September 14 – October 12, 1878
The Dream of the La Grande Marsh Colony
1878 newspaper items describe promoters selling Snohomish County marshland as a family colony.
4 reports in The Northern Star, September 14 – October 12, 1878.
The story
Between September 14 and October 12, 1878, The Northern Star of Snohomish City ran a series of items about promoters marketing local tide lands and marsh acreage—identified in the reports as the La Grande Marsh near Snohomish, and in one report as a 32-tract "colony" at Mukilteo—as fertile agricultural land for family settlement. The reports describe promises of deep-water access, easy access to market, fertile soil, and self-sufficiency on land a few miles from town, including shipbuilding in the Mukilteo account. The papers give no outcome for the scheme, and the reports conflict on the location and size of the tract, so the details of what was actually offered rest on promotional claims as the papers relayed them.
Told from the 4 reports below. The reports are the record.
The archive grouped these reports automatically, by date, place and subject.
The reports 4
- The Northern StarThe Forgotten Colony of 'La Grande Marsh'
Promoters promised a thriving agricultural paradise on the outskirts of Snohomish, marketing deep-water access and fertile soil to lure a new generation of settlers.
- The Northern StarThe Dream of the La Grande Marsh Colony
Developers in the 1880s marketed a fertile Snohomish County marshland as an ideal site for a family colony, selling the promise of self-sufficiency just four miles from town.
- The Northern StarThe Mukilteo Colony Dream
Promoters pitched a 32-tract 'colony' in Mukilteo as a perfect, self-sustaining opportunity for families to own land and work the Sound, promising everything from shipbuilding to fertile marshland farming.
- The Northern StarThe Promised Land on the La Grande Marsh
Developers in the late 19th century marketed Snohomish's tide lands and marshy acreage as prime agricultural real estate, promising fertile soil and easy access to market.
From the pages
The Northern Star · Sep 14, 1878
The Northern Star · Sep 28, 1878
The Northern Star · Oct 5, 1878
The Northern Star · Oct 12, 1878
Library of Congress, Chronicling America. Public domain.