Farmers Organize Against Northern Pacific Monopoly
Producers in Ellensburg hold an indignation meeting to protest freight discrimination and the railroad's broken land grant promises.
A large and enthusiastic meeting assembled in the Elliott Hall in Ellensburg on March 29. The crowd, four-fifths of which was from the country, responded to the call. W. H. Petor took decided ground in favor of the forfeiture of the land grant by the Northern Pacific Railroad Company, deploring its tardiness in building the road. J. T. Leclerc averred that the pre-emptors of Kittitas have paid for the road years ago, have been fed on false promises, and still have no road. G. W. Parish portrayed the unparalleled patience of the people in enduring the flagrant violations of the company's promises for the last 20 years. The preamble and resolutions were adopted with but two dissenting voices.
“The people of this country have suffered all the privations, without receiving any benefits whatever, for 15 years.”
This 1886 protest against the Northern Pacific Railroad mirrors today's ongoing regional tension between powerful corporate infrastructure interests and the local communities who navigate the resulting economic impacts. Just as farmers felt exploited by freight rates then, modern residents frequently debate the influence of massive transit and land-use entities on Seattle’s housing and economic autonomy.
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