The Logging Tragedy on the Duwamish
A young worker’s sudden death in the woods serves as a grim reminder of the perils facing early laborers in the Seattle territory.
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 fatal accident occurred to a young man by the name of Mr. Johnson, 22 years of age, near the Duwamish River this afternoon. He was in the employ of Mr. Burns, who is carrying out the logging business near his residence, and was engaged in felling a tree at the time. One of the limbs of the tree came in contact with another tree in the fall, and breaking off, struck him a stunning blow on the head. He recovered partially from the effect of the blow, and in company with several other men went to Mr. Burns' house a short distance off. It was not surmised that the accident would prove fatal, as he manifested no dangerous symptoms but was able to lie up and reach the house, exhibiting only minor pain. Towards morning, however, he began to grow worse, and died at 7 o'clock. We had been a comparatively new stranger in this territory, only having been here a short time. The funeral will take place in this city at 10 o'clock from the Baptist Church.
“It was not surmised that the accident would prove fatal, as he manifested no dangerous symptoms.”
While logging technology has evolved since the 1870s, the physical danger to forestry workers remains a persistent reality of the Washington economy. This account from a bygone Seattle newspaper highlights the fragility of life for transient workers who often arrived here alone to seek their fortunes.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.