The Battle of the Kittitas Toll-Gate

In the early settlement of Kittitas valley, many settlers came over the mountains with their wagons and families in a very difficult and hazardous journey. There were no bridges or proper roads; the trail was filled with fallen timbers and large boulders. Smith Bros. & Co. have spent thousands of dollars in the past few years making a road, building bridges, clearing out fallen timbers, removing rocks and boulders, and building stations. This work eliminated the peril and toil of the previous trail, where several lives were lost by people tumbling off the rocks into the lake. Yet there are men in Kittitas valley who refuse to pay toll over a road that would be utterly impassable were it not for the work of Smith Bros. & Co. A few weeks ago, Johnny Packwood drove some horses over the road, and, coming to the toll gate, refused to pay the toll. The road was barricaded, and permission refused him to pass. He then procured resident help, and with an axe hewed his way through the barricade, and passed over the road without paying a cent.