The First Bakers of Grays Harbor
The Reinboth brothers recall their arrival in Aberdeen when the town was in its 'primitive garb' and how they became the harbor's first commercial bakers.
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.
While Aberdeen was still in her primitive garb, there came to Grays Harbor two enterprising young gentlemen seeking a location for a bakery. After a brief sojourn in the then village of Aberdeen, they wisely decided to cast anchor, as they were far-sighted enough to foretell that this would become the metropolis and central distributing point for all the Grays Harbor country. These gentlemen were Messrs. Reinboth Bros., proprietors of the Aberdeen bakery on Heron street, first door west of the postoffice. They enjoy the distinction of being the first to establish a bakery on Grays Harbor, and in the early days of their career they supplied bread and pastry to many vessels coming to this port, besides logging camps and neighboring towns.
“While Aberdeen was still in her primitive garb, there came to Grays Harbor two enterprising young gentlemen seeking a location for a bakery.”
The transition from 'primitive garb' to a bustling port town is the classic story of Pacific Northwest frontier development. Businesses like the Reinboth bakery were the essential infrastructure that allowed camps to move from temporary work sites to permanent communities.
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