Site founded September 1, 2000, passing 325,000 page views in February 2005
These home pages remain free of any charge. We need donations or subscriptions/gifts for students, military and family. Please pass on this website link to your family, relatives, friends and clients.

Skagit River Journal

of History & Folklore
Subscribers Edition Stories & Photos
The most in-depth, comprehensive site about the Skagit.
Covers from British Columbia to Puget sound. Counties covered: Skagit, Whatcom, Island, San Juan. An evolving history dedicated to the principle of committing random acts of historical kindness

Noel V. Bourasaw, editor (bullet)

810 Central Ave., Sedro-Woolley, Washington, 98284
Home of the Tarheel Stomp (bullet)

Mortimer Cook slept here & named the town Bug

Letters to the editor, 2005

We have inaugurated this section because we have received a two-part letter that seriously criticizes our features on the site. We repeat the statement we make on every one of our 425 story-sites and have made since the first day we posted our stories in 2000: "Remember, we welcome correction and criticism." We feel that it is important that an author back up his stories and take criticism where criticism is due. Up until now, we have made corrections as family members or other researchers have alerted us about them.
We also want to restate the original goal we had for this site. In our original research, starting in 1992, we noted how many discrepancies there were in historical accounts specifically about Sedro-Woolley and Skagit county. Even contemporary accounts written by people who observed or were involved in events got things wrong. Another problem was that some of the writers of articles in newspapers and magazines long ago did not do their homework and repeated legends or mistakes. In other instances, writers or editors seemed to favor one family or businessman over another one unfairly, or carried a grudge against someone that colored the writing. That is why we have always warned writers in any medium about merely re-posting a story from any era without asking for corrections if they are necessary. We decided to launch this site so that descendants of pioneers and researchers could correct the record before we actually publish a book. We are very pleased that descendants of nearly 200 families have written us so far in five years, after reading our posted stories. Several have helped by sharing copies of original newspapers, which is very helpful. Others have supplied information from census reports; family bibles, diaries and letters; and official documents. Whenever someone has told a family secret and asked us to keep their statement confidential, we have kept our promise. In other cases, we have pointed out when the secret has already been included in a prior article or when it appeared in public records. As we stated from the beginning, our website is not the final word. It and our stories evolve as we find more information.
Whenever we receive a letter that takes us to task for our writing or research, we will print it. And we will use the corrections we receive when we update the story. We will also answer for why we made the mistake and explain the source if we quoted an incorrect item. We only ask that you do not use profanity or defame anyone. Whichever one of us wrote the story on the site and the source of the article are completely open to criticism. And do keep in mind that other letter writers may also criticize or clarify your information or point of view.
I take personal responsibility for anything I write, myself, and my point of view. —Noel V. Bourasaw, editor

The first letter is actually posted on the page about the Stumphouse Man, Pete Bielecki, who lived near Sedro-Woolley and Northern State Hospital. We placed it there so that people who read the story can see the helpful corrections that were made in the letter. We will post the other part of the letter later in the applicable section after we do some further research on the matter and re-check the original posted story.
The second part of the letter is posted as a response to our updated profile of the late, lamented Northern State Hospital. You can find the letter there following the story. The story includes links to: how the hospital site was selected in 1909 on the homestead of Mr. Hansen of Hansen creek; the hospital cemetery and its 2004 restoration; Chuck Cruse's Last Day as the last NSH employee, 1976; Pete Bielecki, the Stumphouse man who lived near Northern State. You can also find a link there for Karl Heutermann's Sedro-Woolley High School class who just completed a year's work that led to the dedication of a memorial for the nearly 1,500 patients whose bodies were buried and cremated. The cemetery was abandoned when the hospital closed and the headstones disappeared over the years. We congratulate this class for their community effort.

Story posted on Feb. 9, 2005
Did you enjoy this story? Please consider subscribing to the optional Subscribers Edition. That is how we fund this grand project.
Please report any broken links or files that do not open and we will send you the correct link. Thank you.

You can read about our prime sponsors:
Read the history websites of our sponsors and supporters, who help fund research of local history:
Heirloom Gardens Natural Foods at 805B Metcalf street, the original home of Oliver Hammer.
Oliver Hammer Clothes Shop at 817 Metcalf street in downtown Sedro-Woolley, 82 years.
Bus Jungquist Furniture at 829 Metcalf street in downtown Sedro-Woolley, 36 years.
Schooner Tavern/Cocktails at 621 Metcalf street in downtown Sedro-Woolley, across from Hammer Square.

Peace and quiet at the Alpine RV Park, just north of Marblemount on Hwy 20
Park your RV or pitch a tent by the Skagit river, just a short driver from Winthrop or Sedro-Woolley.

Would you like to buy a country church, pews, belfry, bell, pastor's quarters and all? Email us for details.

Did you find what you were looking for? If not, please email us and tell us what you seek and we will put it on our list to research. The more details, the better.

Please sign our guestbook so our readers will know where you found out about us, or share something you know about the Skagit River or your memories or those of your family. Share your reactions or suggestions or comment on our Journal. Thank you for taking time out of your busy day to visit our site.

Sign Our Guestbook

View Our Guestbook

Remember, we welcome correction and criticism. Please click on the email slot at the right to report any problems with these pages or to suggest ideas for future stories. This is a completely free site. We fund it by providing an online magazine for paid subscribers. If you are not already a subscriber and you would like to help support our considerable research costs, you can subscribe for just $20.00 per year. As a paid subscriber, you will receive eight yearly issues plus many rare treats between times, including scans of photos and documents that illustrate local history, before they are shared with anyone else. You can go here for Subscription details and you can read the preview edition to see examples of our in-depth research. You may also order gift subscriptions for friends, family or clients who are interested in local history or students or military people who are away from home. Or you can email us for more details. Do you have scanned photos to share? Or you can mail us copies. See addresses to right.

Email us at: journal@stumpranchonline.com

Mail copies/documents to street address: Skagit River Journal, 810 Central Ave., Sedro-Woolley, WA, 98284.