The Disappearance of the Traveling Minister
A Presbyterian preacher sets out from Seattle for the wilderness outposts of Acme and Nooksack and vanishes without a trace.
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.
A Presbyterian minister who was appointed to preach at Acme and Nooksack left Seattle about a month ago for Acme, but has not been heard of since. It is feared he lost his way in the woods and perished. Mr. McGuire, minister at large, passed through here a few days ago looking for the lost disciple.
“It is feared he lost his way in the woods and perished.”
Travel between Seattle and the rural outposts of Whatcom County in the 1890s was a literal life-or-death endeavor. Today, the wilderness that once swallowed travelers has been transformed into a network of suburban and rural communities, though the scale of the region still commands respect.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.