WILLIAM D. KIRKPATRICK M. D., F. A. C. S.

Dr. William D. Kirkpatrick, a physician of more than twenty-five years' standing in Bellingham and a veteran of the World war with an officer's commission and a record of overseas service, is a native son of the old Bay state but has been a resident of this country since the days of his young manhood and there are few men in this section of the state who have a wider or better acquaintance than he. Dr. Kirkpatrick was born in Chelsea, delightful suburb of Boston, Massachusetts, March 10, 1872, and is a son of David W. and Catherine E. (Williams) Kirkpatrick. Early applying himself to the study of medicine he finished his professional education in the Medical School of the University of Minnesota and was there graduated (M. D.) in 1895. He followed this by a postgraduate course in the Medical School of Harvard University and in 1900 came to Bellingham where he established himself in practice, now being accounted one of the veteran physicians of this section of the state. He long has specialized in surgery and is recognized as one of Washington's leading surgeons.

During the progress of the World war, beginning in 1914, Dr. Kirkpatrick attached himself in a professional capacity to the work of the American Red Cross in Europe and in 1915, two years before this country took a formal hand in the war, was assigned to service as surgeon in the American Red Cross Hospital in Belgrade, capital of Serbia, and was there during the dread scourge of typhus that swept that region and also during the time of the bombardment of Belgrade. In 1917, the year in which the United States entered the war, he was assigned to duty as director of the American Red Cross hospitals in Romau and Jassy, Roumania, and in 1918 was commissioned a major of the United States army and assigned to service as medical advisor with the American Expeditionary Forces along the Archangel front in Russia, where he remained until the close of the war. Dr. Kirkpatrick has retained his interest in army affairs and is now a lieutenant colonel of the Medical Officers Reserve Corps of the United States army. During his long period of overseas service he was on duty on no fewer than four fronts, in France, Serbia, Roumania and Russia, and his record provides a most engrossing tale of war in its most horrible aspect, for to the surgeon come experiences in human salvage sometime too dreadful for the ears of the laity.

In 1916 Dr. Kirkpatrick was elected to fellowship in the American College of Surgeons. He also is a member of the Association of Military Surgeons, the Pacific Coast Surgical Association of which he is second vice president, and the Great Northern Railway Surgeons Association and is likewise affiliated with the American Medical Association and the Washington State Medical Association, being well and widely known in his profession throughout the northwest.

In 1897, in Mazeppa, Wabasha county, Minnesota, Dr. Kirkpatrick was united in marriage to Miss Addie G. Ford and they have a daughter, Ruth, wife of T. I. Evans, now living in Seattle. Dr. and Mrs. Kirkpatrick have a pleasant home in Bellingham and have ever been leaders in the promotion of the general social and cultural activities of their home town. They are members of the Bellingham Country Club and also take an interested and helpful part in others of the social movements of the community. The doctor has ever given his earnest attention to local educational activities and is chairman of the board of trustees of the State Normal School at Bellingham, an institution that has profited largely by reason of his able efforts in its behalf.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, pps. 275-276.

NELLIE (SAMSON) KNIGHT

Among the well conducted hostelries for which Whatcom county is justly famed, none is more popular with motorists than is that operated on Samson's Ranch, which was homesteaded in the Glacier forest reserve in 1907 by Nellie Samson. Her parents, Harry S. and Nancy E. Samson, were born in Pennsylvania and in their youth to Minnesota, where they were married. Subsequently they migrated to South Dakota and the father entered a homesteaded, proving up on the claim, which he afterward sold. The family next came to Washington, settling at Seattle in 1891, and later moved to Glacier township. To Mr. and Mrs. Samson was born a son, Roy, who is now living in Burlington, Washington, and has a wife and one child, Roy Stewart. Their daughter Nellie is the wife of Oscar A. Knight, to whom she was married in 1919.

In 1917 the home and all of the household goods of the family were destroyed by fire, and the present business of serving meals was then started. A modern building was erected on the place and Samson's Ranch, "the old-fashioned farm," is now known far and wide for the superior quality of food served to patrons and the hospitality of its owners. The milk, vegetables and chickens are all produced on the farm and on Sunday meals are frequently supplied to one hundred guests, while from sixteen to twenty-one people are furnished with lodgings. The place is situated forty miles from Bellingham, on the Mount Baker road, and patrons from Seattle, Washington, Vancouver, British Columbia, and many intermediate points secure reservations for the special dinners, which are greatly enjoyed by residents of the Pacific northwest. In the upbuilding of the business Mrs. Nancy E. Samson has borne a leading part, possessing the courage, self-reliance and executive capacity of the true frontierswoman, and the members of this enterprising family occupy a high place in public esteem.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, p. 902.

HENRY M. LANE

Henry M. Lane, well known realtor at Bellingham and for more than forty years a resident of the coast country, is a native of the old Hoosier state, born at Bambridge, Indiana, in the year 1864, and is a son of M. W. and Ellen (Walsh) Lane, both of whom were natives of Ireland. Reared and educated in Indiana, Mr. Lane followed various pursuits there - farming, road building, trading in live stock and the like - until he attained his majority, when he came to Washington and began to take part in development work in Seattle. In that same year (1895) he married in that city and four years later, in 1889, came to Whatcom county and entered a claim to a tract of land on the south fork of Skookum creek and settled down to making a farm out of the place. He also was for some time engaged in prospecting for coal. In addition to his farming and other operations in this county, Mr. Lane was engaged in other lines, in and out of Whatcom county, and has for years given particular attention to the realty field, buying and selling property in this and adjacent counties, with particular reference to timber lands, and has done well in his operations. In 1900 he established his home in Bellingham and he and his wife have since been living here, now quite pleasantly situated at 1120 Forest street.

It was on the 28th of December, 1895, in the city of Seattle, that Mr. Lane was united in marriage to Miss Anna E. Hershey, who was born in Whiteside county, Illinois, daughter of Joseph and Mary (Murphy) Hershey, who later moved to Nebraska and in 1890 came to the coast country and became pioneers of Whatcom county. Mr. and Mrs. Lane are republicans and have ever given their interested attention to local civic affairs, as well as to the social activities of the community. They attend the Church of Christ (Scientist) and are earnest students of the ethical teachings embodied in Mrs. Eddy's books.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, p. 451.

WILLIAM LAUCKHART

It is always pleasant and profitable to contemplate the career of a man who has made a success of life and won the honor and respect of his fellow citizens. Such is the record of the well known dairy and poultry farmer whose name heads this sketch and a more whole-souled or popular man it would be difficult to find in his locality. William Lauckhart was born near Randolph, Wisconsin, in 1872. His father, also named William, was born in Holland in 1834, and was there reared and educated. In 1853 he came to the United States, locating in Wisconsin, and was there reared and educated. In 1853 he came to the United States, locating in Wisconsin, and three years later he returned to his native land and brought back with him his parents and a sister, and they located near Milwaukee.

The country was densely wooded, and here Mr. Lauckhart worked in the timber in winter and on neighboring farms in summer. During the Civil war he desired to enlist in defense of his adopted country but could not do so as he was the only support of the family. He married Miss Henrietta Wessels, who was born in Waukesha, Wisconsin, and after his marriage he managed his father's forty acre farm until 1882. He had read a letter from Washington published in a local paper, and he wrote the author of the letter for more information about the western country. The reply was so satisfactory that he started westward, going to Council Bluffs, then to San Francisco by rail and from there to Seattle by the steamer Dakota. There he met the Boyd family and was persuaded to go up the Skagit river as far as sedro on the boat Josephine. As Mr. Lauckhart did not like the country there, he remained on the boat, returned and then transferred to a boat going to Utsaladdy. There he remained on the vessel until the Bellingham boat arrived, since the cost of lodging was as cheap on board as at a hotel. At Bellingham he was met by A. Klocke, with whom he walked to Lynden and Judsons. He left his wife and son at Bellingham, but they soon followed him by ox team.

Mr. Lauckhart then homesteaded one hundred and sixty acres of land, comprising the present farm. In the course of time their goods and boxes started on a boat from Bellingham, on a "cold-water steamer," which was pulled upstream by ropes. Other provisions and supplies were loaded into a large canoe, but the canoe hit a snag and was split open, the heavy articles all sinking, which was a real tragedy to the newcomers. However, the flour, sugar and other important foodstuffs were saved. The homestead was densely covered with timber and brush, and the only highway to the place was the Bertrand prairie trail. In the course of time the father and his sons cleared one hundred and twenty acres of the land, which also required a good deal of ditching and draining, and eventually they developed it into one of the best farms in this locality. In the early days the father worked out a good deal in order to earn ready money for current expenses. He was active in the local affairs of the community, serving as a school director for a number of years, and also as road overseer.  His death occurred in 1914 and his wife died in 1920. Besides the subject of this sketch, they had one other son, Henry, who died in 1921 and whose widow afterward became the wife of J. T. Welch.

William Lauckhart, the younger, received the benefit of a public school education. He remained with his parents until they died and subsequently took over the operation of his share of the farm, amounting to sixty acres. He has devoted his attention principally to dairy farming, keeping thirty head of registered Ayrshire stock, but he is now gradually relinquishing the dairy business and turning to the poultry business, in which he is meeting with splendid success. He has eleven hundred fine White Leghorn hens and is preparing greatly to increase the size of his flock. He raises practically enough feed on the farm for his stock, and he is regarded as an up-to-date and progressive man in his ideas and methods.

In 1902 Mr. Lauckhart was married to Miss Jennie Trapman, who was born in Holland, a daughter of James and Jeanette (Van Cruynengen) Trapman, the former of whom died in 1917, while the mother is now living in Lynden. The family came to the United States in 1884, coming to Lynden in 1898. To Mr. and Mrs. Lauckhart have been born three children, namely: Wilbur, of Tacoma, and John Burton and Donald William, who are at home. Politically Mr. Lauckhart maintains an independent attitude, voting according to the dictates of his judgment as to men and measures. He is a member of the Whatcom County Dairymen's Association and the Whatcom County Poultry Association. He has served as a member of the board of school directors and in every possible way has contributed to the welfare and progress of his community. Mrs. Lauckhart is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. Among Mr. Lauckhart's prized possessions are two photographs, one of the Grand Army of the Republic at Lynden in 1889 and the other of the Lynden band, taken the same year. He is a man of excellent personal qualities, and throughout the community where he has lived for so many years he enjoys a high measure of respect and esteem.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, pps. 72-73.

FLORENCE E. LEES

Miss Florence E. Lees, principal of the Lincoln school, has been connected with the educational interests of Bellingham for thirty years and is widely known in educational circles throughout the state. Miss Lees was born in the city of Hastings, Barry county, Michigan, and is a daughter of Isaac B. and Lucina (Bierce) Lees, the latter born in New York, and a member of one of the old families of the Empire state. The late Isaac B. Lees, whose last days were spent in Bellingham, was born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and was a building contractor, a vocation he followed at Hastings, Michigan, until 1894, when he came to Bellingham, where the remainder of his life was spent, his death occurring here in April, 1912. The first of the Lees family to come to Bellingham was Miss Fannie E. Lees, who is 1891, in response to the call then going back east for competent teachers to enter the service of the schools in this state, came to Whatcom county and was made principal of the Columbia school in Bellingham, where she continued to serve for nine years. In 1900 she was given the chair of the mathematics in the high school and thus continued to serve, an effective members of the city's teaching staff, for fifteen years, or until her retirement in 1915. For six years prior to her arrival here she had been a teacher in the Michigan schools.

Reared at Hastings, Michigan, Miss Florence Lees was graduated from the high school in that city, and supplemented this by a course in the Michigan High School Normal and was engaged in teaching in her home state until 1894, when she came here with her parents and was employed as teacher of the fourth grade in the Columbia school. From 1894 to 1896 she was principal of the Washington school and in 1903 was made principal of the Lincoln school. When Roeder school was built she was made principal of that unit and thus continued to serve until her resignation in 1911 to take a vacation and to secure a bit of relaxation from the routine of the schools. Going to the eastern part of the state Miss Lees took up a one hundred and sixty-acre homestead claim in Grant county and with her brother and sister settled down to prove up on the same. This was successfully accomplished and her brother and sister now are occupying that place, a well improved irrigated farm. In 1921 Miss Lees resumed her connection with the Bellingham schools and has since been serving as principal of the Lincoln school, a valued factor in the city's admirable school system. Miss Lees is a member of the Protestant Episcopal church and has ever given her earnest and thoughtful attention to parish affairs as well as to the general social and cultural activities of the city and community at large, helpful in promoting all movements designed to advance the common welfare. She resides at 511 East Holly street and is quite pleasantly situated there.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, pps. 282-283.

MANNING T. McKENZIE

M. T. McKenzie is one of the energetic and successful farmers and poultry men of western Whatcom county, who is the course of an honorable career has been successful in his business affairs and enjoys the confidence and good will of all with whom he has come into contact. A native of Nova Scotia, where his birth occurred on the 20th of January, 1869, he is a son of Robert and Mary F. (Lade) McKenzie. The parents were also natives of Nova Scotia, where they were reared and married, and there the father followed farming. In 1870 the family moved to the United States, locating in Minnesota, where the father took up a homestead. He cleared the land and put it under cultivation, created a fine home, and devoted his energies to its operation until 1904, when he came to Whatcom county and bought twenty-five acres of land at Sumas, where he followed general farming and dairying, continuing to live there until his death in 1913. His widow is still living and resides in Bellingham. The McKenzie family, as the name indicates, is of pure Scottish origin, and was established in Nova Scotia in a very early day. To Robert and Mary McKenzie were born eight children, namely: M. T., Herbert, Elizabeth, Fred, Chester, Everett, Catherine and Robert.

M. T. McKenzie spent his boyhood days in Minnesota, securing his education in the public schools of his home neighborhood. When eighteen years of age he went to Colorado, where he remained about one and a half years, and then went to Missoula, Montana, where he followed the trade of a stonemason for three years. He next went to Texas and two years later to New Mexico, where he was married, in 1906, and soon afterwards built a house at Raton, that state, where he followed the building trade until December, 1919, when he came to Whatcom county and bought fourteen and a half acres of land near Ferndale. Here he showed the nicety of his judgment in a business way by going into the chicken business. He built three fine chicken houses, according to the most approved plans, and now runs about one thousand laying hens. He has been more than ordinarily successful in this enterprise and is now preparing to double his flocks, having fully demonstrated the practicability of the business here. He also keeps two cows and has an acre planted to apples. His comfortable and attractive home, supplied with modern conveniences, is very nicely situated. He is a man of energy and persistent industry, his efforts being directed by sound common sense, and he has gained an excellent reputation among his fellow farmers as a man of business ability, square dealing and public spirit.

In New Mexico, November 30, 1906, Mr. McKenzie was married to Miss Mary E. Hodge, who was born and reared in Iowa, the daughter of John and Emily (Hinkley) Hodge. Mr. and Mrs. McKenzie are the parents of a daughter, Margaret E., who was born in New Mexico, August 1, 1908, and is now a student in the Bellingham high school. Genial and unassuming in manner and courteous and accommodating in his relations with his neighbors, Mr. McKenzie has deservedly won their honest regard and stands high among the enterprising and progressive citizens of Ferndale township. He is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and Mrs. McKenzie belongs to the Daughters of Rebekah, having been state president of that order while living in New Mexico.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, pps. 612-615.

JOHN J. McNALLY

A man of varied talents, J. J. McNally has successfully followed many lines of activity and is now engaged in the hotel business at Everson, which for nearly a quarter of a century has claimed him as a citizen. He was born October 7, 1866, in Louisville, Kentucky, and his parents, J. J. and Jennie (Musgrove) McNally, were also natives of that state. His father was a well known contractor and for years was intimately associated with building operations in the Blue Grass state.

J. J. McNally, the younger, completed his education in Alexander College of Kentucky, and his first position was that of a newspaper reporter. He next went to Texas as surveyor for a railroad and afterward worked in a furniture factory, learning the hardware finisher's trade. While at St. John, Kansas, Mr. McNally took contracts for painting, having also mastered that trade. In 1902 he came to Whatcom county. He located at Everson and continued at his trade, securing many large contracts. In 1919 he purchased a tract of thirty-six acres in the vicinity of the town and in the intervening period has brought his land to a high state of development, being a progressive agriculturist.

In 1914 Mr. McNally was united in marriage to Miss Elizabeth Harkness, a member of one of the pioneer families of this locality. In politics Mr. McNally is a republican and along fraternal lines he is connected with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, p. 105.

CAPTAIN ANDREW KARENIUS MARCUSEN

Following the death of Captain Andrew Karenius Marcusen, veteran seaman and one of the best known pioneers of the Bay country, in the spring of 1923, Bellingham Bay Lodge, No. 44, Free and Accepted Masons, of which he was an honored member, unanimously adopted resolutions of respect for the memory of the deceased, together with an expression of sympathy and condolence on behalf of his widow, in which the lodge took occasion "to mourn the passing of one who, though young in our fraternity, has been one of the good citizens of our city for many years." These resolutions in memoriam, which were ordered spread on the records of the lodge and a copy of which was sent to Captain Marcusen's widow, set out formally that "Andrew Marcusen was born and reared in Norway and, like his ancestors of old, became a seafaring man, sailing the seas to all the principal ports of the world. Thirty six years ago he came to Sehome, now part of Bellingham, bought lots on Elk street and other streets, built buildings and became one of the substantial and enterprising men of our city.

"In his youth he had experienced, as a sailor, the hard side of life, which enabled him to appreciate the good things and the wonderful opportunities this country offers to those who will apply themselves and strive for the best. As men and Masons we loved him for his sterling character, his true friendship and his genial smile. We will miss him as a member of our lodge, but we will miss him more as a neighbor and friend. His kind greeting and hearty handclasp will long have a place in our memory. To his widow we extend our sincere sympathy and assure her of our friendship, and that we are ready to assist her in any way." An appreciation of this fine old mariner in the Washington Posten, Seattle, was along the same sympathetic lines, the observation there being made that "reserved and quiet in manner, Captain Marcusen had a large circle of friends and was well known and liked. He always had a friendly word and an encouraging smile for every one. His loyalty as a citizen he gave expression as a booster and investor in Bellingham, where he  from the first built several structures, finally a pretty home on the hillside, overlooking the Bay, where he was to spend old age with his wife. Only seven months was he to enjoy it, and his wife will mourn his departure, but also rejoice in happy memories."

Captain Marcusen was born in the kingdom of Norway, son of a sea captain, in the year 1859, and was twenty-seven years of age when in 1887 he came to the Sehome settlement (now Bellingham). When fourteen years of age he had gone to sea and when in his twentieth year had earned his navigation papers and thereafter until coming to this coast was master of vessels in his home waters and on the Atlantic. He arrived in Portland in 1887 and afterward sailed the Pacific. His first step upon arrival here was to take out citizenship papers and to secure his license as a navigator under American registry. This license was granted at Seattle and he at once engaged in coastwise shipping, this service being mostly rendered in Puget Sound and Alaskan waters. He was skipper of vessels in the trade of the Alaska Packers Association and for some time was captain of the "Royal," a government coast survey vessel. He also had a proprietary interest in the "Alpha" and during the many years he sailed out of Bellingham Bay was one of the best known and most popular mariners on the coast.

In 1912 Captain Marcusen gave up his ship and took a trip back to his boyhood home in Norway, where he so pleasantly renewed an acquaintance with one of the friends of his youth, Miss Olave Bugge, that marriage followed. In the fall of that same year Captain Marcusen returned to Bellingham with his bride and thereafter gave his attention to his growing realty operations, his life as a navigator being over. From the beginning of his residence in the Bay settlements, forty years ago, he had been a believer in development here and was an early and successful investor in real estate, a builder and promoter - a "booster," - and had become the owner of considerable valuable property in Bellingham. The Captain died March 25, 1923, survived by his widow and a brother, Otto Marcusen. He was an earnest and honored member of the Masonic order, and for twenty-five years was also an active member of the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks.

Since the death of her husband Mrs. Marcusen has continued to make her home in Bellingham, residing at 710 Forest street, where she is very pleasantly situated. She is a member of the Presbyterian church and of the Order of the Eastern Star. She was born in southern Norway, which also was the birthplace of the Captain, and was there reared and educated. She was given good schooling and early became a teacher, specializing in languages and history, and for years taught in the schools of her home place until her marriage in 1912 to the devoted old friend of her girlhood, the gallant Captain Marcusen, and departure for far away Bellingham, where she since has quite willingly made her home and to the interests of which city she has become whole-heartedly attached.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, ps. 644-647.

JOHN W. E. MILLER

J. W. E. Miller is proprietor of a well kept place in Mountain View township on rural mail route No. 2 out of Ferndale. For more than thirty years he has been a resident here and has thus been a witness to and a participant in the progress of that region since the beginning of what may be regarded as the modern period of that development. When he settled on his original "forty" on section 28, Mountain View township, there was no public inlet to the place and he had to cut a mile of roadway through the timber to get to his land. For ten years prior to his coming to Whatcom county Mr. Miller had been a resident of this state, farming and lumbering in Columbia county, and he thus knew how to take hold of things when he got here, so that it was not long until he had his place cleared and ready for cultivation and proper habitation. For some years he gave particular attention to horticultural pursuits, with special reference to berry culture, and earned in his neighborhood the title of "berry king" of Mountain View. Of late years he has specialized in dairying and has a good herd of dairy cattle, one of the leading producers in that section.

Mr. Miller is a native of the old Keystone state, born in Adams county, Pennsylvania, not far from where the decisive battle of Gettysburg was fought. He was born January 14, 1861. His father, Michael B. Miller, a native of Pennsylvania, was a farmer. His mother, Louisa (Foust) Miller, died in 1871. She was born in Germany and was eight years of age when she came to this country with her parents, the family settling in Pennsylvania, where she was reared and was married. Bereft of his mother by death when he was ten years of age, J. W. E. Miller spent the next two years in the household of his paternal uncle, Noah Miller, in Fountain county, Indiana, after which he returned to his old home in Pennsylvania and there remained until 1879 when he returned to Indiana and for three years thereafter was engaged in farm labor in that state. In 1883 he went to Illinois, with a view to possible further travel westward and in 1884 went to Idaho and took a hand in the stirring scenes then being enacted in the Coeur d'Alene country and helped to build the first hotel in the now flourishing city of Coeur d'Alene. From there he pushed on into Washington and located at Dayton, Columbia county. He liked the looks of things there and presently settled down to farming and in the fall of 1888 was married. Mr. Miller continued farming there until 1895, when his father-in-law, L. D. Droke, one of the landowners in Whatcom county, gave him a timberland "forty" on section 28, Mountain View township, and he disposed of his holdings in Columbia county and settled on this place. After clearing it he sold it to advantage and bought the forty acre tract on which he since has made his home and where he now is quite comfortably situated, all the improvements on this place having been made by himself and in up-to-date fashion. Mr. Miller has ever taken an interested and helpful part in the civic affairs of his community, has for fifteen years been a member of the school board and for seven years was township assessor. He is a member of the local grange of the Patrons of Husbandry and has long been active in that mutually helpful organization.

It was in November, 1888, at Dayton, this state, that Mr. Miller was united in marriage to Miss Carrie D. Droke, who died on February 17, 1913. She was a daughter of L. D. and Louisa (Davis) Droke, both born in Missouri and the former of whom died in Los Angeles, California. Mr. Miller has two children. Charles A. L. Miller, now a resident of Bellingham, where he is engaged in railroad business, married Miss Lilian Warwick and has two children, Dorothy and Galen. Lulu B. Miller, is a graduate of the State Normal School at Bellingham is teaching in her home township.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, pps. 841-842.

ARNE K. MOE

The people who have come to the United States from Norway have by their untiring efforts contributed in a very definite way to the development of this country. Norway's strongest blood has coursed through the veins of her sterling sons who have cast their lot with us, and they have been noted for their energy, thrift and honesty - qualities which make for success. When to these is added the quality of common sense there is afforded a combination of elements which will enrich any country. Of this excellent people is A. K. Moe, one of Ferndale township's respected citizens and successful farmers. He was born in Norway on the 13th of March, 1860, and is a son of Knute and Marne (Moe) Moe, both of whom were natives and lifelong residents of that country, where they passed away.

A. K. Moe received a good, practical education in the public schools of his native land, where he remained until 1880, when, at the age of twenty years, he emigrated to the United States, settling at La Crosse, Wisconsin, where he engaged in railroad work. Later he packed flour in the mills at La Crosse and afterward did teaming for the city, owning his own team. In 1889 Mr. Moe came to Washington, locating at Fairhaven, where he was employed in sawmills, and also drove a team for a while. In 1891 he loaded his furniture and household goods on a boat at Fairhaven, went up the Nooksack river as far as Lynden and then hauled the goods by ox teams to British Columbia. He secured twenty acres of land and spent four years in its cultivation, and then, in the spring of 1896, he came to Whatcom county again and was employed in the building of the normal school at Bellingham. Later he worked in a sawmill for Aaron Fleming and was afterward employed in a like capacity by the Earl Company. In 1901 Mr. Moe went to Clear Lake, Skagit county, Washington, and bought four lots, one which he built a home, and he was employed in a shingle mill about one year. In the fall of 1902 he bought twenty acres of land in Mountain View township, Whatcom county. He cleared off the greater part of this land and then sold it, in 1906, and went to Bellingham, where he bought the Union Hotel, which he ran for five years. In 1908 he bought a ranch near the North Star school, in Mountain View township, and in 1910 he moved to that tract and applied himself t clearing and cultivation thereof. In 1912 he wold the place and went to Tacoma, where he operated hotels and restaurants until 1918, when he returned to Whatcom county and bought ten acres of land on the Blaine highway, in Ferndale township. He now has this land all cleared and under cultivation, most of it being in fruit and berries. He also keeps two cows and has a very well improved and comfortable home. Mr. Moe is a member of the Whatcom County Dairymen's Association and is also a member of  the lodge of the Sons of Norway at Tacoma.

At Blair, Wisconsin, in 1883, Mr. Moe was married to Miss Hannah Johnson, who was born in Norway, a daughter of John and Anna (Hanson) Johnson, both of whom were natives of that country and their died, the father when Mrs. Moe was but three years old and the mother in 1906. To Mr. and Mrs. Moe have been born six children: George, born June 7, 1884, and who now lives in Tacoma, is married and has three children - Gordon, Christina and Verne. Mrs. Mabel A. Clifford, of Tacoma, born March 9, 1886, is the mother of a daughter, Helen. Milton, born June 20, 1888, died in 1890. Hildar, born July 5, 1890, died in infancy. Mrs. Alvira Nelson, born in 1894, has a daughter, Mona Maxine. Irene Bernice, born in 1902, is a graduate of the high school and of Wilson's Business College at Bellingham and is now employed by the country treasurer. Mr. Moe has ever stood ready to cooperate with his fellow citizens in every effort to advance the interests of the community or to better in any way the public welfare. His life has been an active one and his labors have been crowned with well deserved success.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, pps. 176-177.

GEORGE A. MONROE

George A. Monroe is widely known as the pioneer mortician of Whatcom county and represents a family whose members have figured prominently in business circles of Ferndale for more than forty years. He was born September 24, 1858, in Michigan City, Indiana, of which state his parents, Henry and Angeline (Griffin) Monroe, were early settlers. The latter was a native of New York state and the father was born in Inverness, Scotland. They came to Ferndale in 1884 by way of the water route and here spent the remainder of their lives. Their sons, John H. and Daniel G. Monroe, had preceded them to Ferndale in 1883 and operated the first sawmill in this locality. A sister is the widow of F. L. Whitney, one of the pioneer surveyors of Ferndale, and another sisters, Mrs. A. M. Crawford, passed away in Bellingham, in which city her husband's demise also occurred.

After the completion of his high school course George A. Monroe devoted a number of years to educational work, teaching school in Indiana and later in Washington. In 1897 he opened an undertaking establishment in Ferndale and later added a line of furniture. He is well informed on all matters pertaining to the lines in which he specializes, and the steady growth of the business is indicative of his executive ability, good judgment and honorable dealing.

On September 24, 1883, Mr. Monroe married Miss Anna Berg, a daughter of John and Dora Berg, who passed away in Laporte county, Indiana. To Mr. and Mrs. Monroe were born seven children: Harry, who died in 1888; Jennie, the wife of Harry D. Jackson, of Anacortes, Washington, and the mother of two children, a son and a daughter; Mary, now Mrs. Byron E. Shellaberger, of Bellingham; Hattie, the wife of William E. Goeller, of Spokane, Washington, by whom she has one child, a son; Helen, who married J. R. Barkley, of San Diego, California, and has three sons; George H., who is a graduate of the University of Washington and follows the profession of teaching; and John R., who is attending the State Normal School at Bellingham, making a special study of the violin.

Mr. Monroe votes the democratic ticket and is a consistent member of the Baptist church, with which his wife is also affiliated. When they came to Ferndale it was a typical frontier district and the only means of communication with the outside world was through the stage, which stopped at the town but once a week, or by canoe. The forests were filled with wild animals, and one day while walking on the road near their home they discovered a cougar but were not attacked. They have passed through all of the phases of pioneer existence, learning many valuable lessons in the school of experience, and the prosperity which they now enjoy is the merited reward of years of industry and thrift. Theirs is one of the most hospitable homes in the county, and their friends are legion.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, pps. 764-765.

HUBERT S. MORELL

A product of the west, Hubert S. Morell is thoroughly imbued with the qualities of enterprise and determination which constitute the basis of all advancement and is successfully operating one of the fine farms of Acme township. He was born September 8, 1887, and is a native of Punta Arena, California. His parents Hugh and Laura E. (Fowler) Morell, came to Washington early in the '90s and settled at Snohomish. The father has passed away and the mother is now residing in Seattle.

Hubert S. Morell completed his education in the public schools of Washington and also attended a business college in Bellingham. He was employed along various lines and is now devoting his energies to the cultivation of the Stephens homestead, one of the oldest and finest ranches in Acme township. It contains one hundred acres of rich and arable land, and in the development of the property Mr. Morell utilizes the most efficient methods, keeping pace with all new developments along agricultural lines.

In August, 1916, Mr. Morell was united in marriage to Miss Anna Stephens, a daughter of Thomas H. and Mary F. (McDaniel) Stephens, the former of whom has lived in Whatcom county since 1884 and is one of the oldest settlers of the Nooksack valley. Mr. Morell is a tireless worker, finding true happiness and contentment in the knowledge of duty well performed. The Benevolent Protective Order of Elks is the only organization of a social or fraternal nature with which he is affiliated. He is a young man of substantial worth and occupies a secure place in the esteem of the residents of this locality.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, p. 731.

JOSEPH W. MORSMAN

J. W. Morsman, a well known dairyman and poultryman owning a well kept place of fifteen acres on rural mail route No. 2 out of Ferndale, is a native of the old Green Mountain state but has been a resident of Whatcom county, with a brief exception, since the days of his young manhood, a member of one of the pioneer families here. He was born in Rutland, Vermont, September 12, 1868, and is a son of W. H. and Mandana (Potter) Morsman, both members of old Vermont families, who became residents of Whatcom county in 1888. Mrs. Morsman, who died here in 1917, was the mother of seven children, two sons and five daughters. W. H. Morsman, who died at his home in this county in July, 1925, he then being eighty-five years of age, left Vermont with his family in the early '70s and became a pioneer farmer in Wisconsin. Two years later he moved to Iowa but after two or three years of experience in that state returned to Wisconsin. Some time later, still following his pioneering instincts, he went with his family to Nebraska, where he engaged in farming for six years, at the end of which time, in 1888, he disposed of his interests and came to Washington, and settling in Whatcom county, the fame of which at that time was beginning to attract considerable attention "back east." Upon his arrival here he bought a "forty" of uncleared timber land in the Ferndale neighborhood, and began the task of clearing it. In time he developed a good piece of property there and on that place spent the remainder of his life, one of the substantial and dependable citizens of that community. He was one of the active members of the local grange of the Patrons of Husbandry and did well his part in promoting the general social and agricultural interest of the community in which he became a pioneer.

J. W. Morsman was twenty years of age when in 1888 he came here with his parents. He had received his education in the schools of Wisconsin and Iowa and had been well trained to farm life, an aid to his father in the latter's operations while living in the midwest country. Upon his arrival here and whole "getting the lay of the land" he became employed as a teamster in Bellingham and in 1890, while thus engaged, was married. Following his marriage he took over twenty acres of his father's tract, starting to clear and improve it, and there made his home for ten years, at the end of which time he returned to Bellingham and engaged in timber operations for years, during which period he acquired some good property in that city. In 1919 he went to Milwaukee and there became employed in the steel mills as operator of an overhead traveling crane, but it did not take him long to get enough of that and in 1921 he returned to Whatcom county. On Christmas day of 1922, he moved back to his farm tract and has since made his home there, engaged in dairying and in the raising of poultry and is doing well. Mr. Hartwell Morsman is a member of the Poultry Association and of the Dairymen's Association and finds a ready market for the products of his place. He also still owns a couple of pieces of property in Bellingham.

On the 3d of July, 1890, in Mountain View township, Mr. Morsman was united in marriage to Miss Mary Harnden, who is a daughter of Milton and Mary Harnden, the latter still living. The father, who died here in 1920, was a native of Massachusetts, reached this county with his family in 1890 and became a well established farmer in Mountain View township. Mr. and Mrs. Morsman have two sons, Oren M., who now is engaged in timber operations, married Georgia Brennan and has three children, Dean, Marion and Richard. Earl W., engaged in milling operations at Lake Whatcom, married Mina Knutsen and has three children, Della, Louise and Delora.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, pps. 866-867.

GEORGE F. MUNDELL

After many vicissitudes of fortune and residence in many places, G. F. Mundell finally decided that Whatcom county afforded the best inducements for permanent settlement, and for about twenty-five years he has been numbered among its active and enterprising citizens, earning the respect and esteem of all who know him. He was born in Iowa in 1869 and is a son of James A. and Elizabeth (Dorman) Mundell, the latter of whom was a native of Connecticut. James A. Mundell was born in Pennsylvania, whence he moved to Iowa, and then to Louisiana, where he remained about ten months, moving next to Texas, where he remained until 1887. In that year he came to Whatcom county and in the following January located in Lynden, where he bought four hundred and forty acres of land, comprising the old James Walker place. The land was rough and was approached only by a trail. They went from Whatcom to Lynden up the Nooksack river on the boat Edith, which required six days and nights to make the trip. Mr. Mundell did a good deal of clearing on his land, but in 1890 he sold the place and went to Lynden, where he remained about six months. He then went to Oregon and later to California, where he remained a short time. He next went to Kansas but later returned to Texas, where he lived for a time, eventually going to New Mexico, where his death occurred. His wife having died in Texas.

G. F. Mundell remained in Whatcom county until 1891, working in the woods and mills, and then went to Silverdale, Washington, where he remained a short time, going from there to Kansas, and then to Texas, where he remained twenty-two months. The climate there was too warm to suit him, and he returned to Lynden, where he remained four or five years, engaged in logging, after which he went to Ventura county, California, to which locality his father had moved the year previous. He remained in California two years, raising one good crop of lima beans, and then moved to La Porte, Texas, where he remained two years. He then started in a covered wagon for New Mexico, but on the way he had an attack of chills, so he sold the wagon and again came to Lynden, where he went to work in the mills and at logging. In 1902 he went to New Mexico, where he bought a homestead right, and remained there about two and a half years, at the end of which time he sold the homestead right and returned to Lynden, locating in the village, where he remained until moving to Ten Mile. In 1910 he came to his present farm of forty acres in Lynden township, to the clearing and improvement of which he has devoted himself until it is now one of the most desirable in that locality. When he bought the land it was covered with timber and brush, but he now has fourteen acres cleared, the remainder being in pasture.  He gives considerable attention to dairying, keeping six good grade milk cows, and has been very successful. He has made many good improvements on the place and has a very comfortable and attractive home.

In 1891 Mr. Mundell was married to Miss Florence May Stafford, who was born at La Crosse, Wisconsin, a daughter of Joseph and Georgella (Crosby) Stafford, the former a native of Quebec, Canada. Her mother, who was born in Lowell, Massachusetts, bore the name of Reed but was adopted by a family by the name of Crosby. The Stafford family came to Whatcom county in 1886 and here the parents spent their remaining years, both being now deceased. To Mr. and Mrs. Mundell have been born seven children, namely: Leroy, who died in Texas at the age of three years; Ruth, who is the wife of Charles Holmes, of Bellingham, and the mother of two children; Armand, who died in Lynden at the age of four years; Albert, who is married and lives in Lynden; Gertrude, who died at the age of six months; Emma, who is the wife of James Fischer, of Silver Beach, Washington; and Leona M., who remains at home. With the exception of Albert, all the children were born in Whatcom county. Mr. Mundell is a member of the Whatcom County Dairymen's Association and of the Grange. He is keenly alive to everything affecting the welfare of the community and stands on the right side of every moral issue. Because of his fine personal qualities and genial disposition, he has long enjoyed the confidence and good will of all who know him.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, pps. 930-931.

JOSEPH A. MYERS

J. A. Myers, who is now living on one of the fine farms in the Ten Mile district of Whatcom county, has lived to see this locality developed from a primeval forest, inhabited by wild animals and a few pioneer settlers, to its present magnificent prosperity, excellent home, fertile farms and thriving towns, and in this wonderful transformation he has played no small part.

Mr. Myers was born October 14, 1879, in King county, Washington, and is a son of W. M. and Carrie (Titus) Myers. His father was born in Iowa in 1846 and in young manhood made the long trip across the plains by ox team to California. He was married in Seattle, March 22, 1874, his wife being a daughter of J. H. Titus, who was also a pioneer of California, having come by way of Cape Horn in the days of the gold rush.

W. M. Myers drove a horse team from California to Washington territory for Mr. Titus in the early '70s. He remained in Seattle, or near there, until 1887, and during his early years there he followed market gardening, peddling his produce all over the city. He then went to Kent, near Seattle, where he followed the dual occupations of farming and carpentering, and during that period he also ran a ferry across the White River. In 1888 he brought his family to the present farm, having bought one hundred and sixty acres of land, practically none of which had been cleared. The first building which they erected was a combined house and barn, both being under one roof. They entered immediately upon the task of clearing the land and putting it into cultivation, and in the process of getting rid of the timber many magnificent logs were necessarily burned, as they had no other way of disposing of them. When the ground was ready for the plow, they engaged in general farming, raising hay, grain, vegetables and fruit, as well as hogs and chickens, and when the roads were improved they also sold many cords of cedar logs and shingle bolts. He was also the first man to deliver winter eggs in Bellingham.

Mr. Myers took an active interest in local public affairs, serving for many years as a member of the school board, and in his early years in this state he rendered effective service as deputy sheriff of King county. He contributed freely of his time and labor in the building of early roads and in every possible way cooperated in all movements for the improvement of local conditions. During the Civil war he enlisted for service, joining the California troops, with which he was sent into Arizona during the Indian troubles there. He was a man of splendid character and no one in this section of the county stood higher in the esteem and confidence of the people generally. His death occurred May 12, 1912, and that of his wife, April 12, 1893.

J. A. Myers secured the major portion of his education in the old log school at Ten Mile, which was furnished in true pioneer style, with split log benches and crude desks, but the lessons were well taught and learned. This training has been liberally supplemented through the subsequent years by much close reading and habits of keen observation, so that today Mr. Myers is a well informed man on a wide range of subjects. He was reared on the home farm and at the time of his marriage his father gave him one-half of his interest in the place, the remainder coming to him on the father's death. He is now the owner of eighty acres of splendid land, about sixty-five acres of which are cleared. In all, about one hundred acres of the original one hundred and sixty acres are cleared. Mr. Myers is giving considerable attention to the dairy business, keeping fifteen good milk cows, thirty head of cattle altogether, most of them being registered Holsteins. His fields are well cultivated and he neglects no phase of his farm work, being up-to-date and progressive in all his operations.

On July 19, 1911, Mr. Myers was married to Miss Hannah Seiness, who was born in Norway, a daughter of H. P. and Louise (Christiansen) Seiness, also natives of that country. They came to the United States when Mrs. Myers was two years old, settling in Minnesota. In 1903 they came to Whatcom county, and the father is now living in Bellingham, the mother having passed away in 1920. Mrs. Myers likewise received her educational training in the old Ten Mile school that Mr. Myers attended, and she has been an interested spectator of the development of this locality. They are the parents of four children, Louise, Esther, Howard and Ethel, all of whom are now attending the Ten Mile school.

Mr. Myers has long been influential in local public affairs, having served for a number of years as a member of the school board, and he is at the present time a member of the board of supervisors. He has earned a reputation as an enterprising, progressive man of affairs, and he is eminently deserving of the material success which is crowing his well directed efforts.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, pps. 21-22.

RAYMOND A. NIENABER

Raymond A. Nienaber is one of Bellingham's enterprising young business men and every step he has taken toward a successful career has been in the right direction. He was born November 25, 1899, in Whatcom county and is a son of Gustave and Christina Nienaber, who cast in their lot with its early settlers. The father was engaged in contracting and also developed a fine farm. He was one of the pioneer lumbermen of this district, and he is now living retired at Laurel, Washington.

Raymond A. Nienaber attended the public schools and after completing his studies learned the machinist's trade, which he followed until December, 1922, becoming a skilled worker. He then entered the field of real estate, in which he has since continued, and is now a member of the well known firm of Connell & Nienaber, his partner in the undertaking being John Connell. Mr. Nienaber was one of the founders of the business and is well informed on everything pertaining thereto. His judgment is rarely at fault concerning the value of local realty and its possible rise or diminution in price. The firm is conducting a large business and its operations have been of direct benefit to the city.

On September 4, 1920, Mr. Nienaber married Miss Selma Dyven, of Bellingham, and to this union has been born a daughter, Irene. Mr. Nienaber is a member of the local  Real Estate Association and Bellingham Camp of the Modern Woodmen of America, while his political allegiance is given to the republican party. He has accomplished much for one of his years and the future undoubtedly holds much in store for him, as he possesses those qualities which are essential to progress in all lines of endeavor.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, p. 242.

MARIA E (ADAMS) RICHARD

For twenty-six years Mrs. Maria E. Adams Richard has been identified with the teaching staff of the Bellingham city schools, and there are few persons in this section of the state who have a wider or a better acquaintance in education circles than she. For years her talents have been exercised in behalf of the backward and superior children in the city schools, at present in charge of the special or opportunity department of the Roeder school, and it is generally agreed in the community that her services in behalf of the children of this grade have been of incalculable value. Mrs. Richard is a native daughter of the Hawkeye state, born in the village of Hesper on the Minnesota border in Winneshiek county in northeastern Iowa, and is a daughter of Jokum and Sophia Adams, the former of whom died when she was but a child. Both parents were natives of Norway, members of that considerable Norwegian colony that formed the basic elements of the population of northeastern Iowa and southeastern Minnesota. Her widowed mother married Ole Henning and after residing in Tacoma for a time became a resident, more than twenty-five years ago, of Bellingham, where for years Mr. Henning was connected with the lumber and milling industry. Mrs. Henning died here May 18, 1904, and her husband survived her for more than twenty years, his death occurring January 2, 1925.

Marie E. Adams was but a child when the family residence was changed from Iowa to the neighboring state of Minnesota, where she grew to womanhood. She was graduated from the high school in Rushford, Minnesota, and was engaged as a teacher in the district schools of her home county for several years, and a teacher in the city schools of LaCrosse, Wisconsin, for three years, or until failing health prompted her to go south. She was a teacher in Florida for five years in a special industrial school for colored children in connection with the Episcopal church. While thus engaged she met and in 1892 married Francis Marion Richard, a Confederate veteran and owner of an orange plantation in the neighborhood of Jacksonville. In 1899 Mrs. Richard rejoined her mother, who in that year became a resident of Bellingham, and was engaged as a teacher in the primary grade of the old Fairhaven school. Her husband acquired interests here and his time thereafter was divided between Bellingham and Florida.

After twelve years in the primary schools of Fairhaven, Mrs. Richard was transferred to the North Side, where she entered upon her long period of useful service in behalf of the backward and supergraded children, this service beginning in the Columbia school in 1911. She taught one year in Columbia. The following year she was given a year's leave of absence, which was spent in Florida with Mr. Richard. Upon her return, she took up the same work in the Roeder building. She has been connected with Roeder school ever since, teaching the ungraded or opportunity room. During her long period of service in this connection hundreds of such children have come under Mrs. Richard's training and her influence in their lives has been helpful beyond all estimate. Since living in Bellingham she has by summer schools and extension courses graduated from the four years' course of the Bellingham State Normal School.

Mrs. Richard resides at 1515 I street and is quite pleasantly situated there. She is the owner of a fine tract of orchard property across the river from Jacksonville, Florida. She is an active member of the Grade Teachers League of the state of Washington, is affiliated with the other educational bodies of the county and state and is widely known in teaching circles throughout the northwest. She is a member of the Protestant Episcopal church and had long been giving service in the local parish as head of the senior department of the Sunday school and teacher of the Bible class. Her connection with the general social and cultural activities of the city and community at large has long been established and for years she has been recognized as one of the potent personal factors in the promotion of all movements designed to advance the common welfare in the community of which she has for so long been a useful and influential member. In 1926 she finished forty years of service in the schools of the country, twenty-six of which have been spent in the Bellingham schools.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, pps. 628-631.

FRANCES BALL RIPLEY, M. D.

Endowed by nature with keen mentality, and possessing strength of purpose as well as the capacity for hard work, Dr. Frances Ball Ripley has steadily advanced in the medical profession and is recognized as one of the able physicians of Bellingham. She is a native of Iowa, and in 1904 she was graduated from the Herring Medical College of Chicago. She chose Davenport, Iowa, as the scene of her professional activities and for six years maintained an office in that city. In 1920 she joined the staff of the Michigan State Homeopathic Hospital, on which she served for a year, and since 1921 has been a resident of Bellingham. She enjoys an enviable reputation as a specialist in women's diseases and has built up a large practice. She has always made her professional duties her first consideration and is most thorough and conscientious in her work.

Dr. Ripley is a member of the Whatcom County and Washington State Medical Societies, the Homeopathic State Medical Society and the American Medical Association. She is deeply interested in both the humanitarian and scientific phases of her profession, inspiring confidence and respect in her patients, and her ministrations to the sick have been attended by excellent results.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, p. 787.

CAPTAIN HENRY ROEDER

Captain Henry Roeder, who perhaps properly may be regarded as the "father" of Whatcom county, even as he was the founder of the Bellingham settlement, and concerning whom further and fitting mention is made on other pages of this work, together with details relating to his labors as a community builder, was of European birth but had been a resident of this country since the days of his childhood, reared in the old Buckeye state, and thus ever considered himself as stout an American as though indeed "native and to the manor born," as the poet has it. Considering the fact that much is elsewhere related concerning this sturdy pioneer, the salient details of his life and service will be touched upon but briefly in this connection. He was born July 4, 1824, in the town of Herstadt in the old landgraviate and electorate of Hesse-Cassel, which in 1815 became a part of the Germanic confederation, and he was six years of age when in 1830 his parents came to the United States with their family and settled in the Sandusky country along the lake in Erie county, Ohio, becoming numbered among the pioneers of that region.

When he was sixteen years of age Henry Roeder became a sailor on the Great Lakes and was thus engaged for about ten years. In 1850 he accompanied a party across the plains and mountains into California and was for a time engaged in the quest for gold but, like many others, he soon found that this was a somewhat precarious means of seeking a livelihood and presently became connected with the fisheries industry on the Sacramento. While thus occupied he heard of the great fisheries on the Columbia, and he made a trip of investigation in that direction, arriving in Portland in December, 1852. It was there that the project of lumber development attracted his attention, and he sought a mill site at Olympia. He found the water power there engaged, and he then turned his attention to the water power at the mouth of Whatcom creek in Bellingham bay. In 1853 he established there a sawmill that proved the nucleus around which gathered the settlement which in proper and normal course developed into the present city of Bellingham, all of which is told at length in the proper relation to its historical perspective elsewhere in this history of the region whose interests he did so much to develop. Upon settling here Captain Roeder secured a donation claim to a considerable tract of land fronting on the bay and with the gradual expansion of the community this realty proved the foundation for a  quite generous fortune, for the land was right in the path of the town's normal growth and became valuable for townsite purposes. In addition to his large timber and realty interests Captain Roeder had a part in much other development work and was connected with very nearly every important enterprise that was projected in the community during the days of his activity as a business man. He also took an interested part in civic affairs and was for eight successive terms a member of the territorial legislature, representative from this district, and in that capacity rendered a service of very real value to the commonwealth. Captain Roeder died in 1902 and at his passing left a good memory, for he had been true to all the relations of life.

On February 10, 1856, at Olympia, Captain Roeder was united in marriage to Miss Elizabeth Austin, a member of one of the old colonial families of the state of New York and a cousin of Bishop Daniel Sylvester Tuttle, eighty-fourth in succession of the American episcopate of the Protestant Episcopal church. To that union were born three sons and a daughter, as follows: John N. and Henry A., who have long been deceased; Victor A., whose sketch follows this; and Mrs. Lottie Roeder Roth.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, pps. 235-236.

KATHERINE M. RYAN

Mrs. Katherine M. Ryan was born at Providence, Rhode Island, November 4, 1853. In 1889 she came to Bellingham, Washington, where she resided for thirty-two years or until the time of her death which occurred on the 16th of June, 1921. She had no special library training but was interested in this work and was librarian in Bellingham since the establishment of a public library. Prior to that time she was librarian in a local private library, having unselfishly devoted thirty years of her life to this work. The entire city mourned her loss, as everyone with whom she came in contact was impressed with her attention to duty and her desire to serve others. She was a remarkable woman, always progressive, never impatient and keenly interested in people and her work. She was interested beyond her strength, and she took special delight in assisting children. She was farsighted and managed the library staff without the slightest trace of friction. She was entirely unselfish and always desirous of doing something for others. When her health failed and she was urged to take a much-needed vacation, she replied she would wait until the other members of the library staff had taken their vacations. She retained her interest in the libraries to the last, outlining some plans for her assistants the day before her death.

Mrs. Ryan was the mother of two daughters: Gertrude, who is the wife of Dr. A. Macrae Smith and with whom she made her home; and Mrs. Joseph L. Reed, of Valdez, Alaska. Mr. Reed is an attorney by profession and is commissioner for Alaska.

The following "Words of Appreciation and Love" were written by Ella Higginson: "In the death of Mrs. Katherine M. Ryan, the people of Bellingham will be poignantly bereft, and it is doubtful if the passing of any other resident could be so widely felt or cause so deep a sorrow. For thirty years Mrs. Ryan served the people of this city as librarian of the Public Library, cheerfully, faithfully and with infinite patience.  Only those who were here when the library was started as a 'reading room' in a tiny room on Elk street, with a slender shelf of donated books and a few magazines, can realize how arduous her work has been through the years, how great her courage, how complete her devotion and self-effacement, and how splendid her final success.

"In new western towns thirty years ago, the library was usually the last institution of a public nature to be appreciated and supported. But about 1889, early in the life of the present city - which was first Sehome, then New Whatcom, then Whatcom and finally Bellingham - through the self-devotion of a few interested ones a humble beginning of the Bellingham Public Library was made; and later, through the generosity of P. B. Cornwall, a building was erected which made a home for the library until 1904 and 1907 Mr. Carnegie presented this far northwestern city with its two beautiful buildings for libraries - thus giving it the distinction of being the only city in the United States honored by two Carnegie libraries - Mr Cornwall and Mr. Larrabee donating the sites.

"Through all these years Mrs. Ryan was connected with and absolutely devoted to the Bellingham Library and, with the exception of a very few years, was the head librarian; and for several years both libraries were under her direction. In the early days, before the library was financed by the city, funds for its support were raised in every possible way, monthly 'teas' at the library building finding special favor with the public.

"But Mrs. Ryan was the real inspiration and life of the work. No one could be associated with her or know her well without giving her love, admiration and respect. She was modest and retiring by nature, and of unusual gentleness and unselfishness. She was a woman of impressive dignity; and she was possessed of more diplomacy of a high order than any woman the present writer has known. Those of us who idle out our little lives for commonplace pleasures and personal gratification may well bow our heads before this woman who desired no word of praise for herself, who made ample amends for her lack of technical training by her fidelity and singleness of purpose; and who was so filled with love of her work the she unconsciously inspired every assistant with the same love and spirit, so that they always worked with her, rather than for her.

"She moved serenely, and with a steadfast faith that right would win, through all the trails and anxieties of library work; and never, during the thirty years I knew her - through many of which at various times I have worked with her - did I knew her to ascribe to herself credit for the success of the library, or for any praiseworthy achievement. It was always her hard-working assistants or the trustees who deserved praise - never herself; and several times, when she might have had an increased salary, she asked to have the salaries of her assistants increased, instead of her own. Surely these be sufficiently rare and noble qualities to exalt the one who possesses them; and now that she has smiled a gentle farewell and taken her unassuming departure from amongst us, we can dwell upon them only with tears."

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, pps. 720-723.

J. WILBUR SANDISON

J. Wilbur Sandison, veteran photographer at Bellingham, for more than twenty years established in business in that city and thus one of the best known men in Whatcom county, was born on a farm in Kent county, Ontario, Canada, and is a son of William and Theresa (Wigle) Sandison, the former now deceased while the latter is still living in Ontario. Reared in his native land, J. Wilbur Sandison was given a public school education and early became employed in mercantile pursuits, so continuing until 1899, when he went to Vancouver, British Columbia, and took up the "art and mystery" of photography. Later he was for some time engaged as a practical photographer in California and the Hawaiian Islands. In 1904 he came to Bellingham, established business here and has since been thus engaged, with a well equipped and admirably appointed studio at 126 1/2 West Holly street, widely known throughout this section of the northwest for the high quality of the products of his art.

In 1908, at Kingsville, Ontario, Mr. Sandison was united in marriage to Miss Harriet M. Woodiwiss, who also was born in Ontario, and to this union tow sons have been born, Earl Wilbur and Loren N, but the latter died in 1914. Mr. and Mrs. Sandison are republicans and are interested in local civic affairs and in the general affairs of the community of which they long have been members. Mr. Sandison is a member of the Kiwanis Club of Bellingham, is a Scottish Rite Mason and a Noble of the Mystic Shrine. He is also affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Woodmen of the World.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, p. 425.

EILEF J. SINNES

The admirable traits of his Norwegian ancestors are manifest in the life of E. J. Sinnes, a Whatcom county pioneer and for many years an acknowledged leader of agricultural advancement in Rome township. A strong constitution, a self-reliant nature, intelligence and ambition were his youthful patrimony, and with these he has worked and won. He was born June 16, 1868, in the "land of the midnight sun," and his parents, Jacob and Joren (Nesset) Sinnes, were lifelong residents of that country. The mother enjoyed the priceless possession of perfect health and reached the advanced age of ninety-four years. To Mr. and Mrs. Sinnes were born six children: Sven and Torjus, who are living in Norway; George, whose home is in Tacoma, Washington; Louis, of Laurel; E. J. and Audne, a resident of Mount Vernon, this state.

E. J. Sinnes attended the public schools of Norway and in 1886, when eighteen years of age, sought the opportunities of the United States, completing his education in this country. He worked for two years on a minnesota farm and in 1889 started for the Pacific coast, with Whatcom county, Washington, as his destination. He preempted land in Acme township, becoming the owner of a farm of twenty-four acres in the vicinity of Saxon, and later sold the place for a large sum, which he was offered for the valuable fir trees on the property. Going up the river in 1896, he homesteaded a quarter section and proved up on the ranch, which also contained some fine timber. This tract he later sold to advantage and then bought a farm of one hundred and sixty acres across the river. He also derived a substantial profit from the sale of property, and in 1898 he joined the rush of good seekers to Alaska. He was engaged in prospecting in that country for six years and was successful in his mining operations. In 1904 Mr. Sinnes returned to Whatcom county and bought a tract of one hundred and sixty acres on Squalicum lake, in Rome township.. There was a small house on the ranch, which was undeveloped, and he was confronted with the difficult task of clearing the land and preparing it for the planting of seed. He now has about sixty acres under cultivation and the balance is in pasture and timber. He has fifteen Holstein cows of good grade, and the head of the herd is a valuable animal of high pedigree. His dairy is well equipped and its products are of the best quality. His soil is very productive and his principal crops are hay and grain. He built a new barn in 1905 and his home was completed in 1906. It is lighted by electricity and supplied with all modern conveniences. The residence is surrounded by a beautiful lawn and shrubbery and the farm is one of the show places of the township, being a model institution in every respect.

On November 6, 1906, Mr. Sinnes married Miss Annie Christine Ostbey, a daughter of August and Beate Ostbey, who have always resided in Norway. Mrs. Sinnes was called to her final rest December 3, 1912, and left a family of four daughters, of whom Beatrice is the eldest. She was born October 11, 1907, and is a graduate of the Harmony high school. She also attended the State Normal School at Bellingham and is at present a teacher in the Van Wyck school. Her sisters are Ellen, who was born in 1908 and is a student at the state Normal School; Myrtle, who was born October 8, 1909, and is attending high school, and Edna, born March 5, 1911, and also a high school pupil. On October 31, 1913, Mr. Sinnes married Annie Sophia Smedsrud, also a Norwegian, and a daughter of Ole and Siri (Dyven) Smedsrud, life long residents of that country. Her parents reared a family of five children, four of whom survive, and two have remained in Norway. Mrs. Sinnes has lived in the United States since 1892 and is thoroughly Americanized. She has been a devoted mother to her step-children, to whom she is deeply attached, and combines in her character all that is most admirable in woman. Mr. Sinnes champions every project for good roads, better schools and general improvement and his influence upon the life of his community has been of the highest order. He served continuously for thirteen years on the Harmony school board, was for two years a member of the first township board and is now filling the office of justice of the peace. He belongs to the Grange at Rome, to the Grange Warehouse Company, the Poultry Raisers and Dairymen's Associations of Whatcom county, the Cow-Testing Association and the Potato Growers Association. He is actuated at all times by the enterprising spirit of the west, and as agriculture progresses as a science he advances with it.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, pps. 634-635.

JOHN SLOTEMAKER

Notwithstanding the fact that the kingdon of Holland is one of the smaller countries of the world, it has sent a large number of settlers to the United States from the earliest years of settlement on this continent, and this country has welcomed these people, for in every state of the Union they have taken an active and effective part in advancing the general interests in practically every line of effort. Among the Hollanders who have become permanent residents of Whatcom county and have risen to honorable places in their respective communities, none takes precedence over John Slotemaker, whose fine farm is located near Everson. He was born in Holland on the 6th of August, 1870, and is a son of Cornelius and Agnes (Keppel) Slotemaker, the latter of whom died in 1914, at the age of seventy-five years. Both parents were natives of Holland, whence they came to the United States in 1881, locating in Iowa, where they engaged in farming. They remained there until December, 1900, when they came to Whatcom county, stopping a few days at Bellingham and then coming on to Lynden. The father first bought twenty acres of land near the river south of Lynden and later bought a home in the town, where he spent his remaining days, his death occurring in 1919, at the age of eighty years.

John Slotemaker and his wife first established their home on the twenty-acre place which his father had bought, and there they lived for ten years, in the course of which time our subject worked steadily on the clearing of the land, which he nearly completed. About 1910 he came to his present farm, which at first comprised one hundred acres but to which he later added forty acres. About thirty acres of the original hundred were cleared, and he has cleared as much more, the remainder being in pasture, while the second tract of ten acres are cleared. Conditions in this locality when they came here were primitive, the only highways being trails, which were practically impassable in bad weather. Mr. Slotemaker has devoted his attention mainly to dairy farming, for which purpose he keeps twenty-five good grade Holstein cattle. His well cultivated fields produce excellent crops of hay, grain and roughage for his stock, and he also has a good silo, for winter feed. He is an energetic farmer, thoroughly understands his work and does carefully and well whatever he undertakes.

In 1900, just before coming to Whatcom county, Mr. Slotemaker was married to Miss Tillie Kramer, who was born in Holland, a daughter of Henry and Jessie (Boersma) Kramer, who brought their family to the United States in May, 1889, locating in Iowa where the father followed farming pursuits. To Mr. and Mrs. Slotemaker have been born eight children, namely: Cornelius and Henry; Agnes, who is the wife of Joseph Estie of Seattle; Richard, Otto and Jessie; one who died at the age of four years, and one who died at birth. The older boys remain on the home place but work out in the community much of the time. Mr. and Mrs. Slotemaker are active members of the First Christian Reformed church and were among its earliest members. Mr. Slotemaker relates many interesting reminiscences of the early days in this locality, showing the contrast between conditions then and now. In 1901 he and his wife drove to Bellingham in a buggy, and when within about five miles of their destination a big black bear walked across the road just ahead of them. Wild animals were numerous in this part of the country for several years after the settlers began coming in, but they soon became scarce as the country became more thickly settled. Mr. Slotemaker has always done his full share toward the improvement of the community and has cooperated with his fellow citizens in all efforts for the betterment of the public welfare. Because of his success, his business ability, his fine public spirit and his genial and affable manner, he has gained an enviable place in the esteem and good will of all who know him.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, pps. 387-388.

GEORGE W. SMALLWOOD

Success comes as the result of well applied energy, unflagging determination and perseverance, a fact which was early recognized by G. W. Smallwood, and he did not seek any royal road to success but sought to direct his feet along the well beaten paths of those who had won success along legitimate lines. It is also his personal worth which has gained for him the excellent standing which he enjoys among his fellow citizens of Park township, where he is widely and favorably known. Mr. Smallwood was born in Tennessee in 1866 and is a son of T. N. and Lucinda (Moat) Smallwood, both of whom also were natives of that state. In 1869 the family left Tennessee and started west, with a probability of locating in Kansas, but when in central Missouri they met people coming back from Kansas who reported that state as "impossible." On hearing these reports, Mr. Smallwood homesteaded a tract of land in central Missouri, which at that time was on the frontier, so far in advance of civilization that he had very few neighbors.

In this locality G. W. Smallwood was reared and received his education, attending school three months a year. He remained with his father on the farm until twenty-three years of age, when he rented a farm in that state, to the operations of which he devoted himself until March, 1902, when he came to Washington, being a member of two trainloads of settlers who came to this locality. Immediately on arriving here he came to Lake Whatcom and entered the employ of Bloedel & Donovan, with whom he still remains. Indeed his first night in Washington was spent in that company's camp, and his first home was a twelve by fourteen foot tent which he put up on the company's land and which was soon afterward superseded by a house. During the early period of his employment here he was in the woods, but in 1903 he came back to the lake, on which he has worked continuously since, doing what is known as "boom" work. The house in which he now lives was erected by Mr. Donovan and makes a very comfortable and commodious home.

In 1889 Mr. Smallwood was married to Miss Susan Bearcraft, who was born in Texas. Her parents having died when she was young, she had lived from childhood with our subject's brother, T. N. Smallwood. To Mr. and Mrs. Smallwood were born five children: J. Atlee, who also works on the lake for the Bloedel Donovan Company, is married and has three children - Dorothy, Preston and Mary; F. N., who likewise works for the same company, is married and has three children - Howard, Pearl and F. Lee. Chrisie is the wife of P. A. Nelson of Seattle; Mrs. Mary McMaster resides in Seattle; Finice died at the age of twenty-three years. Mrs. Susan Smallwood died in 1903, and on September 19, 1914, Mr. Smallwood was married to Miss Florence Wood, who was born at Richmond Surrey, near London, England, a daughter of Henry G. and Margaret (Edridge) Wood, the former of whom is dead, while the mother is still living at Richmond Surrey. About 1912 Mrs. Smallwood came alone to America, locating first in Canada, whence, soon afterward, she came to Whatcom county.

When Mr. Smallwood first came to Lake Whatcom there were no roads and he had to come down the lake in a boat. He bought his provisions at the company's commissary. In many ways living conditions then were far from ideal, or even comfortable. His children were at first compelled to attend school at Blue Canyon, necessitating their walking several miles along the railroad track. Eventually, however, Mr. Smallwood assisted in the organization of a school at the camp, and thereafter the school was generally known as Camp No. 2 school. Mr. Smallwood has rendered effective service as a member of the school board, was township treasurer for six years and served for three years on the township board. Fraternally he is a member of Blue Canyon Lodge No. 182, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and is now treasurer of his lodge. Since coming here he bought thirty acres of company land, about five acres of which he has cleared, and now has a very comfortable and pleasant home. Earnest and faithful attention to duty has been the key to his success, and he stands high in the respect and confidence of his employers, as well as in the esteem and good will of his fellow citizens. He has taken commendable interest in all matters relating to the progress and welfare of the community in which he lives, cooperating with his fellowmen in all efforts to better local conditions in any way.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, pps. 743-744.

REUBEN P. SMITH

The late Reuben P. Smith, a veteran of the Civil war, who died at his home in Bellingham in the summer of 1924, had been a resident of Whatcom county for almost a quarter of a century and had a wide acquaintance throughout the county, leaving a good memory at his passing. His widow is still living here, and his children and children's children are doing well their respective parts in community service. Mr. Smith was a native of the old Buckeye state, born in Ohio in 1837. His father was a native of Connecticut and his mother of Virginia, both members of old families in their respective sections of the country, and the elements of both the Puritan and the Cavalier are thus mingled in the blood of his descendants.

When Reuben P. Smith was but three years of age, in 1840, his parents moved with their family from Ohio to the promising Territory of Iowa, which five years later was admitted to the Union as a state, and became pioneers thereof. There he grew to manhood, familiar with the labors of developing a prairie farm, and was living there when the Civil war broke out. He enlisted his services in behalf of the cause of the Union and went to the front as a member of Company B of the Eighteenth Regiment, Iowa Volunteer Infantry, with which command he served as a soldier for three years. Upon the completion of his military service Mr. Smith resumed his farming operations in Iowa and there remained until 1882, when he closed out his holdings and moved to Kansas. In 1890 he came into the Sound country with a carload of cattle for the bay settlements and was so deeply impressed with the possibilities of this region as a place of settlement that upon his return to Kansas he disposed of his holdings there and soon after came with his family to Whatcom county, settling on a tract of farm land about ten miles from Bellingham, in the Laurel neighborhood. He cleared and improved the place and there made his home until his retirement in 1912 and removal to Bellingham. Upon coming to town Mr. Smith bought a home on Meridian street but presently traded that place for the home at 1703 James street, where his widow is now living, and there he spent his last days, his death occurring July 27, 1924. Mr. Smith was a member of the local post of the Grand Army of the Republic and his funeral was conducted under the direction of that patriotic organization. His first ballot as a voter had been cast in favor of the ticket headed by Abraham Lincoln in 1860, and he was ever after an ardent republican. He was a member of the Church of the Disciples (Christian church), as is his widow, and their children were reared in the faith of that communion.

In  1859, in Iowa, Mr. Smith was united in marriage to Miss Mary Huff who, as noted above, survives him, and their union was unbroken by death for sixty-five years. Of the ten children born to them all are living save two, the survivors being: Nettie, Earl P., Harry, Jessie, Madge, Louis P., Reuben O., and Myrtle. Mrs. Smith has a large number of grandchildren and several great-grandchildren, in all of whom she takes much pride and delight. She was born in Indiana, and her father was a native of Kentucky, while her mother was born in Ohio. Mrs. Smith has seen much of pioneer life and out of her wealth of experience as a pioneer in Iowa, Kansas and Whatcom county can narrate many interesting stories concerning conditions the settlers often were compelled to face, conditions that to the present generation may seem hardly possible, so amazing have been the changes brought about during the lifetime of this venerable pioneer mother.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, pps. 743-744.

WILLIAM SOUTHERN

William Southern, veteran theatrical man of the Pacific coast and president of Bellingham Theaters, Incorporated, for years a recognized leader in amusement enterprises in this section of the state, is a native of England but has been a resident of this country since the days of his young manhood and of Bellingham for more than twenty years and is thus thoroughly familiar with conditions here. He was born in Lancashire, England, October 8, 1861, youngest of the seven sons of Wright and Alice (Kugan) Southern, and was there reared, early becoming employed in the coal mines. In 1881, he then being twenty years of age, Mr. Southern came to the United States and was employed in the coal mines at Streator, Illinois. Eighteen months later he went into the mines at Lucas, Iowa, and in 1886 was married in that state. He later had mining experience in Montana and Wyoming and in 1889 was made manager of the theater at Rock Springs in the latter state.

From that year Mr. Southern dates his theatrical career. He remained at Rock Springs until 1904, when he went to San Francisco and helped organize a stock theatrical company, playing a repertoire of popular plays, which with high promise "took the road" as the Southern-Armour Company. Hopes and promise exceeded income, however, and before the season was ended the company found itself stranded on the rocks of adversity, leaving its founder and manager practically "broke." With this company Mr. Southern had "played" Bellingham and his impressions of the city and his belief in its development led him to establish his here following that unhappy dashing of his stock-company plans. He presently was made manager of the Grand Theater in Bellingham and not long afterward bought that popular playhouse and set about improving its service with a view to giving the people of Bellingham and Whatcom county the best amusement features obtainable and devoting the house to high class vaudeville and motion pictures. In 1916 he installed in that theater an eighteen-thousand dollar Kimball pipe organ, one of the best instruments at the time on the coast, and in other ways rehabilitated his playhouse and brought it up to that high standard demanded by the community's growing appreciation. In the summer of 1922 Mr. Southern brought about a consolidation of theatrical interest in Bellingham, he and his associates in this enterprise forming a company known as Bellingham Theaters, incorporated on August 10 of that year with William Southern as president, F. B. Walton as vice president and general manager, W. S. Quimby as treasurer and C. C. Keplinger as secretary. This company took over the Grand, the American, the Egyptian, the Rialto and the Dream theaters and with the exception of the Rialto, which they closed and rented for restaurant purposes, rehabilitated and improved them in thorough up-to-date fashion and have since been operating them on a basis which insures to the people of the community the best amusement obtainable. The Grand, with a seating capacity of nine hundred and fifteen, is devoted to road shows, stock companies, musical comedies and high grade motion pictures. The American, with a seating capacity of  twelve hundred, is devoted to vaudeville and pictures.  The Egyptian, with a seating capacity of seven hundred, and the Dream, with three hundred and fifty seats, are given wholly to pictures. The corporation spent more than one hundred thousand dollars in the improvement of these theaters, remodeling, refurnishing and the like, and by this consolidation of interests has been able to give the people of Bellingham and of the fine area of which that city is the social center the best obtainable in the way of wholesome entertainment.

It was on October 6, 1886, in the neighborhood of Keokuk, Iowa, that William Southern was united in marriage to Miss Effie May Foster, who was born in that state, daughter of James Foster, and to this union four children have been born, three sons, Earl, Wesley and George, the latter of whom is deceased, and a daughter, Mildred. Earl Southern, an experienced electrician, who is associated with his father in the latter's theatrical enterprises, general electrician for Bellingham Theaters, Incorporated, married Miss Rose Merriam (now deceased) and has two children, Clarence and William. He married, second, Jeane Hayes and they have one child Mary. Wesley Southern is also connected with the operations of the theaters as general property man. Mr. and Mrs. Southern are members of the Protestant Episcopal church and Mr. Southern is a member of the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, pps. 251-252.

JEFF STEWART

With the history of progress in Rome township the name of Jeff Stewart has been prominently associated for more than forty years, and no resident of the district has contributed in greater measure toward the development and utilization of its natural resources, particularly along agricultural lines. He was born in Erie county, Pennsylvania, in July, 1855, and his parents, Perry P. and Effie Sophia (Beels) Stewart, were also natives of that state. In 1865 the father journeyed to the west and was one of the early homesteaders of Kansas, in which he followed agricultural pursuits until his demise on the 4th of April, 1878.

Jeff Stewart is the only surviving member of a family of seven children. He attended the public schools of Kansas and remained at home until 1882, when he came to Washington and for three years worked in the sawmills of Whatcom county. In 1885 he entered a quarter section of government land in Rome township, which was then a wilderness, and made a road to his homestead, also construction a bridge across the creek. He built a small cabin and entered upon the difficult task of clearing his land, which was a heavily wooded tract. It contained a grove of cedars and these he sold to a shingle mill in the vicinity. Mr. Stewart now has thirty acres under cultivation and the balance is used for pasture. He has planted an orchard and raises hay, grain and root crops. He keeps five cows of good grade and is thoroughly conversant with the details connected with the care of stock. Experience has taught him the value of scientific methods, and he is a firm believer in diversified farming and the restoration of the soil by the rotation of crops.

On April 6, 1879, Mr. Stewart married Miss Almira Geer, who was born in Ohio. Her parents, Jonas and Sarah (Holcum) Geer were also natives of the Buckeye state and in 1881 came to Whatcom, Washington. Mr. Geer was one of the early merchants of the town, which is now a part of bellingham, and was here engaged in business for several years. He passed away in Bellingham in 1896 and his widow responded to the final summons about two years later. Their family numbered four children, three of whom are now living: Mrs. Lizzie Srite, of Long Beach, California; Almira; and Mrs. Sarah L. Inks, of Bellingham, Washington. Mr. and Mrs. Stewart became the parents of six children, three of whom survive. Lee, the eldest, was born December 4, 1883, in Bellingham and is living in the vicinity of the city. He is married and has two sons: Claud, who was born in Bellingham in August, 1911; and Ralph, born in Seattle, November 5, 1912. Both are attending school. Mrs. Lulu May Mathey was born April 10, 1887, on the Stewart homestead and lives in Long Beach, California. Clifford was born April 10, 1891 [1894], and has always resided on the homestead, a portion of which he is operating. He is engaged in the poultry business, operating on a large scale, and is filling the office of township assessor. His father has served on the board of township supervisors and also as school director, working at all times for the best interests of his district. Mr. Stewart has an intimate knowledge of pioneer life in this region, relating many interesting incidents of the early days, and is known and respected throughout the township.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, pps. 624-625.

GEORGE S. TRIGG

The history of George S. Trigg is closely identified with the records of Ferndale township. His life has been one of untiring activity and has been crowned with a degree of success obtained only by those who devote themselves indefatigably to the work before them. He has long been recognized as one of Whatcom county's progressive farmers and holds an enviable place in public esteem. George Trigg was born in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada, on the 2nd of December, 1865, and is the son of William and Mary Ann (Edwards) Trigg. His parents were both born and reared in Surrey, England, and came to Canada about 1847, settling at Oshawa, where he farmed on rented land until 1893, when he bought sixty acres near Whitby, Ontario, to which he devoted his attention until 1903. He then went to Humboldt county, California, where he lived, retired from active business, until his death, which occurred in 1906. His wife passed away in 1917. They were the parents of ten children, namely: Maria, deceased, who was a native of England; John and William, deceased; Sarah, who lives in Oregon; Robert, who resides on the old home place in Canada; George S., Lucy and Charlotte E., both in Oregon; Jane, a resident of California and Elizabeth, deceased.

George Trigg was educated in the public schools of Canada and in 1886 he went to Humboldt county, California, where he remained until January 1, 1889, when he came to Whatcom county. He bought forty acres of land in Ferndale township, one and a half miles northeast of Ferndale, and at once proceeded to clear off the dense growth of underbrush and the stumps which covered it. It is a fine piece of land and in its cultivation Mr. Trigg has exercised sound judgment and wise discrimination, so that the results he has obtained for his labor have been very satisfactory. He keeps ten good grade cows and one full-blooded Jersey, as well as a pure-bred bull. He carries on diversified farming, raising the crops common to this locality and is recognized as a wide-awake, up-to-date business man.

In 1895 Mr. Trigg was married to Miss Lucy May Robbins, daughter of Zachariah H. Robbins, a pioneer of Whatcom county. Mrs. Trigg had a son, Lester, who was born in Ferndale on September 2, 1896, and now lives in Tacoma. He is married and has a son, Ben E. For his second wife, Mr. Trigg chose Mrs. Barbara (Frehbauer) Dynda, who he wedded July 26, 1919, and they have a daughter, Lillian Ella, who was born April 7, 1920. Mrs. Trigg was formerly married to John Dynda and had two children, Helen and William.

Fraternally Mr. Trigg is a charter member of Columbia Lodge No. 141, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, at Ferndale; has been a member of the Knights of Pythias for thirty-nine years, and also belongs to the Ferndale Grange and to the Whatcom County Dairymen's Association. He served for eight years as road overseer of Ferndale township and has long been vitally interested in the matter of good roads, which he considers one of the most important elements in the development of any community. He is also an earnest advocate of the best educational facilities for the proper training of the youth. His home, which is splendidly situated, is attractive and well arranged, one of the best features of the property being the beautiful flower garden, tended by Mrs. Trigg and in which she takes a justifiable pride. Whatever of success Mr. Trigg has attained has been entirely owing to his individual efforts, his energy and his natural ability, and because of these elements, as well as his genial personality, he has attained an enviable place in the confidence and good will of all who know him.

History of Whatcom County, Volume II, by Lottie Roeder Roth, 1926, pps. 565-566.

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