Illustrated history of Stevens, Ferry, Okanogan and Chelan counties, state of Washington, Part 114

Author:
Publication date: 1904
Publisher: Spokane, Wash. : Western History
Number of Pages: 992

USA > Washington > Chelan County > Illustrated history of Stevens, Ferry, Okanogan and Chelan counties, state of Washington > Part 114
USA > Washington > Ferry County > Illustrated history of Stevens, Ferry, Okanogan and Chelan counties, state of Washington > Part 114
USA > Washington > Okanogan County > Illustrated history of Stevens, Ferry, Okanogan and Chelan counties, state of Washington > Part 114
USA > Washington > Stevens County > Illustrated history of Stevens, Ferry, Okanogan and Chelan counties, state of Washington > Part 114

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"Sec. 22. The county of Chelan shall pay to the counties of Kittitas and Okanogan, re- spectively, for the transcribing of all records, at the rate of ten cents for each one hundred words, including in the computation the certifi- cate thereto.

"Passed the House February, 27, 1899. Passed the Senate March 8, 1899. Approved March 13. 1899."

This bill was introduced by Representative M. E. Field, of Stehekin, upon request. Three men who were especially prominent in the for- mation of the new county were Arthur Gunn and Frank Reeves, of Wenatchee, and Repre- sentative Frank Baum, then a member of the

legislature from Okanogan county. Arthur Gunn and Frank Reeves were on the ground at Olympia all the time the measure was pending, and did yeoman service in furthering the inter- ests of the bill.

By the bill introduced in the house the new county was to be named "Wenatchee," and this bill passed the house in this shape. However, when it came before the senate Senator Baum, of Okanogan county, amended the bill to read "Chelan county," and this passed the senate and was concurred in by the house.

In accordance with the requirements of the state constitution, a petition requesting the for- mation of a new county addressed to the legis- lature was, with the exception of three persons, signed by every legal voter in the territory of the proposed new county.

According to the bill creating Chelan county it was necessary that there should be left in Okanogan county at least four thousand people, and that here should be at least two thousand in the new county. In May, 1899, a census was taken by the assessors of Okano- gan county with the following result :

Johnson Creek, north 930

Johnson Creek, south 432

Reservation, whites 325

Reservation, Indians 415

Methow Country 737

2,839

Chelan Country 776

Entiat Country 165

Wenatchee & Leavenworth 380

1,32I

Total population of Okanogan county 4,160

This would leave only 2,839 people in Okanogan county in case of division. But in August. 1899, Judge Neal, holding court at Conconully, Okanogan county, ordered a

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HISTORY OF NORTH WASHINGTON.

special census of the Methow country taken. From this it appears that the result was satis- factory, and some different from former esti- mates, as in November, 1899, we find Judge Neal at Davenport, Lincoln county, entering a decree to the effect that the requirements of the state constitution and the act creating Chelan county had been complied with.

Thursday, December 7, 1899, Governor Rogers issued his proclamation setting off and establishing Chelan county. A dispatch from Olympia stated that H. N. Martin, of Daven- port, attorney for the people in the upper por- tion of Okanogan county, would contest the formation of the new county and try to bring the matter before the supreme court of the state. The grounds upon which this action was based were that the provision in the bill naming the county commissioners was uncon- stitutional, in that it took from the governor his prerogative of those appointments. Noth- ing, however, appears to have resulted from this attempt to defeat the creation of Chelan county.

June 6, 1900, Dennis Strong, of Mission, and Spencer Boyd, of Chelan, two of the com- missioners named in the act creating the ocunty, met in the office of the Bell hotel. G. WV. Hoxey, the other commissioner, was ab- sent. The two commissioners present pro- ceeded to organize, and Mr. Strong was elected chairman. J. E. Porter was selected to act as temporary clerk of the board. At this meeting James H. Chase was named as prosecuting at- torney. Little business was transacted at this preliminary meeting, and it soon adjourned. January 22 the two commissioners met in the J. W. Ferguson building, Wenatchee, and ap- pointed the following county officials: H. A. Graham, Chelan, treasurer; F. F. Keller, Stehekin, sheriff; L. V. Wells, Wenatchee, county clerk and ex-officio clerk of court; C. J. Trow, Chelan, auditor ; Alexander Pitcher, assessor ; John D. Atkinson, superintendent of schools; Dr. A. A. Tozer, Leavenworth, cor-

oner. James H. Chase had been previously appointed prosecuting attorney at the meeting held in the office of the Bell hotel.

Wednesday, February 14, news was re- ceived that the Wenatchee Development Com- pany had held a meeting the day previous and decided to donate a brick hotel building in Wenatchee to the new county for a court house, a structure costing over $15,000. The fol- lowing completes the record of this act of pub- lic spirited generosity :

"Seattle, Wash., February 14, 1900. "Arthur Gunn, Wenatchee :

"At a stockholders' meeting of the Wenatchee Development Company, held at Seattle February 13, 1900, it was voted to convey to Chelan county lots 15, 16, 17 and 18, block 29, Great Northern plat of Wenatchee, and the brick hotel building thereon, for pur- pose of court house, subject to reversion to company in case of removal of county seat from Wenatchee, or in case the property shall cease to be usd at any time for county court house.

"THOMAS BURKE, President."

This handsome offer was accepted with due appreciation, and the deed made over Febru- ary 19, 1900.

February 23 the commissioners made Conrad Rose, of Shell Rock farm, near Wen- atchee, a member of the board of commissioners, to fill the place of Mr. Hoxsey, who had failed to qualify. Chelan made final settlement with Okanogan county, August 7, 1900, and issued to the latter county seven hundred and sev- enty-seven $100, six per cent. warrants, or $77,000. In the settlement with Kittitas county, from which all that portion of Chelan county south of the Wenatchee river was taken, Che- lan county assumed $29,000 of its bonded in- debtedness bearing interest at six per cent.

Prior to the completion of the wonderful Cascade tunnel the Great Northern Railway Company utilized a "switch back" in getting

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HISTORY OF NORTH WASHINGTON.

its trains over these mountains. The building of this tunnel was an extraordinary engineer- ing feat. The eastern terminal of this cavern, two and one-half miles long, is Cascade Tun- nel, in Chelan county, while the western is Wellington, in King county. The altitude of Cascade Tunnel is 3.375 feet, the altitude of Wellington being 3,125 feet, making a differ- ence of 250 feet in the elevation of the two en- trances.

Work on the approaches to the tunnel be- gan in January, 1897, but it was late in the summer of that year before the workmen got fairly under cover, and had the compressor plants for running the drill machinery in- stalled. Eight hundred men were employed in and about the tunnel, work going forward from each end simultaneously. The greater portion of the excavation was accomplished by machinery. Thirty-two rock drills, driven by compressed air, were employed to bore large and deep holes in the rock at the end of the workings. Charges of dynamite were then inserted and fired, the blocks of granite crumb- led to pieces, loaded on electric cars and con- veyed out each end of the tunnel. Outside the tunnel the rock was delivered to a large crusher with a capacity of forty tons per hour, which converted it into fragments. These were mixed with sand and Portland cement, taken back into the tunnel by the electric railway and used to line the interior of the tunnel with an imperishable wall of concrete four feet in thick- ness. The tunnel is twenty-three feet high by sixteen feet wide. Huge exhaust fans, driven by electricity, and a system of pipes kept the air of this tunnel always pure and sweet during the construction of this gigantic enterprise. They have since been taken out.

Tuesday, May 27, 1902, the steamer Ca- mano, Captain Barrett commanding, was wrecked near Entiat Landing, the mate, A. Doval, drowned, and the crew, consisting of twelve men, narrowly escaping with their lives. The Camano had made the landing for the pur-

pose of taking on wood. Having done so she backed out into the river, made the turn and headed down the Columbia. As her bow struck the current she began to twist, and finally rolled completely over in twenty-five feet of water. No satisfactory explanation of this ac- cident has ever been given. The boat backed out under the slow bell, and at the time the engines were not working, the custom being to permit the current to swing the boat around. When broadside with the current the Camano listed and it is supposed the cargo shifted, as she rolled over and remained in that position for some time. Later she righted and finally drifted on her side, landing on the rocks at the head of Entiat rapids, nearly a mile below where the accident occurred. The story of Chief Engineer Schuenman is as follows :

"The boat went over without any warning. I was standing in the engine room when it sank, and started for the door, finally swim- ming out, and I clung to the side of the hull till the boat came bottom up, when I managed to crawl onto her. I looked around and saw three or four of the boys hanging onto the boat. After all that were in sight were safe on the overturned boat I saw the life raft go by and made a jump and swam to it, where I was joined by three others."

P. Stoffel, the cook, said :

"When the boat went over I was caught under the railing, and went clear under the craft before I succeeded in releasing myself. I immediately dove to clear the wreck, and was coming to the surface, struck an obstruction, and thinking I was still under the boat I dove again, although nearly suffocated. I came up a few feet further on and saw that I had struck the life-boat on coming up the first time. I was assisted on to the raft by the chief engineer, and was taken off by a skiff some distance down the river."

William O'Donnell also had a narrow es- cape, being pulled through a window that was so small he could barely get through. Great

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HISTORY OF NORTH WASHINGTON.

presence of mind and personal bravery were shown by Captain Barrett, he saving the lives of two men himself. Mate Doval, who was lost, was never seen after the capsizing of the steamer. It is supposed that he was injured in some way and was unable to help himself to a place of safety. Some of the survivors were picked up by the ferrymen at that point, who witnessed the accident and hastenied to the res- cue, succeeding in saving all those on the life- raft and those who were clinging to the bot- tom of the capsized craft.

Wednesday, September 4, 1902, the steamer North Star, owned by Wenatchee par- ties, was sunk just above the Entiat rapids, near where the Camano was wrecked. She struck a rock on the east side of the river, op- posite the rapids. There was a rush for life- belts, the boats were launched and all escaped in safety. Some of the more impatient pas- sengers gained the shore by swimming. A participant in this wreck relates his experi- ence :

"The boat was climbing up what is known as the 'race track,' and going into the eddy too far, caught the current broadside and rush- ing across the narrow channel, struck a huge rock amidship and stove a large hole in the hull. The boat hung on the rock, but filled rap- idly. The captain instructed all hands to get life belts and ordered the small boat launched. One load of passengers were landed and before the boat could return the steamer careened and those still remaining thought that she was go- ing over, and they all jumped off into the rag- ing torrent, where the waves were running five or six feet high. There were twelve or fifteen persons who jumped into the river. One lady did not get away in the first boat and she jumped into the water with the rest of them. A skiff then put off from shore and began to pick up those who were struggling in the water. Four men reached shore without as- sistance, the rest, including the lady, clung to

the side of the skiff and were picked up by the steamer Echo, more than a mile below."

December 5, 1902, W. R. Wanzer, a civil engineer, residing in Seattle, and two helpers, H. Cooley and Matthew Martin, both of Blewett, met with a tragic death. They were engaged in surveying the site of a new power plant for the Wenatchee Electric Light and Power Company. While in a boat they were swept over the falls of the Wenatchee river in Tumwater canyon.

Tuesday, January 20, 1903, a serious wreck occurred on the Great Northern railway, five miles west of Chiwaukum. Twelve people people were killed and as many more seriously injured, aside from the destruction of thous- ands of dollars' worth of property. This ter- rible accident was the result of a tail-end col- lision between an extra freight and a rotary snow plow, at a sharp curve in what is known as Happy Hollow.

Through the coolness and daring of an ex- fireman named Abbott, what might have been a horrible catastrophe in the Cascade tunnel, Thursday, February 5, 1903, was prevented. When nearly through the tunnel Number 4 the east bound overland train became stalled. remaining in that condition for over an hour. From beathing the deadly gas that had accu- mulated the entire train crew and many of the passengers were partially asphyxiated. Will- iam Doyle, fireman, had his left leg badly burned from falling against the fire box of the engine, through the effects of the deadly gas. With the assistance of fellow passengers R. O. Sturgeon saved the conductor of the train, who was found on the ground, overcome by the fumes and carried into the smoker. Mr. Stur- geon said :

"When almost through the tunnel the helper broke from the train and the crew while trying to make her fast were overcome by gases. The air tube was broken and, of course that set the brakes, and until the air could be

GLACIERS AND GLACIER PEAK.

THIRD HIGHEST PEAK IN WASHINGTON. THE LIGHT COLORED PORTION IS SOLID ICE.

RAINBOW FALLS NEAR THE STEHEKIN RIVER

CHELAN FALLS OF CHELAN RIVER.

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HISTORY OF NORTH WASHINGTON.

cut out our engine could neither go ahead nor back up. I was in the smoker at the time and did not become alarmed until the brakeman opened the door of our car and fell on the floor in a dead faint. Being a fireman myself, I knew something was wrong and lighting the brake- man's lantern started out and found the con- ductor and helped him into our car. Ex-fire- man Abbott, a passenger, went to the assistance

of the engineer and fireman and succeeded in cutting the air and backing the train out of the tunnel, but as soon as we had stopped the train at the station he fell from his seat exhausted. We worked over the men for about two hours and succeeded in reviving them, and then with the assistance of another engine securely chained, we came through the tunnel and on our way east."

CHAPTER II.

DESCRIPTIVE.

At the time of present writing, Chelan, with an area of 3,070 square miles, is the lat- est organized county in the state of Washing- ton. That portion of its territory north of the Wenatchee river was taken from Okanogan county ; the part south of that river from Kitti- tas county. The census of 1900 gave Chelan county a population of 3,931. The school cen- sus of 1903 shows an increase of ninety-two per cent., or a total population of 7,547.

There is no other county within the limits of the state possessing the scenic attrations of Chelan ; it has already attained a national celeb- rity. Properly the county may be divided into two distinct sections, the Lake and Wenatchee Valley countries. The latter is almost entirely devoted to irrigation, the results of which have caused the country to be aptly chritened "the land of the big, red apple." Twenty years ago the whole of what is now known as the Wenatchee country was thought to be a waste covered with only sage brush and scant forage adapted to an exceedingly dry climate. As these grasses contained but little moisture they were hardly fit for pasturage; a poor substi-

tute for the succulent grasses upon which cat- tle thrive. Water could be found only in the valleys along the mountain streams, but these were so much lower than the average grade of the land it was thought it would never avail much more than to afford water for cattle, horses or bands of sheep, which were then per- mitted to roam at large in search of food. But along the streams where this water could touch the sandy soil a surprising degree of fertility was noticed ; grasses grew rank and luxurious; the idea of irrigation was formulated in the minds of men, an idea that has expanded into the full fruition of the most sanguine hopes; an idea that has reclaimed hundreds of thous- ands of acres of arid waste.

From the inception of irrigation, first ex- ploited by private enterprises, the Wenatchee country has made rapid progress. When the wonder of creating fertility of soil by artificial application of water had been amply demons- trated, a rush was made to secure land that could not, at one time, be given away. There was a sudden rise in values. Where lands came under the beneficient influence of ditches

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HISTORY OF NORTH WASHINGTON.

prices ran from $50 to $100 per acre. Great orchards laden with an amount of fruit that seems almost impossible for slender limbs to bear without breaking, and fields of grain, watered from ditches, that yield from 40 to 70 bushels to the acre sufficiently attest the many advantages obtained from such a water supply.

Throughout the whole of Chelan county there are never any extremes of temperature; cyclones, blizzards and severe storms of any description are unknown. A change of ten de- grees of temperature in 24 hours is considered a rare occurrence. By the soft winds from the Pacific ocean the climate is tempered, and while the days are sometimes warm in the summer the atmosphere is dry, and the heat never op- pressive with the baleful humidity so common in eastern states. Once in the shade, even the slightest defense from the sun, and one is al- ways cool in this climate, which is far from being the case in many other localities. Nights are invariably cool and refreshing. The aver- age temperature for the winter months is 26 to 28 degrees above zero, with light snows along the river and lake front. Few days there are in winter when the temperature does not rise above freezing point, and it rarely falls so low as zero. The annual rainfall is from 12 to 15 inches, this precipitation being mainly during the spring and fall months.

There is an extensive mineral belt over fifty miles wide crossing Lake Chelan. Within this zone are represented nearly all the precious and commercial minerals, with some of the largest deposits of gold-copper ores found in the northwest. The same may be said of the leaf-silver ores of the Horseshoe Basin camp, on the headwaters of the Stehekin river. The ledges are strong and well defined, bearing all the characteristics of true fissures, many of them extending for miles through the country. Particularly is this true of the gold-copper leads, whose values run far above the average of this class of ores.

It may be truthfully said that the scenic

beauties of this county center in Lake Chelan. Enthusiasts have amplified this assertion to in- clude the United States. And it is not for us, who have fallen under the spell of this subtle enchantment to gainsay them. The lake re- gion is at once grand, impressive and awe-com- pelling. Lake Chelan is situated in the north- ern part of Chelan county. It is, by United States government measurement sixty-eight miles long, and from one to three miles in width, lying parallel with the northern bound- ary of the county, which trends northwest by southeast. It is one of the deepest lakes in the United States, which is practically the same as saying in the world. Soundings give a depth of 1642 feet. In "Six Thousand Miles Through Wonderland," Mr. O. D. Wheeler writes :

"Lake Tahoe has heretofore ranked as the deepest lake in the United States, averaging from 1,200 to 1,400 feet, with a greatest depth of 1,645 feet. Of European lakes there are but two deeper than Tahoe, viz: Lago Maggiore and Lago di Como, in Italy. It will thus be seen that Chelan is one of the few deepest lakes in the world, and further soundings may serve to place it at the head of the list in our own country, at least."

Concerning the depth of this lake W. G. Steel, of the United States Geological Survey, writes :

"To the Editor of the Spokesman-Review : You will remember that in 1886 I broke the record for deep water on the American conti- nent by sounding Crater Lake in southern Oregon, for the government. You will remem- ber, also, of having invited me to vist Lake Chelan a year or so later. I was very sorry in-

deed not to be able to do so, but am now exam- ining the Washington forest reserve for the government, and in that capacity attempted to sound the lake last Saturday. A steel line was sent me 2,560 feet long, all of which was let out in the middle of the lake, without finding bottom. Have just ordered more wire and

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everything necessary to do the work thor- oughly, and shall find that bottom under any circumstances. This makes Chelan the third deepest body of water in the world, outside of the ocean, the record standing: Lake Baikal, in Siberia, 4,000 feet ; the Caspian Sea, 3,000 feet; Lake Chelan, 2,560, plus-which means, we are after second place and have good hopes of beating the Caspian Sea. Before Saturday last Crater Lake held the third place.

"W. G. STEEL.

"U. S. Geological Survey."

Two years later it was discovered by the United States Geological Survey that there had been a kink in the steel line used by Mr. Steel, and the actual depth of the lake was ascertained to be something over 1,600 feet, thus placing Lake Chelan well up in among the deepest lakes in the world.

The water of Lake Chelan is of wonderful clarity and purity. Submerged boulders off shore may be easily seen at a depth of between 30 and 40 feet, but generally the immense depth of water imparts to the surface of the lake an inky blackness. Of the water's purity it may be truthfully affirmed that whenever it is dipped, near shore or far from land, it con- tains no trace of vegetable or organic matter. Precipitous and adamantine are the shores, with here and there a low point jutting out, strewn with boulders or covered with coarse granite sand. The prevailing formation is granite, with occasionally a limestone contact. On the eastern bank of the Columbia river basalt is common enough, but along the lake not the smallest quantity is to be found. At fre- quent intervals a torrent comes leaping over the cliffs, to be dissolved in a shimmering mass of spray and foam before it strikes the blue-black waters of the lake.

Whether clothed in summer verdure, cling- ing vines and lovely blossoms, or when winter's snow comes scurrying through the air, Lake Chelan is stil incomparably beautiful. To many the scenery of winter will more attractively ap-

peal; when its surrounding foot-hills and buttes are draped in spotless white; the mountain crags of the lower Cascades clad in evergreen forests, overspread with winter's lace work, Truly it is an enchanted region, winter or sum- mer. No Pacific coast tourist should fail to visit Chelan, for it is to Washington what the Yosemite Valley is to California. Steamers ply its entire length, passing, en route, a won- derful natural panorama. Owing to its pic- turesque and magnificent mountain environ- ment, combined with rare climatic conditions, as well as the many side attractions of hunting, fishing, boating, mining, recreation, etc., Lake Chelan is yearly becoming more famous as riv- aling the most celebrated scenic attractions or more prominent health and pleasure resorts, either in the new or old world. It is the testi- mony of the inhabitants of the lake district that each year witnesses a doubling of the annual tourist travel. It is not a matter of surprise that upon such a magnificent sheet of water, amid a settting of such wonderful natural at- tractions that there are places more ideally perfect than others for the purpose of resorts. Amid a multitude of pleasure, health and wealth seekers different localities will naturally appeal to different temperaments. People have seized upon this fact, with the result that the shores of Lake Chelan boast of a number of tourists' resorts. Prominent among these are Moore's and Stehekin, with innumerable camp- ing localities between.

A disciple of the gentle Isaac Walton will not find himself an incongruity along the shores of Lake Chelan. He is the right man in the right place. The sport is ample. There are in the state of Washington numerous streams where trout-fishing is par excellence. But, as with many other things, it is on Lake Chelan that the art of enticing several varieties of trout from the ultramarine depths attains its highest embodiment. There are two principal species of trout, the rainbow, or common lake trout, and the "Dolly Varden," colloquially

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HISTORY OF NORTH WASHINGTON.

known as "bull trout." During the spring and fall months they take a troll as bait better than at other times. It is not an unusual thing for parties to report a killing of from 50 to 100 pounds, the result of three or four hours fish- ing. In the streams flowing into the lake, not- ably First Creek, Twenty-five Mile, Railroad and Fish creeks, are thousands of brook, or mountain trout, measuring from three to ten inches in length. There is excellent fishing also in the headwaters of the Stehekin, Bridge Creek and the Agnes. The last Washington legislature, (1902-3) made an appropriation for a fish hatchery, which is now being erected at Stehekin, for the purpose of restocking the lake with its present varieties and, also, adding to the list the great lake trout and Lake Super- ior white fish. There is still another fish in the lake known as the cusk, a deep water fish, sel- dom or never seen alive, and which requires deep sea fishing to secure. It is a claimed that the cusk is quite destructive to trout. Several years ago a party of campers on Railroad Creek discovered a dead cusk floating among some driftwood. The specimen was about two feet in length, and had partially swallowed a large bull trout. Being unable to complete the deglutition or eject its prey from its mouth, the cusk had succumbed to death.

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Illustrated history of Stevens, Ferry, Okanogan and Chelan counties, state of Washington, Part 114

Author: Publication date: 1904 Publisher: Spokane, Wash. : Western History Number of Pages: 992

Author:
Publication date: 1904
Publisher: Spokane, Wash. : Western History
Number of Pages: 992