The Devil's Own: Oak Harbor's Waggish Protest Against the Preacher

When a reverend tried to post a notice for his Sunday sermon in the Grange Hall, the locals of Oak Harbor responded with a satirical flyer that dared the Devil himself to show up.

Tragedy Strikes Oak Harbor Family

A kerosene explosion in the kitchen of the Gast home claimed the lives of four children.

“When she had succeeded in rescuing her husband she found the house in flames, and it was impossible to rescue the children.”

A Community Under Siege: The Whidbey Island Diphtheria Outbreak

A harrowing account of how a single family was devastated by diphtheria in Oak Harbor during the summer of 1887.

“This crushing blow, the loss in so short a time of two young persons just budding into womanhood, beloved by all, seemed to take the life out of that stricken community.”

The Struggle for Steamship Service at Oak Harbor

When the captain refused to land because the water was too shallow, a determined community built their own way to the deep water.

“They are all there working together harmoniously to do these things and there can be little doubt that they will be accomplished.”

The Last of the Pioneer Mariners

Captain Edward Harrington, a self-made man who helped forge early Puget Sound maritime routes, dies at Oak Harbor.

“A self-made man who had struggled with adversity, his sympathies were always extended to the unfortunate and afflicted, and his heart and purse were ever open to all who might be in sickness or distress.”

The Homestead That Became a Beaver Sanctuary

A mid-19th-century advertisement reveals the transformation of Island County wetlands into an agricultural dream, offering a snapshot of frontier land development.

“160 acres, mostly beaver swamp, now drained, and fifty acres under good cultivation.”

Oak Harbor Farm With Orchard and Good Water for Sale

An 1878 classified advertisement offers a 'mostly prairie' farm for sale near Oak Harbor, detailing a self-sufficient life built from the ground up.

“Fifty acres under good cultivation, with a good threshing floor and a well of excellent water at the door.”