The Fortress of Timber: How Mill Barons Bought the Land to Buy the Town

The large mill owners find it more convenient, if not more profitable, to own the land around their respective mills, so that no conflicting interests may arise or other business grow up in opposition to their own. One reason frequently given for this course is the trouble most of them, in times past, here had in contending with the 'med-louse' nuisance.

This thing is now so thoroughly broken up that they have little to fear from it at present. Thus the Port Discovery, Ludlow, Gamble, Hedison and Blakely mill companies such own extensive tracts of land around their mills. Each of the mills are built on sites and convenient harbors, situated on the west side of the Sound, where there would be but little chance of towns growing up without these mills to support them.

Many have thought it would be a great deal better for this country, in place of having all the lumber business concentrated in the hands of a few large mills, who through their agents in San Francisco conduct everything relating to this business, to have small, portable mills taken where the timber grows, so as to divide the capital and business over the country, and more become participants in its benefits; while shippers from many regions would come to take the lumber on our hands.

Probably this would be more beneficial for the Sound if large firms the way things are managed at present, excepting in cutting and handling some of the largest and longest timber, where the heavy machinery of our large mills would do the best work. Yet, for some time to come this can be but an idle dream, because the capital is so strongly concentrated in the hands of these companies that they will control the business a long time before men find it profitable to carry on the logging business as at present conducted.

Although we are united that in time, when settlements become stronger further back from the Sound, there will be small water mills, as well as portable saws, scattered all over the timber regions of Western Washington, and their products will find a market elsewhere. They may in time become more important than our heavy companies, with their millions of capital. Should such a change as this take place, it could hardly fail also to cause ship yards on an extensive scale to spring up all over the Sound; in fact it would probably not be injurious to the permanent interest of the larger companies to encourage, rather than otherwise, the growth of such local enterprises.

But enough of such speculations as these. This article was intended to say something of Port Blakely, and not of milling interests in general.

This place is situated in the southern end of Bainbridge Island. Port Madison mill being at its northern end, a good wagon road connecting them. The steamer Success, a lively propeller, managed by Capt. Nugent, runs daily between Blakely and Seattle, stopping at Freeport going and returning. The town site and milling property is owned by Benton, Holmes & Co. William Renton is the resident partner of the firm. Perhaps he is as well identified with Sound interests in general as any man on the Sound.

In the vicinity of his mill he has been made to feel fully all the dangers, inconveniences, and expense to a community of the 'squaw and flouse' nuisance, and probably no man on this coast had expended so much money as he to kill out this social pest.

This mill cut about thirty million feet of lumber in 1876, running the whole year night and day. Total river-force employed being about 135 men. That Company own four sailing vessels, employed in the coasting trade, and two steamers, employed towing logs, etc.

The town contains some three hundred or more inhabitants; contains a large and excellent hotel, conducted by Messrs. Taylor & Sackman. It has one of the best fitted public halls in the Territory. This hall has been built recently. Here all social gatherings, lectures, etc., are held for the community, as well as religious services. Rev. David Birge, of Seattle, has organized and built up a very fine congregation of Universalists.