The Marsh That Could Feed a City: Snohomish’s Hidden Goldmine

For much have we christened the large marsh around between this place and the Skykomish river. Although this marsh is only a few miles from this place, yet we have not been able to visit it personally but now furnish the following particulars of the same, promising to visit it as soon as business will allow, and pulp plant nine inches by a permanent location amidst fertile tracts of land.

This marsh contains some 7,000 or 8,000 acres of land, about one-half as high as the average low land, but real rich. It is nearly cut in half-way by a belt of spruce and cotton-wood timber, extending to the 'mouth' of S. Kellogg's mill, to J. B. Lambert's logging camp.

The part below this belt, called the lower marsh, is wholly broken, is especially peculiar in the northern portion, being inundated by streams in the winter and spring. French's creek crosses the lower marsh diagonally, but strikes up timber near Foss' lumber mill about one mile by the creek to the Snohomish river. The creek emptying into the river at about one mile and one-half from town.

J. B. Lambert expects to take his logs out of this slough, and some half dozen tons of hay have been freighted up at a time to this camp, about five miles by the creek, above its mouth. Thirty tons of hay have been freighted out of this creek at one load on Stretch's scow from a point halfway distinct above its mouth.

Just at the lower end of the upper mouth, the creek branches, one creek, coming down from the burn is called Buck's creek, another called Dead Slough puts all towards the West side of the marsh in the direction of C. M. Cedar-green's place, passing it and extending to the head of the marsh. The other, Chrystal creek, extends along the east side of the marsh to L. B. Denche's place thence into the timber and high land.

Where the creek forks, J. T. Cotton's ditch commences. It is six feet wide, and three and one-half feet deep, and extends upwards of one and one-half miles in length, through Colton's place and J. L. Hurley's, to Murray Barrett's line. This has been dug during the past year by Messrs. Cotton, Hurley, and Barrett. A head ditch one-half mile long, five feet deep. Mr. Cotton has also dug on his place, with other smaller ditches, while Mr. Morley has about a mile of ditching completed on his place besides the main ditch, most of it being five feet deep.

The main ditch is navigable to Barrett's line all the year round, for a scow ten feet wide, thirty-five feet long that can carry four tons of vegetables, etc., and as soon as the ditch is extended one half mile further through Barrett's and Benoit's places, such a scow could go in the upper end or head of the marsh.

While Dead Slough is navigable to the head of the marsh for a scow, so that owners can get off their prairies by small scows or steamers six feet wide. Two roads from this pine to the Skykomish river... The main ditch is navigable...

This was with-ll buy U. B. Mace and John Walsh in 1869 man little work than have on the marsh and for years now when full and right before sink on the land ditch, all in the head of marsh up this region a few large lots of $7 an acre and about ten acres in all the ditch lands of the branch Swain (quadruple). Cumin answer but ones ready to fall out down, Samuel M. Hurley's 533.

While the condition of the rest is such that one thousand acres will probably be may for cultivation in the 5 or 6 years.

Parties now interested in clearing up this marsh are Mum's, Colton, Murray, Barrett, Hallis, House, Houch Allen, Lurman, Culbergren, Ferguson, Steele, and Kellogg.

The upper marsh is there an meadow covered with grass, barberry and tea. Eucalyptus no timber any size.

Wild oat Lop grow all there five or six feet high, and as thick as it can stand. The green millet never reach a height for a single stalk.

They mark loam, having the soil, is from four and one-half to ten feet deep, on a clay subsoil.

No fertile anywhere can be found of superior fertility, or that will produce larger crops of grain or vegetables, none has been brought, it alone will not disappoint the leading agricultural exponents of the Sound.

At the present time this can all be ploughed and sown for cultivation at an expense not to exceed five dollars per acre. Much of it not to exceed two dollars per acre. Yet this central marsh is one of the many fertile districts, which tend to be tributary to the development of Snohomish.

By Telegraph. A Terrible Calamity. BURNING OF THE SOUTHERN HOTEL, ST. LOUIS. Over 200 Lives Lost. St. Louis, April 11—The most frightful calamity that has ever befallen St. Louis took place very early this morning, involving the destruction of the Southern Hotel by fire, and the loss of a huge number of lives...