A Frontier Homestead Seeking a New Steward
In 1878, a settler on the Snoqualmie River attempts to pass on his hard-won homestead, citing health struggles as the frontier era shifts toward permanent settlement.
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 undersigned offers his place in the Snoqualmie Valley for sale. It contains 120 acres of bottom land and 40 acres of timbered upland, sloping gently to the river. It is 12 miles from Snoqualmie City, at the river crossing, 9 miles from Lake Washington, and 20 from Seattle. Fifty acres have been slashed, 20 acres are in grass, and 4 acres are grubbed for an orchard. There are 20 tons of hay on hand. The place has three-quarters of a mile of frontage on the river, is safe from overflow, and has a clear stream of water running through, which can be brought into the house, barn, or milk house. It is valuable for lumbering, having a good deal of timber on it, and is the first key point for getting at the timber on the adjacent six or eight sections, with bay for booming. The location is central and affords a good steamboat landing. A hotel and store would do well there at the present time, and it is convenient to six logging camps now in operation. House and tools are on the place. Cause of selling: weak lungs. For further particulars, inquire of George White, Snoqualmie River, W. T.
“The place has three-quarters of a mile frontage on the river, is safe from overflow, and has a clear stream of water running through.”
George White's advertisement captures the precarious transition from raw wilderness to commercial hub that defined 19th-century Washington. His mention of 'weak lungs' as a reason to sell is a poignant reminder of the physical toll extracted by the grueling labor required to carve a livelihood out of the Pacific Northwest’s rugged landscape, a struggle for survival that remains a foundational myth of the region.
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