All Stories: 122
Stories
The Lopez Historical Museum – Be sure to stop in for some more Lopez History!
The Mission of the Lopez Island Historical Society is to collect, preserve, interpret, and share local history to increase awareness and appreciation of this resource for the benefit of future generations. The Lopez museum opened in 1980 and has…
A Beloved Historic Building, Still in Regular Use - Lopez Center Church
"Of all the historic structures on Lopez Island, none is more beautiful, nor more beloved, than Center Church. Now a candidate for the National Historic Registry, the old building serves as a focal point for the community, and stands as a…
Arbitration Explained
In 1872 two colonial powers, Great Britain and the United States, peacefully agreed to end - through arbitration - the joint occupation of San Juan Island. Ambiguous language in the 1846 Treaty of Oregon, a boundary agreement between the two…
3. Weeks Point Way
From this vantage point, you can see where Charley dug drain ditches in the 1860s or 1870s. Charley, known at the time as Siwash Charley, is one of the few Indigenous men on island we have record of. (Siwash, from Chinook Jargon, is considered a…
4. Lopez Stores Over Time
In the early 20th century, just about from here, a long pier stretched out into the water, towards the marker you can see in the channel. Steamships, like the Georgia, would deliver passengers and goods to “Lopez” — one of three centers of commerce…
1. Indigenous Peoples of Sx’wálech (Lopez Island) – Indigenous peoples have called these islands home since time immemorial
Indigenous People have lived and stewarded Sx’wálech (Lopez Island) since time immemorial. The earliest evidence of people arriving in the Puget Sound area comes from over 12,500 years ago — a time when these islands were likely still under ice.…
6. Weeks Water Tower – Uniquely Lopez and essential to everyday life
Walking around Lopez Village you might see two or three similar looking tall structures. There's one here, one by Vortex Juice Bar, and another -- can you find it? These historic building are water towers, over 100 years old. Oscar and Bertie…
7. The Homestead House
In the early 20th century, if someone said they were headed to “Lopez” it meant they were headed to the town Lopez, where the present day village is. At that time, Lopez boasted 3 or 4 communities, depending on how you count. Richardson, at the…
5. The Village House – A family home, now a beloved business center
The Village House, currently Isabel’s Espresso and Honey Bee Consignment, was first built across the street by brothers Oscar and Bertie Weeks. According to Oscar’s son Lincoln Weeks:
My dad (Oscar) moved the house off the lot to here and…
2. Hutch’s Trading Post: the First Store on Lopez – Public Shore Access on Weeks Point Way
Just a few steps from here, Hiram Hutchinson ran the first grocery store (or trading post) on Lopez Island. The store offered staple goods such as flour, sugar, coffee, gunpowder and tobacco. “Hi” or “Hutch,” as he was called, came to Lopez in the…
8. The Little Red Schoolhouse – School, Fire Hall, Diner and Library, this little building has seen it all!
Built in 1894 by Newton Jones and Jim Farnsworth, the Lopez Library began life as a schoolhouse, later serving as a restaurant and even a fire house. The lumber for the school arrived in July 1894 aboard the Schooner Port Admiral. Students went to…
Friends of Moran – The nonprofit group that supports Moran State Park
Most tourists visiting Orcas Island have Moran State Park on their travel itinerary. With nearly 40 miles of hiking trails, several lakes, scenic picnic vistas, and home to the highest point in the San Juan Islands offering a stunning view at 2,409…
The Madrone Tree – A lot of background behind a colorful tree
Anyone unfamiliar with coastal plants of the Pacific shoreline will surely be intrigued when they first see what looks like a tropical tree growing along rocky coasts. Ranging anywhere from 15 - 100 feet tall with smooth bark that peels away in…
Getting batty on Orcas! – How one species of bat became permanent residents of Moran State Park
The San Juan Islands contain many unique wildlife but among those, the bat population may be one of the most interesting. Due to a surplus in moths and other insects bats enjoy, the San Juan Islands make a wonderful home to a large and thriving bat…
Roche Harbor: From Lime Kilns to Sailboats – A limestone quarry turned history-rich resort town resides at the northwestern tip of San Juan island.
The northwestern tip of San Juan Island formed part of the Whelaalk territory of a Coast Salish Lhaq'temish, or Lummi, community until its occupation by British and American settlers in the 1800s.
In its early days of settlement, the harbor…
Robert's Rules – The author of the famous manual of parliamentary procedure was an Army Engineer
Before working his way up the Army ranks and rising to unlikely fame as an author, Henry M. Robert played a crucial role at San Juan Island's American Camp. Robert arrived on San Juan Island on August 23, 1859. Then a second lieutenant, the U.S.…
Kokanee Salmon of Cascade Lake – The story of Kokanee salmon within Cascade Lake in Moran State Park.
Among the activities available to visitors of Moran State Park, fishing is high on the list for many avid outdoorsmen. Though there are several species of fish within the lake, Kokanee salmon are coveted as one of the best catches. Despite this,…
Belle Vue Sheep Farm – The Sheep Farm Where the Pig War Began
Before there was American or English camp, there was the Belle Vue Sheep Farm. What was once a central point of the Pig War is now no more than a vast, open field with a white flagpole.
The farm was originally established by Chief Factor of the…
Operation Sea Wall – The 1961 Mock Invasion of San Juan Island
In 1961, over a century after the events of the Pig War, San Juan Island was once again the site of military action. Rather than a tense standoff between two nations, the occasion this time was a military exercise—named “Sea Wall”—conducted by the…
The American Navy in the Salish Sea
Though sometimes outnumbered by the Royal Navy, the United States fleet deployed out of Bellingham and Port Townsend was prepared to fight, if necessary.
The first of the U.S. ships was the U.S.S. Active, a side-wheel steamer originally built as…
Native Americans on San Juan Island during the Joint Occupation – Admiration and Tension
We often look at the Joint Occupation of the San Juans (1860-1872) through the eyes of the British and American citizens and soldiers who faced off and vied for supremacy. But the original Native inhabitants, the Straits Salish Indians, maintained a…
The American Camp Monument – The “Grappling Hook” of San Juan's Past, Present and Future
“Erected October 21, 1904, by the Washington University State Historical Society as arbitrator William I of Germany decided the San Juan case October 21, 1872. First Officer in charge was Cap. George E. Pickett of the 9th U.S. Infantry. American…
The Friday Harbor Cannery House – The Legacy of Friday Harbor's Cannery
The Salsih Sea once teemed with salmon. Long before European settlers established themselves on the San Juan Islands, the Native Americans used the island for salmon fishing.
For thousands of years the Salish Coastal people established temporary…
Island Vice – The Red Light District at Griffin Bay
San Juan Town, sometimes called San Juan Village, quickly sprang up at Griffin Bay to meet soldiers’ demand for leisure activities during joint occupation.
A reporter for the Daily Alta California, who visited the island in 1859, described a tiny…
The Firth Family – The Family of the Bellevue Sheep Farm
The Firth Family, known for their ownership over the Bellevue Sheep Farm in its later years consisted of Robert Firth, his wife, Jessie Firth, and their 9 children. Robert Firth was a native Scotsman from the Orkney Islands in Scotland. When he was…
James "Jimmie" Pickett, a Man Between Two Worlds – The "Forgotten" Child of General George E. Pickett
[Rewrite. I got about three paragraphs into it.]
James “Jimmie” Tilton Pickett was born on December 31, 1857, at the Pickett House in Bellingham, WA. He was the first son of General George Pickett and his Native Haida wife, Mrs. Pickett.
When…
Fire History of Mt. Constitution – By examining the changes in wildfire and vegetation, researchers are able to learn more about the climate history of Mt. Constitution.
When you think of a wildfire, the images that come to mind are probably not painting the fire in a positive light. Despite this, naturally occurring wildfires have always been essential to ecosystem function and some species even depend on fire…
Food in the Camps – What did the U.S. Army and British Royal Marines eat?
U.S. Army soldiers and Royal Marines stationed on San Juan Island found the natural resources teeming with sustenance in the mid 19th century. Deer roamed freely—the depopulation of wolves to protect livestock interests had seen to that—sea life was…
Smallpox Bay – The dark history of a lovely recreational area
As Euroamericans conquered the North American continent, their most effective weapons were not guns or steel, but microbes. Smallpox in particular had devastating effects on Natives, who had no natural immunity to the disease.
According to…
San Juan Island's Salmon Bank – Why were the waters off San Juan Island so rich with salmon? The answer is in the Ice Age.
Northern Strait and Coast Salish Indians took advantage of the natural resources available in the San Juan Islands for centuries before the arrival of white explorers and settlers. One of the main commodities that drew Natives to the Islands was the…