The Lynden tribune. [volume] (Lynden, Wash.) 1908-current, 1921-12-15
TELLS OF LIFE OF
LYNDEN PIONEER
Sunday Reveille Describes Expert
ences of Michael DermOdy, North
Prairie Clam-Digger

Exploits of Lynden pioneer, Mike
Dermody of North Prairie, were the
subject of an article published by the
Bellingham Reveille Sunday. The
following is the story about the Lyn-
den old-timer:
Forty years residence in the older
parts of the country is not sufficient
these days to make one a pioneer,
when it is taken into consideration
that in the New England states and
other places several generations live
and die without seeing any of the
outside world. But here in the west
and especially in this newer west,
one becomes pioneer with a much
shorter period of residence. And SO
Michael Dermody of the North Prarie
country in the Lynden district Is a
pioneer, and in more ways than one.
I He is more than a pioneer by name
I because he went into that part of the
county away back in 1888 and has
helped change it from a homestead
ing country to what everyone knows
it to be, one of the county's garden
spots. solid network of finely i'm
y
and other advanced phases of farm
ing industry.
Mr. Dermody tells an interesting
story. He makes one guess at his age
but at that he is young man in
mannerisms, in his work and com
munity activity, so he might be 70 or
80 or 50-it makes no difference as
to that. Many men would be much
oil civ i1o nil
His philosophy of life has helped him
over the bumps and now when he has
earned the right to enjoy life, that
same philosophy stands him in good
stead, and he is now enjoying life.
He tells his own story to a rep
resentative of the Bellingham Rev
ellie, barely touching the high lights
of his interesting experiences. His
brief story covering almost a half
century Of his life follows:
81 was born in Dover, N. H. but my
parents moved to Portsmouth during
my infancy. My experience is a typ
ical illustration of how New England
SIS stayed very close 4, .nfinR. !
spent twenty-six years in and around
Portsmouth. and never got back to
see the place of my birth, twelve
miles distant.
after spending seven years at the
stonecutters trade ! decided to go
west With my friend VIM. Granfield
l started for San Francisco during
the TildenHayes campaign in 1876.
When We got to Wyoming our train
was loaded with people headed for
the coast. l remember particularly
one little town at which we stopped
for an hour or so. 1t was election
day, and a delegation met our train
and took bunch of us to the polls to
vote for their candidate for sheriff
We all voted, of course.
After eleven and one-half days on
the train, we reached San Francisco
My partner and | spent the winter
and spring at stonecutting, making
one hundred dollars each, per month.
The following June we came to Seat
tie, which then had about twenty
/ five hundred people, making the trip
by the water route in five days on the
old side-wheeler Dakota" Capt
Morse.
Not particularly enjoying sea-sick-
ness, l have kept off the ocean ever
since
I'VE headed for Fall City on the
SnoQualmie river, going by rail to
what is now Renton, and from there
to Squak, now 1ssaquah by pack
horse. Near Fall City, Granfield and
! homesteaded a couple of eighties
but after a year my partner got sick
and begged me to go back with him
But l had not seen enough of the
great west. so Granield went back to
New England without me.
About this time l formed a part
nership with e. M. Cudworth, who
was located at Snoqualmie Prairie
now North Bend. We bought the jim
liimball place, two hundred acres
for 100000. This was then good
grazing land, and we raised hogs
principally, fattening them in the fall
Iby "hogging off, the pea fields we
had raised. We then drove these
hogs afoot to Seattle, our market
spending four days on the drive. We
generally sold them to the Wadleigt
Meat Co., located near the spot where
now stands the DeXterHorton Bank
The price averaged about three cents
"onfoot." One fall we tried curing
our pork at home, using it ALL abou'
one hundred forty hogs. These W,
brought down the Snoqualmie river
from the Falls to Snoqualmie City
in g large canoe. and then shipped
by boat to Seattle. We had a fin,
bunch of hams and bacon and sole
the lot for S cents per pound. Would
mt that price make the housewife
smile?
lone year flour and other neces
: sites were very high, and none,
: scarce. To avoid buying the higf
; priced flour we toasted the whea
we had raised and spent the evening
grinding il into flour by means o
II large coffee mill. The flour mad