Whatcom County Vendetta: A Land Claim Reopens a Frontier Killing

The investigation before Register O'Toole and Receiver Terry of the land office into whether Dr. R. N. Mayfield resided upon and cultivated a pre-emption claim near Ferndale, Whatcom County, recalled a series of tragedies without equal in that county's history. Dr. Mayfield now lives in Colorado and has made no effort to prevent the case going against him by default. His father, A. C. Mayfield, and family lived at Ferndale, where a rancher named John Guildy also lived. Guildy was not well liked and made himself more obnoxious by writing obscene letters to women. Wesley Mayfield, brother of Dr. R. N. Mayfield, gave him a whipping. Guildy left for the West Indies but held a grudge and returned. He made his way to Mayfield's house and concealed himself in a doorway. When old man Mayfield came downstairs from supper, Guildy shot him through the neck with a Winchester rifle. He then walked into the yard, where Wesley and his sister India, now Mrs. John Slater, were hanging out clothes, and shot the boy through the body, piercing the left lung. India Mayfield picked up an ax and chased her brother's slayer, who escaped to the woods. She first learned of her father's fate when she stumbled over his body while chasing the murderer. A band of men went into the woods after Guildy and on the third day found him in thick woods two and a half miles from the scene. Guildy saw them and shot twice, one bullet going through the rim of W. J. Molloy's hat. Every one of the nine pursuers fired, and Guildy fell back fairly cut to pieces. His body was taken to Ferndale and buried after the inquest. Wesley Mayfield hovered between life and death but recovered with the help of his brother and now lives in Denver, Colorado.