Biographical Sketch of James J. Imbrie
James J. Imbrie was born on January 29, 1852, on his father’s farm in Tualatin Plains. He received his early education at a log schoolhouse and graduated with honors from Willamette University in 1877. After clerical work in Portland, he pursued stock-raising in Eastern Washington until devastating losses in 1882 led him to open a hardware store. He later moved to Ellensburg, Washington, transitioning to the machine trade and then real estate. Imbrie married May Swetland in 1882, and they had three children, all of whom passed away.