The Fight for a New Land Office
Citizens of the Eastern Sound protest a proposal to center federal land business in Port Townsend, arguing it is inaccessible and indifferent to their needs.
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 bill introduced by Mr. Brents in Congress provides for the establishment of a U.S. Land Office at Port Townsend, covering Jefferson, San Juan, Whatcom, Skagit, King, Island, and Kitsap counties. Citizens along the east side of the Sound are protesting this, as Seattle or other more central points are far more accessible. To compel the people of these counties to cross the rough channel of the Sound with inadequate facilities is an act of injustice. If the government insists on a new district, it should be located where it is convenient for the people who actually use it, rather than at a remote port.
“To compel the people... to cross the rough channel of the Sound... would be an act of injustice.”
This debate echoes modern frustrations with centralizing government services away from the communities they serve. Just as 19th-century residents fought for a more accessible Land Office, modern Seattleites often struggle with the physical accessibility of regional government hubs.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.