The North End Industrial Boom
A new stone quarry and improved infrastructure are transforming the north end of Aberdeen.
No part of the city is at present showing such signs of activity as the north end. Within the last few weeks, Jas. B. Stewart has graded B Street from the north end of the planking to the hill just south of the water works. Allen & Hamilton are having a road built around the bluff to their quarry, where thirty-seven men are employed. The stone is of superior quality, easily worked, and the supply is unlimited. Because it is located near the water, the stone can be taken right from the ledge and loaded on steamers by derricks. Allen & Hamilton expect to market this stone in Sound cities, Portland, and San Francisco. Additionally, work is proceeding on the water works system, with pumping machinery being installed and mains being laid up B Street.
“There is no industry that has ever been started at this place that promises so much for the city.”
The infrastructure boom of 1891, focused on B Street and the Wishkah River, laid the foundation for the industrial identity of Aberdeen. While the 'stony' ambitions of that era have shifted, the struggle to balance extraction-based industry with the need for a modern, functional city remains a constant theme in Grays Harbor development.
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