The Forgotten Dreams of Steilacoom City
In 1880, a visionary booster pitched a grand transcontinental railroad terminus that he claimed would transform a quiet Puget Sound town into the 'metropolis' of the Pacific.
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.
In a letter to the Portland Standard, John Paltak, president of the Occidental and Oriental Railroad and Steamship Company, defended his enterprise against critics. Paltak outlined an ambitious vision for a standard gauge trunk railroad stretching from Wyoming to the city of Steilacoom on Puget Sound. He argued that Steilacoom City was destined to become the 'prospective metropolis' of the coast, situated above natural strongholds capable of fortifying against hostile armadas. He touted its climate, noting the lack of 'dreaded diphtheria' that plagued neighboring settlements, and its prime location for Oriental commerce, claiming the route to Shanghai would save 100 hours of steaming time compared to any other path. Paltak concluded by stating that the project monopolized his time and distanced local county officers from any involvement in his corporate ambitions.
“Steilacoom City stands peerless. In the foreground silvery arms of the sea... the distant Olympic range clad in eternal sleet... appear like huge pyramids of frosted silver.”
Paltak’s boosterism reflects the fierce 19th-century competition between Washington towns vying to be the terminus for transcontinental rails. His dream of Steilacoom as an international 'emporium' contrasts sharply with the eventual rise of Seattle and Tacoma, echoing the ongoing struggle of smaller Washington municipalities trying to define their economic futures against regional giants.
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