The Unsinkable 'Old Settler' of the Olympia Tide-Flats
An enterprising Olympia pioneer launches a custom-built, shallow-draft vessel to dominate the local oyster trade.
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.
The “Old Settler,” is the name given by A. J. Burr, of Olympia, to a flat-bottomed boat, 45 feet long, recently built at that place for him. It is intended to skim over the tide-flats where other boats cannot go, and to make its money in the oyster trade of the owner. She has a small engine in her with sufficient power to push her along four miles an hour. Her whistle corps has consisted of a tin horn, blown by Mr. Dohmire, one of those old settlers from whom the boat got her name, and who on the craft mentioned, serves as first officer, engineer, fireman, deck hand, cook, pilot and sub-captain.
“Mr. Dohmire... on the craft mentioned, serves as first officer, engineer, fireman, deck hand, cook, pilot and sub-captain.”
A. J. Burr’s DIY vessel highlights the resourcefulness required to navigate the Puget Sound's unique geography—a spirit that resonates with modern Pacific Northwest marine innovation. The 'Old Settler' essentially functioned as a one-man logistics operation, reflecting the entrepreneurial grit that has always defined Washington’s waterfront economy.
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