Rhs Newsletter 10 2004

History is Happening in Redmond!

The Redmond Recorder October 2004 Vol. 6, No. 8 Redmond Historical Society Our mission: To discover, recover, preserve, share and celebrate Redmond’s history 16600 NE 80th St, Room 106, Redmond, WA 98052 425-885-2919 www.redmondhistory.org [email protected] Office hours: Tuesday-Wednesday-Thursday, 1-4pm, or by appointment

President’s Corner Our September meeting was like a grand reunion. Some special classmates of mine -- Jack and Peggy Breedman Dargitz, who grew up on opposite sides of Lake Sammamish -- were visiting from San Diego. They had little choice since they were houseguests of yours truly! Classmates Dusty Watts Blair, Roy and Marge Mouw Hanson also joined us, along with some other old school chums. Vern McCorkle came all the way from Alaska. Bob and Dick Olson were first time visitors and just happened to have been Peggy’s neighbors while growing up. Bob Martin introduced himself and then some of us realized we had gone to school with him. He’s writing a history about living in Redmond and of course we can’t wait to read what he has to say. Other first timers were Tom Hall and Valerie Shinn. Ron Baum, from Woodinville’s historical society, came to hear speaker Duane Isackson on his family’s sawmill. Duane’s wife, Joann, and daughter Shelley Stalwick were also first timers, as was Lorraine Isackson Mills, who told us the history of the Happy Valley Grange, and daughter Carol Mills. Marge won the door prize, a beautiful watercolor of the 1887 Isackson barn by Russ Goetschius. Thank you Russ for donating the wonderful prize! Duane did a superb job with his sawmill tour. Boards had been cut and we were challenged to identify the wood. If you missed it, Duane is willing to do another tour in the future. I can’t think of a better way to spend a glorious day. See you folks in October for another great time. Judy Aries Lang

The Redmond Recorder 10/04

Will City Protect Perrigo Springs? A proposed housing development near the City’s first water source has led the Redmond Historical Society Board to unanimously pass this statement: Perrigo Springs, the City’s first water supply, represents a unique natural and heritage asset to Redmond. As a result, the Redmond Historical Society Board of Directors urges the City of Redmond to protect the area from runoff, erosion and deforestation threats. Doing so may require greater scrutiny of nearby development than the City would require of a project not impacting such a unique asset. Make your voice heard concerning a proposed sewer line near the historic springs. Contact City Council members and/or attend the Oct. 19 public hearing (8 p.m.). Local families concerned about runoff and soil issues oppose the sewer. Background is online at www.educationhill.org.

Oct. 9 meeting: Trapping on the River Fred Valenta will talk about trapping and mountain men. Fred was born in Woodinville, and trapped along the Sammamish River in his youth. He also lived in Kirkland and is a retired teacher, having taught in Issaquah. Join us at 10.30 a.m. at the Old Redmond Schoolhouse Community Center. 1

History is Happening in Redmond!

2004 Meetings

Salmon Days in Salmonberg

All @ 10:30 am Old Redmond Schoolhouse Community Center 16600 NE 80th St.

Salmonpeople Celebrate our salmon heritage at Peter Donaldson’s free, one-man story-telling show:

Second Saturday of the month Oct. 9, Nov. 13 _________________________

2004 Executive Board Judy Lang, President Naomi Hardy, VP Miguel Llanos, VP Teresa Becker, Treasurer Margaret Wiese, Corresponding Secretary Beryl Standley, Recording Secretary Board of Directors Terri Gordon Tom Hitzroth Jon Magnussen Amo Marr Daryl Martin Doris Schaible

We need… Office help We need someone to staff our office Thursdays 1-4 p.m. from Oct. 21st to Jan. 2005. And we’ll continue to be closed Mondays until a volunteer comes forward.

Archive help Our archive notebooks need to be updated. Can be done at your leisure; no experience needed. Call Judy Lang at 425-823-3551

The Redmond Recorder 10/04

This sandbar is a recent Sammamish River addition.

Oct. 8 (7 p.m.), at the Old Redmond Schoolhouse Community Center. Oct. 9 (1 p.m.), at Kingsgate Library.

The City formerly known as Salmonberg has been restoring part of the Sammamish River to a more natural state, removing nonnative brush and adding dead trees and sandbars. It’s all with the aim of helping salmon runs. Peter Holte, of the City’s Natural Resources Division, is coordinating efforts and also collecting personal histories, photos and articles about the river. He can be reached at 425-556-2822 or [email protected]. Roy and Glenn Lampaert grew up along the river. Excerpts from their recorded histories include these observations about salmon: Glenn: They (salmon) were so thick then, that you could literally walk across Bear Creek on their backs ... You could hear them, splashing and running themselves on the bank, and there were a lot of other little fish, sea-run cutthroat, which my brother and I just loved to catch. Roy: Anytime, day or night, you could look and see school after school of salmon migrating up the river. They would branch out in all the tributaries, little creeks and so forth to spawn. It was a different time. The river hadn’t been dredged in those days. It was a slow-moving stream with deep pools Courtesy of Glenn Lampaert and lots of brush and sloughs and so forth. Glenn Lampaert shows off a big one There was real good fishing in those days. that didn’t get away. I used to go up to Lake Sammamish early in the morning with Frank Siedel and his son Emil. Frank ran a tugboat and towed logs for Bill Brown at Woodinville – towed log booms down the river. We would go up to Lake Sammamish and hook onto a boom of logs and pull it down the river. Emil and I would go ahead of the log boom in a rowboat, and fish. It was fantastic. 2

History is Happening in Redmond!

Mailbox Walt Buchman, a former Society board member until he and his family moved to Oklahoma, sends this e-mail: “It has been 2 1/2 years and we're still greatly missing the Northwest and all of our friends. … I still thoroughly enjoy the newsletter. … (daughter) Rachel and I really miss going to the meetings on Saturday mornings. It was always a highlight of our week. Please give our regards to everyone.” ------------------------------------Linda Swanberg, a City employee who helped salvage numerous records, sent e-mail comments about her interest in Redmond’s history. Some excerpts: “It began when I started hearing the wonderful stories of people coming into the Front Office at the fire administration building in 1989. … Addie Kindrick (owner of the Addie-Bon restaurant) became a beloved friend. Addie loved telling me the story of Dick Radtke (who used to be my boss and is now again!!). He would come into her cafe and sit there at the counter when he was a young pup (rowdy teen, I think). He wouldn't order anything, just a glass of water. He had brought with him one of those old Flaver Straws. She told him to get up and leave if he was just going to be taking up space!!! She's the only one who could boss Dick around!!! … People like the Radtkes and the Mellquests are treasures because they can take us back to the beginning and let us know how we got to where we are now … I'm thankful for the Historical Society, for attempting to capture the past. It should be treasured.”

The Redmond Recorder 10/04

Redmondiscing …. Bootlegging & Prohibition Bill Little, now of Yuma, Ariz., sent in this memory: When my father (Orlo Little) first moved to Redmond in the 1920s he started a farm at the northeast corner of 148th Avenue NE and NE 40th Street. There was an established 20-acre farm across 40th that raised lettuce, cabbage and other vegetables. He told me at first he thought it strange that so many people would drive clear out there to buy vegetables especially the ones with the big expensive cars. They would have to drive at least 3 or 4 miles on gravel roads. It soon became obvious they were coming for more than vegetables. Prohibition was still in effect and they were coming to buy liquor. He told me about a dugout area on top of a little rise at the back of the property. They had placed logs over the top of the dugout and put the dirt back on top and let the weeds and ferns grow up around it so it was hidden. This was their storage area and if anyone approached they could be seen. If the wrong people were approaching it was easy to slip into the woods behind the dugout and disappear. As a kid I saw what was left of the dugout but it had caved in. Dad also told me that the remains of some wooden kegs I found in the woods on the back of our property were stashed there by the bootleggers. (That would be about where 150th Avenue NE is now.) In the late 1940s I worked for a man who told me more about the operation next door. I knew there were water towers on the property. They were big wooden water tanks about 18 or 20 feet in diameter and 8 feet deep built on platforms 20 feet off the ground on top of four legs the size of telephone poles and were used to irrigate the crops. He told me the still was hidden in top of one of the wells. The water was pumped with a steam driven pump. The boiler that supplied steam for the pump also heated the still and any fumes went out the stack with the smoke. He thought they were raided by the police but didn’t think the still was ever discovered. I feel that this gentleman did know what he was talking about -- he confessed he dabbled in the bootleg business a little as a young man growing up. As a consequence of these endeavors he even spent some time working at the County Prison Farm, which was located on the west side of Willows Road at NE 116th Street. The art of making moonshine evidently did not die with the repeal of prohibition. In the mid 1950s, while working in Bellevue, a friend shared some white lightning from a half-full gallon jug which he bought from someone in Redmond. He reckoned it was about 180 proof. It was kind of oily looking and ran back slowly from the side of the jug when tipped. It went down real smooth with no burning sensation. I’m inclined to believe his claim because when I got home and walked into the heat of the house it hit me and by the time I walked across the room to the dinner table I had to hold on to my chair with both hands in order to sit on it. I was too inebriated to even feed myself. All from two small swallows from a gallon jug. Bill can be reached at 13616 E. 52nd Street, Yuma, Arizona, 85367, or

[email protected] 3

History is Happening in Redmond!

~ In Memoriam ~

Redmondiscing…

Dick Patterson passed away on Sept.3. Having worked at Brad Best Realty for four decades, he truly was a Redmond fixture. “He was a very active member of the Redmond Kiwanis Club, put up flags and helped cook the chicken during Bike Derby,” recalls daughter Margo Patterson Smith. “He was also a member of the Redmond United Methodist Church, and helped with the building of the new wing on the old sanctuary,” she adds. And Dick “was always there,” she says, “when the Girl Scout parents went to Robbinswold camp on Hood Canal to get it ready for camping season.” Margo also recalls the time Dick, Tor Magnuson and Clarence Breedman performed in the school talent show as geisha girls for the play “Madam Butterfly”!

Running the Phone, and Poles, up Today’s Education Hill Yvonne Conway, daughter of Vonal (Tac) and Margaruite (Perky) Johnson and granddaughter of Mark and Mable (Perrigo) Johnson, sent in a wonderful biography of her life. Here’s the second of several excerpts we’ll publish over the next few months: Mark and Mable had 160 acres on top of the old Redmond Hill, now called 166th. During the difficult days of the Depression they gave ten acres to each of their children, who all contributed to the property taxes. Tac and Perky punched a road into their acreage and pitched a tent. They lived in the tent for one year while they built a garage, which we lived in until I was twelve. During those years, Dad dug a well sixty feet deep by hand, dug a basement with the horse and a scoop and mixed and poured cement for the foundation of our future home all by hand. Eventually with more families on the hill, electricity became available. It was 6 years later that we had a telephone. Dad obtained a contract with the State of Washington to build a portion of the Pacific Crest Trail that runs from Canada to California. To conduct business with the State, Mom had to drive to town to use a phone at Buckley’s gas station. She contacted the phone company to see if they could install a phone line on the existing power line. The answer was no – separate poles are required for a phone line and they could only run a line if new poles were installed. So Dad cut enough poles for the mile and a half line and he and Mom planted them.

--------------------------------Bill Landvatter: His Redmond roots ran deep, having bought the egg farm started by Otto Wiedmann on the Red Brick Road in 1942. Bill quit farming in 1973, and started Redmond Floral. In 1963, Bill was a councilman for the short-lived city of East Redmond.

---------------------------------Some copies of last month’s newsletter mistakenly left out our condolences to relatives of Woody Reed and Colleen Perrigo Tosh Willis, Society members who passed away this

summer.

The Redmond Recorder 10/04

From the Roy Buckley collection

In the meantime, Mom had asked all the people on the hill if they would like to contribute time or money towards the phone line. No one was interested but once installed Mom found she was on a ten party line and still had to drive to town to make business calls. The phone company said there was nothing they could do about it. She reminded them that she and her husband had installed those poles so there was something she could do about it. When asked what her plans were, she said, “I am going to cut down my poles!” By the time she had one of Dad’s chainsaws gassed up and was headed for the first pole, three company bigwigs drove up and asked if they could negotiate. She kept the chainsaw running during the negotiation. Soon it was agreed she would have a private line within a week.

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History is Happening in Redmond!

Thank Yous! A heap of historical thanks to these great people for donating treasures, expertise, time and energy!

Carol Radtke Semandiris for the 1955 photos of Cheerleaders and a visit to Gov. Langlie’s office in Olympia. Eileen and Don McCoskrie for the 8"x10" Derby Days 2004 photos. Valerie Shinn for photographs of her family home on West Lake Sammamish and news clippings. Linda Yoshitake Hussey for photos of her family's home and nursery, Sunset Gardens, on Avondale where recently affordable housing was constructed and a park named in honor of her parents, Frank and Miye Yoshitake. Glenn Lampaert for the class pictures from 1930-41. Faye Sween for helping staff a booth at the chorale event at Eastlake High School. Euc LaBrie for the Little League article.

Clara and Jerry Hammersberg for maps, photos, a postal insignia from Jerry's old uniform, a bookmark and pin from the Committee to Disincorporate the Town of East Redmond. Susan Cooper for Redmond Today back issues. Lillian Garland for the Nike missile base electrical insulators. Kellee Roberts for the 1870s geological map. Lorraine Isackson Mills for a copy of the history of the Happy Valley Grange. Angie Lang for taking minutes at our general meeting. Pat Jovag for the treats at the meeting. Betty Gaudy for the Sammamish Valley maps.

Were You at our Sept. 11 Meeting? These folks were: Anderson, Betty Buckley Baum, Ron* Becker, Teresa Lang Blair, Dusty Watts Cisneros, Nancy Dargitz, Jack* Dargitz, Peggy* Dudley, Gordon Dudley, Irene M. Elduen, Violet Cook Emmanuel, Betty* Emmanuel, Tony Fisher, Benjamin* Garland, Lillian Garrity, Yvonne Lampaert* Goetschius, Millie Goetschius, Russell Gorlick, Audrey R. Goshorn, Jean Etta Guptill, Willow Haines, Steve Hall, Tom* Hammersberg, Clara McSparran Hammersberg, Jerry

The Redmond Recorder 10/04

Hanson, Marge Hanson, Roy Hardy, Jerry Hardy, Naomi Hardy Fisher, Natalie Isackson, Duane Isackson, Joanne Jovag, Pat Weiss Lampaert, Roy Lang, Angela Aries Lang, Judy Aries Magnuson, Cheryl Magnuson, Gene Magruder, Joan Marr, Clare (Amo) Martin, Bob* Martin, Daryl McCorkle, Vern McCormick, Elma McCoskrie, Don McCoskrie, Eileen Mills, Carol* Mills, Lorraine*

Montgomery, Eileen Munoz, Alexa Murphy, Ed Norris, Jackie Olson, Bob* Olson, Dick* Potter, Jo Ann Rosenbach, Patsy Cook Schaible, Doris Shinn, Valerie* Stalwick, Shelley* Stensland, Don Sween, Faye Tofferi, Martha Torrell, Jerry Vallene, Arlyn Bjerke Watkins, JoAnn Weil-Piechenick, Shlomit Weiss, Rose Wiese, Margaret Evers *First-time attendees

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History is Happening in Redmond!

Jon Magnussen: Our Newest Lifetime Member

From 1 to 99 Ben Fisher was the youngest at our September 2004 meeting, here held by his mother, Natalie (daughter of Society VP Naomi Hardy). Audrey Gorlick, accompanied by her friend Alexa Munoz, was our most senior member in attendance at age 99.

It didn’t take long for Jon Magnussen to get involved with the Society after his speaking engagement last May. Jon surprised us with a lifetime membership donation and a willingness to join our Board. His family (son of Tor Magnussen and Helen Quackenbush) and business (Cadman gravel) roots should be invaluable to our preservation and education aims. Thanks and welcome, Jon!

Newsletters via E-mail

Sunset Gardens Dedication Come celebrate Oct. 22 at 3.30 p.m. The City’s newest park is on Avondale across from Conrad Olsen Road. It’s named after Frank and Miye Yoshitake’s garden nursery that had been there.

If you have e-mail please consider receiving our newsletter that way in order to save on mailing costs. To sign up, e-mail [email protected]. If it doesn’t work out you can always go back to US Mail.

Join the Redmond Historical Society Please pay 2004 dues ASAP!! And help discover, recover, preserve, share and celebrate Redmond’s history! Levels of Membership (Check 1 only)

Trailblazer (Student) ............... $ 5.00 Pioneer (Individual) ............. $ 20.00 Homesteader (Family) ......... $ 35.00 Entrepreneur (Supporter) ... $ 200.00 Corporate (Business).......... $ 250.00 History Maker (Lifetime) $ 1,000.00 All Contributions are Tax Deductible

Please make checks payable to: Redmond Historical Society Mail To: Redmond Historical Society Attn: Membership ORSCC, Room 106 16600 NE 80th Street Redmond, WA 98052

Name__________________________________________________ Phone ______________________ (Please print your name exactly as you would like it to appear on your name tag for general meetings.) Address _____________________________________________ City _______________________ St ________ Zip _________________ E-Mail Address ________________________________________ Birth Date (MM/DD/YYYY) __________________________________ If Family Membership, other names to be included: _______________________________________________________________________ If you would like a short, one-liner on your name tag (e.g. Charter Member, or Pioneers Since 1903), enter it below:

The Redmond Recorder 10/04

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