of the next
contract. Capt. j. @. Britain succeed
ed Coulter, and the Washing ton Stsam-
boat and Transportation Company sue
ceeded Britain as contractors on this
mail route.
Let US see how the mailsl have in
creased on this route. In place of the
one route with the weekly service of
ten and twenty years ago, there is now
n tJi-weekly service from Seattle to
Whatcom, tri-weekly service to Sno-
honaish, semi-weekly service to Stan
wood and Mount Vernon, ON Skagit
River, with weekly service from Mount
Vernon to the Skagit's headwaters, a
seml-weekly service from Whatcom to
N0Oksack and u semi-weekly service
from Port Townsend to WhatcOm and
Semiahmoo, via San Juan Island.
There are now five routes instead of
one. ten services per week in place of
one and four large steamboats, en-
gagged, besides service OH two star
routes, ia place Of the plun9er aud row
boat Of COserove twenty years ago.
The nail service has grown no faster
than the population and tr;,de of the
route aud the waters tributary to it.
The original towns Of Seattle and What
com are now supplemented by Snohs-
.lnisb, MukiltsO, Tulalip, TITS 4lady,
Stanwo0d, Coupeville. Ok Harbor, La
conner. Skagit. Mount Vernon, Seh0me,
Farndale and Nooksack, any ono OF
which is greater than Seattle aud What
com combined were thirty years ago,
and by still greater number of lesser
towns, at least the equal of either the
original towns of that early day. There
arc now seven trips week made By the
w. +. Munroe, Idaho and Washington
to Whatoom, the former going on to
No0ksack; there are two trips a week
made to Whatoom and Semiahmoo by
the EvanRel, two trips week up Skagit
River by the City Of Quincy aud six
trips a week to Snohomish City made
BY the Nellie and tho w. K. Merwin. A
number Of boats are irreQularly en-
ployed in whole or in part in this same
east side tra6ic, including the steamers
Bob Irving, 0Axelle, Glide, 0ipsy,
Alki Shnn Elv paneov and 0ps,ssacr