Fleeing the Blizzard: Farmers Look to Puget Sound

Washington, and especially the Puget Sound country, is attracting a great deal of attention in the East among a desirable class of immigrants. Within the past six weeks colonies of farmers in North Dakota, Minnesota and Michigan have announced their intention of quitting a climate where blizzards abound and the heat of summer is almost intolerable, and will come West before the summer is over. Already colonies have been formed in Whatcom and Skagit counties, and another large colony of well-to-do Michigan people has located on Whidbey Island. The railroads are offering inducements to all such immigrants, and the chances are that before the winter again sets in there will be a general movement of desirable Eastern farmers to the Sound.

The Holland colony company, on Whidbey Island, numbers among its members men who are worth as high as $50,000, while none among them have less than $5,000. The Rapperswytl colony, in the Nooksack valley, in Whatcom county, will eventually develop the agricultural resources of that rich valley and benefit not only the members of the colony, but the county as well. It is said that even now the little town of Acme, of which the colonists have changed the name to Rapperswytl, and where they have purchased 640 acres of land, is a flourishing place and several houses are being built. One big building is in course of construction, which will be utilized as a hotel as the colonists arrive. Later the farmers will build their own houses on the portions of land allotted to them. Very little talking is being done, but the work of developing the valley is pushing ahead with energy.

The Whatcom Colonization & Manufacturing Company, of which Charles O. Scott, of this city, is secretary and treasurer, has also been doing much for Whatcom county and especially certain portions of the Nooksack valley. The company has four whole sections at its disposal, on which it has already located fifteen desirable farmers of the East. A gentleman from Duluth was out here a few weeks ago, and looked over some of the land held by this company and was so impressed with the character of the soil and the climate that he returned to his Eastern home with a glowing account of what he had seen. He wrote to Mr. Scott a few days ago that during April or May a colony of fourteen farmers with their families would be on their way West to settle on the land. Most of the farmers already have holdings in Minnesota, but they will sell out as soon as possible and most of them have already offered their farms for sale. Two carloads of colonists from that section arrived last week as the advance guard of the immigrants.

Farmers in drought-stricken Kansas and Nebraska are also looking towards the West, with Puget Sound as the objective point, and, it is said, several farmers, representing about thirty families, will arrive here before the summer begins to look over the country and see what inducements can be offered for their immigration.