The Lynden tribune. [volume] (Lynden, Wash.) 1908-current, 1920-09-16
William T. Simmons First to Make Famous Red Cedar
Shingles for World Trade Washington's
Original Hydro-Electric Plant Built
On Sight OF Old Mill

That little sequestered nook at the
head of Puget Sound known as Tum-
water Falls saw the beginning of two
great events in the history Of this
state-the first white settlement on
Puget Sound and the first hydro-elec-
trio plant The white settlement es-
tablished by Michael Troutman Sim
mons has filtered along the shores of
the Sound and expanded into world
famous cities to which duplicates of
that electric plant are supplying pow
err, heat and light. Simmons with the
rest of the little pioneering colony is
gone but the spirit of accomplishment
that he left has made and is making
the great Northwest.
With Kentucky pioneering blood in
his veins Simmons made an early
start for the west stopping first in In
diana where he married Elizabeth
Kindred in 1885 and then crossing the
plains in 1874. The first winter in
Washington was spent at Washougal
near the Hudson Bay post at Fort
Vancouver which was the distributing
point for settlers along the West
coast
Explores Sound
The national ownership of what was
then known as Oregon had not at that
time been settled and DR.. John Nc
Loughlin, factor at the post, was doing
all he could to save the country north
of the Columbia for Great Britain.
Acting on that policy he was sending
all new settlers he could influence into
the Willamette valley but his very de-
termination to influence Simmons into
turning south made Simmons all the
more curious to see the country to the
north and in consequence he came to
Puget Sound in the spring of 1S45
with a party of men and explored the
country as far as WILDLY Island in
canoe.
Having determined on his future
home Simmons went back to the CO.
lumbia for his family and returned to
Tumwater and started the settlement
which he named New Market. With
Simmons came George w. Bush, Ga
briel Jones, David Kindred and James
McAllister and their families and two
single men, Samuel B. Crockett and
Jesse Ferguson.
Although determined that they
should not come to Puget Sound Nc
Loughlin did what he could to make
their lives comfortable once they were
here and sent word to the factor at
Fl Nisqually to sell them whatever
they needed which was fortunate, for
the colony arrived too late in the sum-
mer to mature a crop on the praries
south Of their new home. Considering
the present cost of living and the
rough means of transportation at that
time, when it took fifteen days to make
the trip from the mouth of the Cowlitz
river to TumWater by OK team, the
prices charged by the Hudson Bay
company were very nominal. During
the winter the new colonists bought
200 bushels of wheat at eighty cents
bushel, 100 bushels of peas at one dol.
lar bushel, 300 bushels of potatoes
at fifty cents bushel and twelve head
Of cattle at $12 each.
No Patch, No Pants
Clothing was evidently not as plenti-
full as food for the factor made it a
rule that man had to show his worn
out pair of pants before a new pair
could be purchased, and if the rents in
the clothing looked suspiciously new
or as if they had been made on pur-
pose the buyer had to give an account
of when and how he had torn them.