The Battle for Steilacoom Lake
A landmark lawsuit reveals the vanished history of Washington's oldest grist mill and the early water wars of Pierce County.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
For twenty-one days, witnesses have appeared before Judge Campbell in Pierce County Superior Court to testify in a unique civil suit that may be the longest-contested case in state history. The complainant, Frederick Meyer, seeks $25,000 in damages from the Tacoma Light and Water Company for destroying the utility of his flour mill—said to be the oldest in the state—by tapping its water supply. The mill, built by a man named Byrd around 1853, relied on a flume from Steilacoom Lake. The case delves into historical disputes, including the original owner's violent death in a feud. The defense argues that the mill's failure was due to economic shifts—such as the transition from wheat to hop farming—and that the water company's diversion of 3,000,000 gallons daily from Spanaway and Clover creeks had no measurable impact, as those streams often sink into the gravel during the dry season anyway.
“For twenty-one days an interesting collection of witnesses have been summoned before Judge Campbell... to testify in a unique civil suit, which promises to be the longest-contested case ever brought before the courts of the state.”
This 1892 case is a precursor to the century-long struggle for control over Washington’s water rights and infrastructure. Just as 19th-century mills were rendered obsolete by industrial water diversion, modern Seattle remains deeply engaged in complex legal and environmental battles over water access, land development, and civic power.
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