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Skagit River JournalFree Home Page 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, Snohomish & BC. An evolving history dedicated to committing random acts of historical kindness |
 810 Central Ave., Sedro-Woolley, Washington, 98284Home of the Tarheel Stomp Mortimer Cook slept here & named the town Bug |
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My grandfather, C.A. Smith, came west to Washington in the early 1900s (exact date unknown). I don't know where they lived at first, but early papers indicate that they spent some time in Whatcom, later renamed Bellingham. Grandpa was a steam engineer and held a certificate as such from Minnesota.Phyllis Hyatt proved to be an adept author, herself, as she penned the history of the Knights of Pythias Lodge in Sedro-Woolley, in which she and Chuck were involved for decades. This is the first story in a restored section on Clear Lake and Day Creek history. It will be followed by a series of photos of the early town that was platted by the Bartl family as Mountain View, and the village and company town of Clearlake, which grew rapidly with the railroads, logging camps and sawmills and then faded just as quick in the 1920s when the Clear Lake Lumber Co. burned and then went out of business. Do you have copies of family memories and photos to share?
His wife, Harriet, and daughter, Emily, came with him. Emily, my mother, married my dad, W.R. Hyatt, in 1905, and they lived in Pilchuck (Snohomish County) where my sister and I were born.
In 1909, Grandpa bought a triangular strip of land north of the Day Creek Road (now Old Day Creek Road), bounded on the east by the Northern Pacific Railroad and on the west by the road to Sedro-Woolley. The land was purchased from John and Susie Peterson for $40 and was approximately four acres.
Grandpa built a small clapboard house for himself and wife toward the north end of the property. He had a cow, raised chickens for eggs and a pig for meat, curing his own hams and bacon. Surplus eggs were either sold or packed in a stone jar or crock, each layer covered with lard rendered from hog fat. These came in handy when the hens quit laying.
He planted an orchard, sending back East for apple, prune and pear trees. Names I remember are Ben Davis, Winter Banana, Snowapple, Northern Spy and Michigan Gravenstein. Snowapple, bright red with snowwhite meat, and the juicy, tart Michigan Gravenstein were my favorites.
Grandpa had a large garden he tended and sold the produce, as well as eggs and cream, from a roadside stand. Each day's sale were written down in a notebook. I saw the notebook many years later and prices I remember are: eggs 10 cents a dozen; cream 15 cents a pint; vegetables, 5 cents a pound, and corn, 25 cents a dozen. I wish I had that notebook now — and a return to some of the prices wouldn't hurt either.
My grandmother always made sure plenty of the farm produce and meat was canned or cured for winter. Grandma died in 1916, about the time my father and mother started to build their house on Grandpa's acreage. Grandpa lived until 1922, still active on the farm.
My parents, Roland and Emily Hyatt, my sister Gertrude, and I moved from Pilchuck to Clear Lake in the fall of 1914. We lived in a company house [Clear Lake Lumber Co.] in what was known as "Pigtail Alley" (now Cedar Street). Across the street were neighbors Ed and Sybil Sanders. The Hacketts, with children Ray and Dolly, lived on the northwest corner. Houses on the west side of the street were on the uphill side and those on the east were down the hill and were in water most of the fall and spring during the rainy season. Some of the things I remember about Pigtail Alley are on tape. Our next move was to a house on Main Street across from the depot, and north of the old post office.
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. Allelujah Business Systems/Copies/Mailbox, 133-B State St., Sedro-Woolley, 360 855-1157Preserve your family keepsakes . . . allcopiersystems web page Schooner Tavern/Cocktails at 621 Metcalf Street in downtown Sedro-Woolley, across from Hammer Square: www.schoonerwoolley.com web page . . . History of bar and building Oliver Hammer Clothes Shop at 817 Metcalf Street in downtown Sedro-Woolley, 82 years. Joy's Sedro-Woolley Bakery-Cafe at 823 Metcalf Street in downtown Sedro-Woolley, 82 years. Check out Sedro-Woolley First for links to all stories and reasons to shop here firstor make this your destination on your visit or vacation. DelNagro Masonry Brick, block, stone — See our work at the new Hammer Heritage SquareSee our website www.4bricklayers.com |
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 Mail copies/documents to Street address: Skagit River Journal, 810 Central Ave., Sedro-Woolley, WA, 98284. |