King County's Missing Money and the Governor's Bond
A settled suit against the sureties of defaulting treasurer George D. Hill brings payment from prominent Seattle names—but another case still includes Governor Ferry.
One of the cases against the bondsmen of the defaulting treasurer of King County, George D. Hill, has been settled in Seattle. H. L. Yesler, Joseph McNaught, Hill Butler, David Kellogg, Sutcliffe Baxter and the Hyde estate are paying up. There is another case pending against other bondsmen, including Governor Ferry.
“There is another case pending against other bondsmen, including Governor Ferry.”
Then · 1891135 years apartNow · 2026
Public financial scandals still turn on who guaranteed whom. The 1891 case shows how surety bonds could pull a sitting governor and leading citizens into a county treasurer's reckoning.
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