The Birth of Ellensburg
A railroad company, a local politician, and a handful of property owners cut a deal to secure the future of a new town in the Kittitas Valley.
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 Ellensburg townsite company, through Mr. G.W. Lambert, agent for the N.P.R.R., and Mr. Eugene and his son, engineers, arrived here Wednesday evening by private conveyance from Yakima. The subject of their coming was mainly to decide upon the location of the coming railroad town of Kittitas Valley. On Wednesday morning the party, reinforced by a number of our citizens and property owners, started out to examine the surroundings of Ellensburg. On their return they expressed the opinion that the location was all that could be desired. A consultation that followed with leading property owners, and amicable arrangements were agreed upon, by which, in consideration of a 130-acre tract and one-half of his unsold town property from Hon. J.A. Shoudy, fifty acres from T.D. Schnebly, twenty acres from Mrs. McDonald, and an agreement to be arrived at from Smith Bros., Ellensburg will be the line of the period, and the depot, sidetracks, etc., are to be located within one-half mile of Third and Pearl streets, as an extension of the former street.
“The party... started out to examine the surroundings of Ellensburg. On their return they expressed the opinion that the location was all that could be desired.”
This 1885 report on the planning of Ellensburg illustrates how private development and railroad infrastructure dictated the growth of Washington's cities. Much like today's public-private partnerships in Seattle, urban geography was often determined not by organic growth, but by back-room deals between influential property owners and corporate interests.
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