Jefferson County WA

Biography of Col. Henry Landes

COL. HENRY LANDES. – The subject of this sketch is prominent and noteworthy, even among the foremost self-made men of the great and growing Pacific Northwest, – a section so progressive and promising that it has attracted the most vigorous minds and the ablest men throughout the country. He was born in a small town in Germany on the 8th of October, 1843. In 1847 his father and family emigrated to Kentucky, Henry being then four years old. There the boy grew almost to the years of manhood, and developed in a marked degree the spirit of adventurous ambition which … Read more

Biography of William H. Whittlesey

WM. H. WHITTLESEY.- This popular young gentleman, who has brought to our coast a business capacity and enthusiasm of progress which augers well for the city in which he has made his home, was born in Virginia August 8, 1858, and is a son of the gallant Major Joseph H. Whittlesey of the United States Army. The mother, Kate K. Fauntleroy, belonged to one of the first families of the Old Dominion. The son William, of whom we write, remained in the south while his father, the major, was transferred to the Department of the Columbia, having command of Fort … Read more

Tumwater, Vancouver, Port Townsend, Washington

Tumwater, the initial point in the ‘history of the settlement of Puget Sound, was incorporated in Nov. 1869. In time it numbered more manufactories than any other town on the Sound. Vancouver and Early Settlers Vancouver was the fourth town in size in western Washington, having in 1880 about 3,000 inhabitants. It was made the county seat of Clarke County by the first legislative assembly of Washington, in March 1854, its pioneers, both English and American, long retaining their residences. Among the early settlers were James Turnbull, born in England, came to Washington in 1852, and with him William Turnbull, … Read more

Biographical Sketch of Alfred A. Plummer, Jr.

ALFRED A. PLUMMER, Jr. – This gentleman, of whom we present an excellent portrait, is the son of the pioneer whose sketch appears above, and was born in Port Townsend September 7, 1856. As a boy he received a sound practical education at the public school of the place, and as a young man entered into mercantile business, and has become a leader in business enterprises. In 1881 he inaugurated a business at New Tacoma, but eighteen months later returned to his native city, and after a time established with D.W. Smith and J.D. Fitzgerald the Port Townsend Foundry & … Read more

Biography of Hon. David Shelton

HON. DAVID SHELTON – Mr. Shelton, one of the very earliest of the pioneers of Washington Territory, who with Mr. L.B. Hastings and F.W. Pettigrove became a founder of Port Townsend, was born in Buncombe County, North Carolina, September 15, 1812. His father, Lewis Shelton, emigrated to the territory of Missouri in the year 1819, and settled in Saline county but kept on the advance wave of settlement, ever moving westward as the state settled up, and died in Andrew county in 1847. In this frontier life young David came to maturity, and on May 30, 1837, was married to … Read more

Biography of Hon. Robert C. Hill

HON. ROBERT C. HILL. – Mr. Hill, one of the most responsible men of Washington, and a pioneer of an early day, was born in Hatboro, Pennsylvania, September 14, 1829, the son of Doctor John Hill, his mother’s maiden name having been Eliza L. Davis. At the age of seven he moved with his parents to Philadelphia, and received his education at the excellent grammar and high schools of that city. He entered upon a business career as clerk in a wholesale dry-goods store in the city, and followed that occupation four years. In 1848 he removed with his parents … Read more

Biography of Alfred A. Plummer, Sr.

ALFRED A. PLUMMER, Sr. – This pioneer of the port of entry was born at Alfred, Maine, March 3, 1822. He was the son of John and Eliza Adams Plummer, of an old family of the Pine Tree state. In early life young Plummer removed to Boston and learned the saddlery and harness trade, thereby acquiring practical ideas, and the facile use of his hands, which fitted him for the varied work of the pioneer on our coat. In 1849 he left for the Pacific shores, coming with the argonauts who steered their way across the seas of grass, and … Read more

Biography of Samuel Hadlock

SAMUEL HADLOCK. – The people of the Pacific coast at present belong to that time in the history of their states and society when they do the things that the after-time lovers to look back upon and scrutinize. They are full of restless energy, and experience all that falls to the lot of man. The old free days, when the country was new and towns were built, will ever be regarded by the populous and crowded future as the golden days of our history, – mixed with severe toil and deprivation alternating with abundance. Samuel Hadlock, who founded Port Hadlock, … Read more

Biographical Sketch of James McCurdy

JAMES McCURDY. – This gentleman, who worthily bears the name of his honored father, Doctor Samuel M. McCurdy, was born at St. Andrews, New Brunswick, in 1840. He was early sent to school, and spent his time to advantage until as a lade of fourteen he began the work of his own maintenance, finding a suitable position in the general merchandise store of Vose & Joyce at Robbinston, Maine. Four years later he engaged as clerk at New York. In 1859, however, he determined to join his father upon the Pacific coast, and reached Port Townsend, Washington Territory, in September … Read more

Biography of John F. Sheehan

JOHN F. SHEEHAN. – The gentleman whose name heads this brief memoir, an excellent portrait of whom appears in this history, has been a leading business man and resident of Port Townsend, Washington for almost thirty years. Mr. Sheehan is a native of the Sunny south, and was born in Baltimore Maryland, in 1840. When but an infant he suffered the irreparable loss of his father by death. His widowed mother then, with her two sons, our subject being but eighteen months old, paid a visit to Ireland, and at the end of one year returned to Baltimore. John F. … Read more

Biography of Hon. Charles Eisenbeis

HON. CHARLES EISENBEIS. – This wealthy resident of Port of Washington gained his eminence by sturdy industry and sagacious investment during the pioneer days. He is a native of Prussia, was born in 1832, and the fifth in a family of ten children. Of his father he learned the trade of a baker, and was prepared upon his arrival in America in 1856 to earn thereby, in company with his brother, an independent livelihood at Rochester, New York. In 1858 he came via Panama to San Francisco, and in the fall of the same year arrived at Port Townsend. He … Read more

Biography of Samuel M. McCurdy, M.D.

SAMUEL M. McCURDY, M.D. – This venerable deceased pioneer of the Lower Sound, whose name will ever be held in honorable regard by the people of this coast, was born near Londonderry, Ireland, in 1805. In his youth and early manhood he was favored with the best of educational advantages, and before crossing the water to America held the degree of M.D. from Trinity College, Dublin. In 1836 he had reached St. Andrews, New Brunswick, and was engaged in the practice of his profession. In 1849 he sought to begin life anew in the Golden state, and in the spring … Read more

Eccles, Darris Elwood – Obituary

Baker City, Oregon Darris Elwood Eccles, 78, died at his Kala Point home on Oct. 14, 2004. He has been a resident of Port Townsend, Wash., since 1956. Born on Sept. 5, 1926, to Richmond and Lenore (Sturgill) Eccles in Baker City, Darris graduated from Baker High School. He was employed by Safeway Stores in several Oregon cities and entered the U.S. Navy in 1952, where he graduated as an operating room technician with honors. He loved his time in the service, traveling on a transport ship to Alaska and the Far East, according to his family. Darris married Lora … Read more

Biography of George B. Calhoun, M.D.

GEORGE B. CALHOUN,M.D. – There are but few men better known or more highly respected in the medical profession on Puget Sound than Doctor Calhoun, an excellent portrait of whom appears in this history. He is a native of New Brunswick, and was born October 19, 1837, his parents being John and Mary (Brewster) Calhoun. When he was but a small boy, he moved with his parents to the sunny South, locating in Maryland. His father, being a shipowner and seafaring man, was stricken, while on a voyage to the Bermudas, with yellow fever, from which he died. Our subject, … Read more

Biography of James O’Laughlin

JAMES O’LOUGHLIN. – This gentleman, whose portrait adorns the opposite page, is one of the representative men of Skagit County, Washington. He is a native of Ireland, thus making Skagit, as every county in the United States indebted to the emerald Isle. County Clare was the region of his birth; and the time was April 9, 1844. Before he was three years old, his parents crossed the ocean to this land of liberty, bringing their nine children with the. They located at Lyons, New York, but in 1856 went to Lapeer, Michigan. There the boy James learned the tinsmith’s trade. … Read more

Biographical Sketch of Capt. Henry E. Morgan

CAPT. HENRY E. MORGAN. – This well-known pioneer of 1849 is a native of Groton, Connecticut, and was born October 30, 1825. He moved with his parents to Meriden, in the same state, residing there until April, 1849, when he set forth for California in a bark via Cape Horn, arriving in San Francisco the following September. A short time afterwards he began a sea-faring life, and for fifteen years sailed the ocean. During that time he entered nearly all the noted foreign ports, and later purchased a vessel of his own and followed a coasting trade. In 1858 he … Read more

Jefferson County, Washington Cemetery Records

Most of these are complete indices at the time of transcription, however, in some cases we list the listing when it is only a partial listing. Following Cemeteries (hosted At Jefferson County, Washington Tombstone Transcription Project) Center Cemetery St. Mary’s Catholic Cemetery Soundview Cemetery Following Cemeteries (hosted at Interment) Brinnon Cemetery Laurel Grove Cemetery Saint Mary’s Catholic Cemetery    

Biography of James Seavy

JAMES SEAVY. – This representative gentleman of Washington is, as we have noted in the case of many of the leading citizens of that state, a native of Maine, having been born at Thomaston, of the old Pine-tree state (Maine), January 11, 1825. Receiving an ample practical education at the public school and academy of his native town, he maintained himself during his early manhood by teaching and farming. In 1854 he undertook the labor, almost unheard of in his community, of bringing his family by sea to the Pacific coast, accomplishing the voyage around Cape Horn in the bark … Read more

Dayton, Gretchen Adeline – Obituary

Elgin, Oregon Gretchen Adeline Dayton, 85, of Elgin died July 17 at Grande Ronde Hospital. A graveside memorial will begin at 7 p.m. Friday at the Elgin cemetery. She was born Dec. 25, 1920, in Port Townsend, Wash., to Asa and Sylvia Fowler. She spent most of her life in the Puget Sound area, living in Tahuya and Brinnon. In 1981, she married Darius Dayton and moved to Elgin. She loved the outdoors, especially fishing and hunting, and enjoyed watching the sunsets from her kitchen window. She was a great storyteller and loved the antics of the young children who … Read more

Biography of Hiram Doncaster

HIRAM DONCASTER. – No one seems to operate so much in the capacity of a creator as the shipbuilder. The products of his brain and hand have a life of their own, are given a name, and have their own personality. Shipbuilding on the Sound is, moreover, an important business; and the masters of this craft are men of distinction. One of these is the man whose name appears at the head of this sketch. He was born in Nova Scotia in 1838, and first came to this coast via Panama in the year 1856, mining in Plumas county two … Read more