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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

Rare early Sedro-Woolley newspaper
Skagit County Times, Sedro-Woolley, Dec. 5, 1891

This 1899 Darius Kinsey photo, looking south from the site of P.A. Woolley's sawmill, shows the triangle where three railroads crossed and Northern avenue running horizontal, east-to-west, across the top third. We can see the Seattle Lake Shore & Eastern train to the right, coming from Seattle to Sumas, and the Seattle & Northern train on the track along Northern avenue, running from Ship Harbor upriver to Hamilton. At the right or west end of Northern avenue, you can see a two-story building, which was the Keystone Hotel, and beside it is the one-story Gem Saloon; both are mentioned in this story. Click on the photo to the see the much larger version that shows a lot more area and details.

This is the first rare old issue from which we have transcribed notes. Historian Deanna Ammons has shared copies of newspapers found by an unnamed source when he was remodeling his house locally. We will soon be transcribing many more issues that you can see at this website. This particular issue is possibly the most important one ever found so far because it completely opened our eyes and the eyes of other researchers who relied on incorrect information about two key points of Woolley history: the first mayor of the town and the consolidation of the villages of Sedro and Woolley. Before finding this, we assumed after reading more than a dozen books and documents that consolidation was not seriously addressed until 1898. All the sources were wrong. This is why it is so important for our readers to share photo copies of any old newspapers that they have in their family collections, especially those before 1920. All but a handful of the annual volumes have burned in various fires. Please email if you can help. When you see information in [ ], we have either corrected spelling or provided more information about the person mentioned from the extensive research we have conducted for ten years.

General column for Saturday, Dec. 5, 1891
(This is the first time we knew that the original newspaper was published on Saturday instead of Thursday)

Harry Odlin was in from the ranch yesterday [Imagine a line in a weekly of today about someone visiting town]
W.M. Guse, mayor-elect, went to Fairhaven Friday [See Mayor Campaign section below]
Dr. Tozier [A.A. Tozer] was appointed health officer for the town of Sedro. [Tozer was the unlicensed doctor and pharmacist from Avon who was a partner with A.E. Holland in the first drug store in old Sedro in 1889. He became one of the largest landholders in Skagit county.]
A.L. St. Clair made a business trip to Seattle last Friday returning on Wednesday [St. Clair operated the St. Clair Hotel in Woolley, which was later renamed the Osterman House. The hotel burned in 1909 and was replaced by the Wixson Hotel, which is now called the Gateway. See the story of that hotel
F.J. Sullivan has closed his bakery and is thinking some of leaving town for a short time.
Ben Willard moved his family to the Rainier dairy farm last Monday, where they will reside until spring.
M.J. McElroy was in from his camp, Wednesday. Work is progressing slowly on account of much rain.
The different parties sick with scarlet fever are on the mend and no further spread of the disease is looked for.
W.C. Josh was in from Mount Vernon the first of the week, attending to the business of the Cascade steam laundry.
Mr. Jennings, superintendent of the [Bennett] coal mines [at future Cokedale], was in town Tuesday, and says work is progressing finely, between 40 and 50 men being at work. [Probably Richard Jennings, who managed the Cokedale mines at their peak production, or possibly Theodore S.]
Norris Ormsby has moved to the house formerly occupied by F.D. Johnson, which has lately been double boarded and put in good shape for winter. [Ormsby moved here in 1891 from Kansas and North Yakima, following his brother-in-law Frank Douglass. Became a partner in the Douglass drug store in Woolley in 1891, sold out interest in 1892 and started transfer and drayage business.]
Jeremiah W. Benson, the gardener, is still, in the first part of December, delivering vegetables direct from his garden, such as roasting ears, cabbage, squash, etc. [Brother of Dan Benson, steamboat captain who homesteaded next to the Wickers and Van Fleets in Skiyou district east of Sedro.]
The steamer Monte Cristo, in waiting at the Great Northern bridge for the draw to be opened, had to back up and in so doing ran on a snag breaking a hole in her bottom. [That is the trestle bridge at Riverside over the Skagit river.]
O.S. Paulson is building an addition to his dwelling on Reed avenue. It will be painted, papered and generally overhauled, preparatory to Mr. Paulson, taking up his residence there. [Brothers O.S. and K.S. Paulson opened the Sedro Mercantile Co. general store in old Sedro by the river in 1888-89 to serve the railroad crews and early settlers, moved their store to new Sedro in the early '90s and then moved to the town of Woolley in the late '90s after the area recovered from the Depression.]
The Northern Pacific passenger train from Seattle was late yesterday on account of a wreck at Snohomish. A switch engine and freight car collided on the trestle south of town, wrecking both and severely wounding the engineer, fireman and conductor.
[Herman] Waltz, our hardware merchant, is making a business trip to Seattle and Tacoma, and while away, he will visit his former home near Buckley in Piece county. Mr. Waltz is still postmaster there and as at the last settlement the post office department sent a draft for one cent, he wishes to see the deputy and find the cause for the small amount of the settlement.
[Ed. note: Herman Waltz was the first hardware dealer in town, opening a store in old Sedro by the river in about 1889. We infer that Waltz sold out to the Fritsch brothers, German immigrants via Texas, who moved down from Sauk City after fires and floods in about 1892. Waltz held the first Catholic mass in his home at the southwest corner of Murdock and Ferry street in about 1890 and sold the home to Jim and Blanche Gray.
Random people mentioned: C.O. Mosier, ferryman, $25.00 salary (no time period given); P.L. Woolley, salary as clerk and expense, $29.25. [Philip L., always known as Bert, he was his father's main assistant at their railroad construction project in Savannah, Georgia. Seven years younger than his brother, Bill, he was born in 1869 in Grand Haven, Michigan]

City council meeting: Planking the streets

The street committee reported favorably on planking Murdock street from the Seattle & Northern railway to Moore street. To this committee was referred the original petition for planking the street and the protest against the same. the report was load over for one week.
Only one bid was presented for planking Moore street, that of George Shirley, at $14.50 per thousand feet of lumber, and his bid was accepted.
The clerk was instructed to issue a warrant on the general fund for $110, it being for 75 percent of work done on "the ditch." The question of allowing J.H. McCollum $7.40 per station of 100 feet for clearing for ditch was again brought before the council and after much discussion the matter was settled by allowing him $7.40.
The street committee was instructed to provide crossings for ditch on Gibson, Metcalfe and Southern streets and S.L.S.&E. railway right of way.
W.D. Robertson was appointed on the license committee and the committee instructed to look into the matter of the license of J.W. Peake [J.W. Peake opened the fifth saloon in Woolley in 1890, north of the Seattle & Northern railroad tracks, on the west side of Metcalf street, just south of the future Fern rooms and the future Skagit Steel & Iron Works administration building] and McPhee Brothers and report at the next regular meeting.
We have three sites about saloons in the local area: Saloons on the frontier; the first saloons in each county town and all the licensed saloons in Sedro and Woolley [from the old domain; links may not work]. And also read the hilarious story of Otto Klement's 1882 Lyman saloon and the Good Ole Boys — Boredom, devil rum, greasing a pig, hijinks, greed and frontier humor.

Advertisements:

Norris Ormsby, General transfer business, city dray and express, Woolley, Wash.
Woolley Junction Meat Market, all kinds of fresh and salt meats constantly on hand, poultry and game in season, all orders promptly delivered to any part of the city and satisfaction guaranteed. C.B. Willard, proprietor, Market on Metcalfe street.
J.A. Dorman Confectionery, Stationery, Tobacco and Cigars, newsdealer, cutlery, fruits, nuts, candies, Woolley
Fairhaven National Bank, Capital $50,000, Fairhaven, Washington, 1108 Harris Ave., J.P. Wardner, President [Wardner was a fellow investor at Fairhaven with C.W. Waldron, who owned several buildings on Metcalf street.
The Palace Saloon, Woolley, Finest Wines, Liquors, Cigars, Carr and Wright, proprietors
[Ed. note: The Palace was then apparently the name of the saloon in the Key City Hotel, later renamed the Keystone sometime before 1899, located at the southeast corner of Northern and Eastern avenues, across the street from the railroad depot. The Palace was later located east on Northern avenue, owned by James Gray and later by the famous Alice of the Palace. We believe this is Thomas B. Carr, who was also known as a famous upriver packer in this period [a hilarious story about his packing days will be published later in December]. Mr. Carr was apparently the father of Eddie Carr, who was in the first graduating class of Sedro-Woolley High School in 1903 and later owned the Skagit Commission business and various canneries. We hope a reader will know more about the family.]
Insurance that pays. That it pays to insure in a good company was demonstrated by the recent fire. The Northwest insurance company, represented by Bingham & Holbrook, had two losses in the block burned on Murdock street and within three days of the fire the company paid each loss in full with cash in hand. For insurance that does insure, give Bingham & Holbrook a call. [C.E. Bingham and Merritt Holbrook were next door neighbors in Marengo, Iowa, who moved to old Sedro with their wives and opened their bank on July 30, 1890, near the Fairhaven & Southern railway depot. They were still partners in 1891, also dealing in insurance. See the Binham bank and family story]

Update: more advertisements from this issue
W.L. Lowrey. For bargains in dry goods, furnishing goods, carpets, boots and shoes, P Avenue [now Commercial], opposite Wilson Hotel, Anacortes.
Assignee's sale! Large stock general merchandise at Sedro Mercantile Company's store at Woolley. Must be sold Must, regardless of cost. Don't miss the opportunity. V.A. [Marshall], assignee. [Ed. note: yes, it's the Marshall for whom Marshall street in old Sedro was named. He was associated with Lafayette Stevens in the Crystal coal mine northeast of Sedro, on the coal seem which Stevens found in 1887. Within two to three years, a town formed there named Cokedale. In 1899 he was also a shingle mill man in Woolley.]
Key City Hotel. W.H. Austin, proprietor. This house has been newly fitted and furnished with all modern conveniences for the comfort of guests. Table service unexcelled in the county. Newly furnished and First class rooms. The house is as clean and neat as new paper, paint, and constant attention can make and keep it. Located directly opposite the Union Depot. Charges as reasonable as is consistent with business and satisfaction guaranteed. Bar in connection where the best of wines and liquors are kept. The Best Hotel in Woolley. Try it.
Key City Hotel: Very important discovery Ed. note: This is a marvelous discovery. We historians have always assumed that this hotel was called the Keystone because of the 1906 book, Illustrated History of Skagit & Snohomish Counties, [hereafter the 1906 Book and because of the Darius Kinsey photograph of Northern avenue in 1899. It was the most important hotel in Woolley town until the St. Clair was built and was probably built in the spring or summer of 1890 as the first lodging place to serve arrivals by train at the Union Depot across the street to the north. We never knew about Mr. Austin as the original owner. Back then in 1891, this was probably where the movers and shakers then congregated and wet their whistles.
A.M. Devener carries the largest and finest line of furniture, wall paper, house lining, shades, oilcloth. Leading upholstery house in the county. All goods sold at the lowest prices in Western Washington. Give him a call, Woolley. [Back in those days, whoever sold furniture in town usually became the undertaker, too. That was the case for Mr. Devener, who would construct his own building on Metcalf street in the next decade.]
Grand View Hotel, Ford & Lepava, proprietors. Accommodations First class. Meals at all hours. Reasonable charges. Choice wines, liquors and cigars at the bar. [Ed. note: this is another marvelous discovery. No source has ever mentioned this hotel before. Perhaps it is because of the Woolley fire two years later that was reported in the 1906 Book: "April 26, 1893, occurred a far more serious fire in which nearly the whole of the business part of the town was consumed." We do not know of Mr. Lepava, but we do know of Adelbert Ford, a hotelkeeper and saloon owner who owned properties in both Mount Vernon and Woolley during the late 1880s and 1890s.
[Herman] Waltz & Co. carry a full line of shelf and heavy hardware, tinware and stoves. Doors, windows and glass of all kinds a specialty. Pure linseed oil, lead and paints. Pumps of all kinds, including celebrated Red Jacket force pump. Farming implements of all descriptions. Wagons, buggies, mowers and rakes. Good material and low prices guaranteed. Come in and see us before buying elsewhere.
[Ed. note: Herman Waltz was the original hardware man in both old Sedro by the river and in Woolley. His store was located at the northwest corner of Woodworth and Metcalf streets, where the florist shop is located in 2003. Within a year, he sold out to the Fritsch brothers, whose German family emigrated first to Texas, then to Sauk City at the junction of the Skagit and Sauk rivers. After fires and floods upriver, their father moved to Burlington and set up business there. The Fritsch brothers became one of the leading businesses in Sedro-Woolley over the next two decades. Herman Waltz built his home at the southwest corner of Murdock and Ferry streets and hosted the first Catholic masses there before the church was built on Puget street. After selling out to the brothers, Waltz moved to St. Paul, Minnesota and visited the new town here in 1908, probably shocked that the two original towns had merged and a thriving market city had taken its place.]

Local Mention: Daily local timetable:

Seattle Lake Shore & Eastern: Leave for seattle, freight, 8:30 a.m., 4:05 p.m. Arrive from Seattle 1:40 p.m., freight 4:20 p.m.
Fairhaven & Southern/Great Northern: Leave for Fairhaven 1:10 p.m. and 5:10 p.m. Arrive from Fairhaven 11:55 a.m. and 4:10 p.m.
Seattle & Northern: Trains leave for Anacortes at 10:45 a.m., arrive from Anacortes at 8:25 a.m.; accommodations 3:10 p.m.. Leave for Hamilton 8:25 a.m., arrive from Hamilton 10:15 a.m., leave for Anacortes at 10:15 a.m. Northern Pacific express 1:50 p.m., accommodations at 4:10 p.m.
The severest earthquake in the sound region 1878 occurred on Nov. 29, at 3:15 p.m. There is no damage reported from any quarter, though the shock was felt severest farther south on the sound. There were some in this town who claim they felt the shock at the time reported.
The shingle manufacturers of Washington and Oregon met in Tacoma on Dec. 1, to discuss prices. The object of the meeting was to arrive at some definite understanding regarding uniformity of prices, in the hope of preventing indiscriminate reductions and cutting in prices. A committee was appointed to adjust prices at intervals of 30 days and the members of it will cooperate with the permanent officers in adjusting prices. The personnel of this new committee may be changed each month. [At one time, P.A. Woolley was elected president of this association.]

Legal notices:

Notice to Taxpayers: Persons wishing to pay taxes for the year 1891 must bring or send a description of the property on which they wish to pay, as all property is assessed by description and not by name. A strict compliance with this request will save you trouble and delay. A rebate of three per cent will be allowed on all taxes paid before Jan. 1, 1892, and they become delinquent on March 1, 1892. H. Clothier, Treasurer of Skagit county [And co-founder of Mount Vernon with Ed English in 1877. We hope that someone reads this who understands the taxation system of that period.]
Notice to Property Owners fronting on Metcalfe and Murdock streets in the town of Woolley. Notice is hereby given that the assessment roll for local improvement district Nos. 1 and 2 for the grading and sidewalking of Metcalfe and Murdock streets in the town of Woolley, has been filed in my office and is now open for inspection until Dec. 10, 1891, until 6 o'clock, p.m. And all persons owning property in said local improvement district are requested to appear on said Dec. 10 at 7:30 p.m. at the council chamber to make objections thereto if any they have. All persons interested are further notified that the city council will at the said last-mentioned time consider any and all objections made, and will at said time or at some adjourned meeting, make such corrections in said roll as it deems just; and after the consideration of any and all objections will approve such roll and will assess the amounts found to be just against each lot and parcel of land fronting on said streets.
Notices for publication. these were advertised in the local newspaper by individuals who were proving up on land claims. The intention to prove up was filed at the federal government land office at Seattle, and the final proof would be made to the clerk of the Skagit county superior court at Mount Vernon. In addition, they listed the witnesses who could prove the applicant's continuous residence upon and cultivation of said land. The notices are signed by T.M. Reed Jr., Register.

These two men advertised in this newspaper

George McRae, homestead application No. 10,488, for the sw 1/4, sec. 15, township 35 north, range 4 east. Witnesses: Henry Holtkamp, W.T. Odlin, John Kelleher and Gus Sundman, all of Woolley, Washington. Final proof date: Dec. 16, 1891.
Frank W. Fleming, Preemption claim D.S. No. 16,631, for the nw 1/4, se 1/4, Sec. 3, T35N, R4E. Witnesses: F.A. Parker, Edison, W.W. Tinkham and Charles Lyon of Woolley, Nels Langland of Seattle.

Friday evening's entertainment: Last evening's entertainment in Rita hall, by the "Ora Et Labora" club was well attended, and the program was carried out successfully. The essay by Mrs. George Rouse was received with much favor and showed much labor in composition. The tableaux were all excellent, the red lights showing the subjects in fine effect. That of the three Graces, Faith, Hope and Charity, by Mrs. Peterson, Mrs. Ruel and Miss [Kate] Woolley being especially well received and encored.
Mrs. Lorraine Woolley, though suffering from a severe cold, rendered "The Fire at Nolans" in a pleasing style. The subjects for Mrs. Jarley's wax works did not all materialize and the amusing scene was cut much too short. But the bonnet was there and Mrs. Woolley showed herself possessed of much ability as an elocutionist and manager. Joan of Arc at the Stake by Miss Woolley was loudly applauded and the effect very fine. The [Swedish] dance by the four little girls was received with rounds of applause and heartily encored. Following the program came coffee and doughnuts, many remaining, and all were served abundantly. There was also an auction of Christmas goods made by the ladies.

Advertisement for J.M. Moore General Store Anacortes, some representative prices, page 1

Frazer's Axle Grease, two boxes, 25¢ . . . .Corned beef, roast beef and chipped beef, per can, 25¢ . . . Eagle and Highland brand condensed milk, 5 cans, $1 . . . Cigars: Havana "private" , box, $3.50/Exelsior, $2.50/Dandy Dots $1.50 . . . Coffee, per pound: Green Coast Rica 25¢, Roasted Mocha & Java 35¢, Roasted Arbuckles 30¢
Lemon snap and ginger cookies 10¢/pound . . . Salt salmon 5¢/lb. . . . Mackerel 15¢/lb. . . . Flour: Graham or Oregon patent roller, barrel, $4.50 . . . Honey, California strained, per gallon, $1.25 . . . Breakfast Bacon, per pound, 13¢ . . . Hams medium per pound, 14¢ . . . Granulated sugar 15 pounds, $1 . . . Pure maple syrup, per gallon, $1.75 . . . English breakfast tea, per pound, 75¢ . . . Gunpowder, per pound, 70¢

Campaign for Dec. 8, 1891 election Election notice:

This map was drawn in 1891 by the man who platted both Sedro and Woolley, Albert G. Mosier. Click on thumbnail for full map that shows both new Sedro and Woolley.

Mayor-elect W.M. Guse proclaims that "according to statutory laws there will be an election held in said town at the usual place of meeting of the council on the Eighth day of December, 1891, at which election there shall be elected: mayor, five councilmen, one treasurer. Attested to by Phil L. Woolley, Clerk.
[Ed. note: Guse elected mayor when town of Woolley was incorporated on May 11, 1891. In 1890, we find William M. Guse in the R. L. Polk & Co. city directory of Fairhaven. He was then the manager of The Capital Sample Rooms, which may have been a display room for traveling salesmen or it could have been a saloon. His home was on the northeast corner of Harris and 10th. That is the only notation about him except for a William Guse from Wisconsin in that time period who we found on the internet. The family genealogist had no further information.]
Citizen's party ticket For mayor: W.M. Guse; treasurer, W.T. Odlin; councilmen [former clerk for Mortimer Cook's general store, about this time he became the sole employee of the Bingham & Holbrook bank in new Sedro on Third street], Norris Ormsby, W.H. Cook [no relation of Mortimer Cook from Sedro], W.D. Robertson, F.A. Douglass [early Woolley druggist who came here from Kansas in 1890], Phil L. Woolley.
People's party ticket For mayor: W.M. Guse; treasurer, W.T. Odlin; councilmen, Norris Ormsby, [David].E. Moore [Mr. Moore died here on Nov. 20, 1919. From his obituary we learned that he moved to the Sterling district in 1888 and acquired an undetermined patch of land north of present Hwy. 20 soon thereafter and Moore street was named for him. Two of his children was Mrs. Nellie [Jack] Palmateer and Mrs. Lillie Larrabee of Sedro-Woolley. His widow remarried and became Mrs Mary Seaman. We hope a family member will contact us.], Ad W. Davison [Pennsylvanian who came here in 1890 after quarrying limestone on San Juan island. Owned one of the first mills here, later an auto business and ran the stagecoach from Woolley to Mount Vernon], William Doherty [Doherty built the Keystone Hotel on Northern avenue across from the depot soon after 1890, one of the first four businesses in Woolley; in 1894, he took on partner Jim Gray in the Keystone Saloon; died in 1906], Henry Husch [also spelled Hosch, Henry C. Hosch owned the Gem Saloon next door to the Keystone; his brother Charles owned the Racket Store where the Whidbey Island Bank now stands on Ferry and Puget].
Independent party ticket For mayor: W.M. Guse; treasurer, J.A. Dorman; councilmen, Norris Ormsby, D.E. Moore, Ad W. Davison, William Doherty, Henry Husch.
Union party ticket Union party ticketFor mayor: P.A. Woolley. [We note here that the first three tickets were submitted after a vote by representatives of the party. Clerk Woolley wrote that his father's name was put in nomination another way.] Yesterday a petition was signed by the required number of voters was filed with the clerk placing the name of P.A. Woolley in nomination for mayor, as the Union candidate. [These were signatories of the petition, an excellent illustration of how the early businessmen and settlers of the town cleaved between the power brokers.]
J.A. Dorman, F.J. Sullivan, O.S. Paulson, John G. Hoehn, J.L. Lepava, F.J. Hulen, H.H. Coalley, W.H. Austin, William Garrard, Thomas McLaughlin [was also constable of Sedro], D.E. Wright, John Hollen, W.C. Rumsey, I.J. Stiles [railroad depot agent, first master of the local Masons Lodge when formed in 1893 and postmaster at the turn of the century], W.C. Still [can't read the name clearly], N.P. Beebe, Aaron White, W.H. Cook, Charles E. Lyon, James Gardner, J.A. Mudget, A. Wolfe, J.W. Thomas, T. Keefe, G.S. McMillan.
Norris Ormsby, H.C. Hosch, J.R. Smith [could be J. Henry Smith, attorney who had his office in the Cole building in Woolley], R.H. Churchill, W.A. Churchill, W.T. Odlin, A.W. Swain, A.B. Ernst, J.H. McCullum, Joe Baker, E.D. Johns, F.D. Johnson, Smith & Bechtle, J.T. Fannan, Lewis Kirkby, J.C. Kirkby [brothers from Kansas], John Dill, Peter Johnson, J.B. Smith, J.D. Sanders, J.L. Sanders, J.W. Sanders, George Ratchford [blacksmith], John Gibson [J.C. LaPlant hinted that he was a family friend of the Woolleys, namesake of Gibson street], Thomas B. Carr [Palace Saloon]. Signed at Woolley on Dec. 4, 1891.
This week's nominations This places four tickets in the field. It is very complimentary to Mr. Guse, our present mayor, that he is on three of the four tickets for re-election. Norris Ormsby, at present councilman, is nominated on all the tickets for another term and will probably win without opposition. Let the voters act with intelligence for the sake of good government and with as little prejudice as possible.

County Central Democratic Club On Tuesday evening the democrats of Sedro and Woolley gathered in Rita hall as per call of the president. A club was organized to be known as the Skagit County Central Democratic Club, and from this main organization auxiliary clubs will be organized in every precinct in the county.
Thomas Smith was chosen chairman of the meeting and A.B. Ernst secretary. A constitution was offered by A.W. Salisbury, read section by section, amended and adopted as a whole as amended.
The following officers were elected:
Thomas Smith, president; W.M. Guse, vice-president; C.E. Bingham, treasurer; A.B. Ernst, secretary. As executive committee the following were elected: J.A. Dorman, C.E. Bingham, T.B. Carr, W.S. Alexander, William Woods.
Finance committee, W.M. Guse, W.D. Robertson, Mr. Huntley, G.T. Gregory, W.A. Sparks. Membership Committee, H.J. McCallum, W.H. Cook, N. Ormsby, J.W. Peak [name also spelled as Peake].
Regular meetings will be held the first Tuesday of each month, and the place of meeting will be announced hereafter.

Election of Dec. 8, 1891 Ed. note: we bet you expect us to tell you who won in the election. We would love to but we have not yet found the newspaper of December 12, 1891, that would have posted the results. We will have to post the results that were noted in the 1906 Book. But we warn you: the results in the book for the May 11, 1891, election are incorrect.
Results of May 11, 1891: Mayor, William Murdock [either this is wrong or Murdock dropped out and Mayor Elect William H. Guse took his place. Stay tuned; we are still checking]; treasurer, William Doherty; counilmen, Norris Ormsby, David E. Moore, George Gregory, Mr. Goosie [sic]; clerk, Philip L. Woolley.
Results of Dec. 8, 1891: Mayor, Philip A. Woolley; clerk, Rev. Rouse; treasurer, William Doherty; councilmen, Philip Woolley, William Cook, Norris Ormsby, [W.D.] Robertson.

City Attorney's decision re: consolidation of Sedro and Woolley In a separate story

Logs of early newspapers

Story posted on Dec. 20, 2003
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Rare early Sedro-Woolley newspaper Skagit County Times, Sedro-Woolley, Dec. 5, 1891

Rare early Sedro-Woolley newspaper
Skagit County Times, Sedro-Woolley, Dec. 5, 1891