Fairhaven herald. [volume] (Fairhaven, Wash.) 1890-????, 1893-03-23
BELLINGHAM BAY HISTORY
SECOND Article


BellIngham was built by Captain Picket
the same Picket that led the world-re.
nowned cavalry charge at Cemetery hill
at the battle Of Gettysburg, with Lieu
tenant nov generab Forsythe. whose
first quartermaster work was with Can
tain IL. Roeder in providing lumber for
the fort; also Lieutenant Davis
Who bye the bye, was a nephew of .IefTer-
son Davis
we now come TO the great event-tbe
discovery OF gold on Frazer river IN Brit
Ish Columbia, In 1855 At that time the
miners Hooked in thousands 10 the Bay. as
The starting point for the Frazer river
mines, ana steamers arrived daily with
cargoes OF goods and passengers often 500
ana 10 on a trip, dumping them and
thelI belongings on the shore, and left
them. The shores Of the Bay looked at /
night like the camp Of a vast army with |
camp hfes and tents under every green 4
tree, and BY daylight "tenderfoOt" pros .
pectors might be seen yaiDly hunting for
gold, thinking 10 could be picked up under
every tussOck, and fully persuaded thev
had struck IL rich" when caught by The
glitter OF fools gOld,' or extra vellow
mica. Al Ibis time high hopes filed the
breast OF old and new settlers in the fuIi
certainty that great city would sprjng
up, as the cOnceusus Of public opinion was
that city should be built upop American
soil 20 supply the mines. A stage com
pany was formed and road was to be
made by Langly and Fort Hope. This
was the third boom. and eVervt bing ,
seemed prosperous. No threatening cloud !
IN the horizon at that time. Once more
however, ~ was ordained that the race
the strong, and time and chance were adj.
verse, Tor Governor Douglas the sole Ia,y- -
making power Of British Columbia In :
order 10 checkmate the American move
ment ana direct the traffic to Victoria. v
issued the following brief proclamationi
"HeDceiOrth from this date All rninors
coming 70 BRUSH Columbia must enter AT h
the custom house in Victoria. and tbope
OBTAIN miners license, and pay duty ON =,
a.. az g1ous drought M or otherwise they
man at the mouth Of the Frazer rivcr
ana custom officers az every trail leading ~,
into the country. WINK Il
An earthquake would not have been b,
more sudden or disastrous TO tho thou ce
sands camped on Bellingham bav, and Gbo Il,
stampede OF disappointed miners was more Il,
rapid than the former rush AS Cantain a.
koeder used TO say. Governor D0ngIas "
WIN i one blow of great sledge- hammer ~
mad Knocked the underpinninp from evory tn
house on BeifinRham BAY" tn
hoeder saw mill and the BellinQham in
Day coal mines being the only Industries M
conducted on the Bay, until another i'm i'm
portant event occurred in 1871 yben en- IN
ia
exploration OF line for the Northern
tdcihc railway, for the building OF which
Jay COOK endeayored to float bonds. and
on the BACK Of those bonds was a manor
the line showing Duluth as the com We
mencement, and rockingham nav Ito
terminus OF the Northern Pacific Rail. alI
road company. Again the hopes Of The !
settlers were dashed 20 the ground as Law Clf
N NOM horn la''ed po IN 1873, and the
pany fell into other hands, who were dol
more interested In booming a townsite
az Tacoma than in carrying out the fran. pre-
chlse as originally granted. IL Is. how On'
re- or PtoDe9ie' that haTlng absorbed all goo
IN inc near iuiure, seek BellinRbaBi Inv mol
tnelr llnal terminus as originally intend str
60. 80 lar, however, In this matter. the
aRdin Ihe race has not been 10 the swift is 4
or the battle 70 the strong :
another decade passed In quletude rs31
Roeder mill being burned down I'm 1874. H.
was not rebuilt, and the coal mines sbut ~ ~
down IN 1873. The prospects of the set i hn
llers were not cheering, when In 1882
a. Mcpherson, i. Y Collins and MO
Few Others, known as the Kansas Colony
made an agreement with Capt Roeder A
ana the Peabody heirs 10 build two water dai
power mills, one grist and the other a
saw mill, and TO build fifty houses and N
nave them occupied with families. also ran
10 dniid q wharf out 70 deep water A
Nlthln TWO years when Roeder and mo VOL
feaDody helrs were 10 give them one half O
d tnelf claims, The colony started in TO hac
lll their part OF the contract, and "A fresh dan
boom started, and this time matters were ~
lively on the Bay; for while houses ~, ~
stores and hotels we're built In All dfrec- w
lions, and again hope sprang eternal in 'ne
The breasts Of the settlers; but alas the n
colony had laid h Id Of more than thew his
could lift and failed to fulfil the letter Of VIII
the contract. and the TOWNSHIP nronrie- fai
tors declined TO deed the lots to the col n
g.Iby, a9aain collapse SET Ia, and every La
thing fell Hat. This collapse was intensi Du
he'd, as about this time, 1885,. Mr.. Corn Vic
wall, OF the old coal mine started In the
build railway, but after doing a little dis
work on u ne abandoned IL, aud added To y
the disappointment Of the citizens Tben -
the tOwnsite prOprietors made "A cosatro- ~ ~
mise with the the colony, but too late 10 y, w Z
check the Generalization. About his w. ~
time Capt. Eidrdge built his big mill al -, -, : :
faddels fOlnt Point Clatawa. as before eva
mentioned and again hope OF revival cor
animated the settlers, 10 be once more O'lr
doomed 10 disappointment, for as soon as =
Capt. Eldridge had completed his mill. IN
the Puget Sound Milling Compa ny ~
stepped Ia and leased It for term II no
years. Capt. Eldridge leasing il to them gra
IN good faith. They, however closed IL 20
up, and refused To allow il 10 be worked 6u
having leased II for the EXPRESS purpose ~
OF Keeping It idle and preventing compe- gOl
All these incidents chiefly had refer ers
ence to the old town Of Whatcom and The sal
Sehome companv's nronertv. ~ az .ne cal
the lower end Of lhe bay. where the deen IN
water came close in shore, began 10 he ma
talked OF, for an OLD settler there named tof
Dan Harris, thought Of laying out town del
on bis claim called Fairhaven, and ac- the
cordlngly had II surveyed into town lots.
and sold few OF them, just scratching"
a living until lsss, when Nelson Bennett
7. y, Larrabee and associates bought ont the
Dld Dan Harris, and started 20 build a AZ
railroad from Fairhaven to Blaine, at the NJ
boundary line, and thence 10 New West ser
Minister, under the name OF Fairhaven da,