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Keyword(s): Greg Lange

13 Features

Boren, Carson Dobbins (1824-1912), Mary Ann Kays Boren (ca. 1830-1905), and Family

Carson Dobbins Boren and Mary Ann Kays Boren were among the first Anglo-Americans to settle in King County. With their infant, Livonia Gertrude Boren, known as Gertrude (1850-1912), they left Illinois...

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Denny, Arthur A. (1822-1899), Mary Ann Boren Denny (1822-1912), and Family

Arthur Denny and Mary Ann Boren Denny were members of the Denny Party, arriving at Alki Point (West Seattle) on the schooner Exact on November 13, 1851. They were among Seattle's first ...

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Denny, David (1832-1903), Louisa Boren Denny (1827-1916), and Family

In 1851, soon after crossing the Oregon Trail from Illinois with the Denny Party, David Denny and Louisa Boren settled at Alki Point (West Seattle). They were among the first EuroAmerican settlers in ...

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Klondike Gold Rush

On July 17, 1897, the steamship Portland arrived in Seattle from Alaska with 68 miners and a cargo of "more than a ton of solid gold" from the banks of the Klondike River in Canada's Yukon Territory. ...

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Morgan, Murray (1916-2000)

To longtime Puget Sound residents, Tacoma-born Murray Morgan was many things, including journalist, political commentator, theater and arts reviewer, political activist, freelance writer, and college ...

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Northern Pacific Railroad's Orphan Road

From 1884 until mid-1887, the Northern Pacific ran a train from Tacoma to Seattle. When the train began to operate on June 17, 1884, Seattleites were ecstatic. Henry Villard (1835-1900) had acquired t...

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Sand Point: The Early Years, 1850-1920

Sand Point is a peninsula that juts into Lake Washington within the present (2000) city limits of north Seattle. Sand Point's documented history begins in 1850 when Isaac Ebey (1818-1857) glided in a ...

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Seafair -- Beginnings

Seafair, the gala annual Seattle-King County water festival, began in August 1950 and continues to this day. The festival erupts all over King County and has included hydroplane speed competitions, li...

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Seattle and King County's First Non-Native Settlers

In the vicinity of the Duwamish River and Elliott Bay where in 1851 the first U.S. settlers began building log cabins, the Duwamish tribe occupied at least 17 villages. The first non-Natives to settle...

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Seattle's Early Donation Land Claims

This essay summarizes the original Donation Land Claims submitted in the area of future Seattle.

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Smallpox Epidemic of 1862 among Northwest Coast and Puget Sound Indians

This essay describes the 1862 smallpox epidemic among Northwest Coast tribes. It was carried from San Francisco on the steamship Brother Jonathan and arrived at Victoria, British Columbia, on Mar...

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Turning Point 16: When Worlds Collide: From Contact to Conquest on Puget Sound

The 16th essay in HistoryLink's Turning Point series for The Seattle Times focuses on the cultural interactions between Puget Sound's Native peoples and the first European explorers and early settlers...

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William Bell: Pioneer Recollections, 1878

William Bell (1817-1887) was a member of the Denny party that went ashore at Alki Point on November 13, 1851. The following spring he settled with his wife Sarah Ann Bell (1815-1856) and their four ch...

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454 Timeline Entries

Earthquake of enormous magnitude hits the Pacific Northwest coast on January 26, 1700.

On January 26, 1700, at about 9:00 p.m. Pacific Standard Time a gigantic earthquake occurs 60 to 70 miles off the Pacific Northwest coast. The quake violently shakes the ground for three to five minut...

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Smallpox epidemic ravages Native Americans on the northwest coast of North America in the 1770s.

During the 1770s, smallpox (variola major) eradicates at least 30 percent of the native population on the Northwest coast of North America, including numerous members of Puget Sound tribes. This appar...

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Earthquake shakes Puget Sound on June 29, 1833.

On June 29, 1833, an earthquake shakes the Puget Sound region. William Tolmie (1812-1886), the young Hudson's Bay Company doctor recently left temporarily in charge of Fort Ni...

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Steamship Beaver departs Fort Vancouver on her first Northwest journey on June 18, 1836.

On June 18, 1836, the Hudson's Bay Company ship Beaver, the first steamship to travel on Puget Sound, departs Fort Vancouver for her first journey in the Pacific Northwest. The vessel carries two 35-h...

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Native Americans force settlers to leave Whidbey Island in August 1848.

In August 1848, local Puget Sound Indians force two white settlers, Thomas W. Glasgow and Antonio B. Rabbeson, to abandon farms on Whidbey Island, located in northern Puget Sound. Among the Native peo...

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Colonel Isaac Ebey surveys Puget Sound in the spring or summer of 1850.

In the spring or summer of 1850, Colonel Isaac Ebey (1818-1857) conducts a reconnaissance of Puget Sound, including Elliott Bay, the Duwamish River, and Lake Washington. His glowing description inspir...

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John Holgate explores the Duwamish River by canoe but does not stake King County land claim during the summer of 1850.

During the summer of 1850, John Cornelius Holgate (1828-1868) canoes up Puget Sound from the village of Olympia. He explores the Duwamish River, and considers settling on the site (the future Georgeto...

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Luther Collins Party arrives at mouth of Duwamish River in future King County on September 14, 1851.

On September 14, 1851, Luther M. Collins (1813-1860), Henry Van Asselt (1817-1902), Jacob Maple (or Mapel) (1798-1884), and his son Samuel Maple (or Mapel) (1827-1880) arrive at the mouth of the Duwam...

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Collins, Van Asselt, and Maple (or Mapel) select first Donation Land Claims in King County on September 16, 1851.

On September 16, 1851, Luther M. Collins (1813-1860), Henry Van Asselt (1817-1902), and Jacob Maple (or Mapel) (1798-1884) and his son Samuel Maple (1827-1880) select the first Donation Land claims wi...

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Collins Party encounters Denny Party scouts at Duwamish Head near future site of Seattle on September 27, 1851.

On September 27, 1851, the Collins Party encounters Denny Party scouts at Duwamish Head. These two groups will be the first non-Indian settlers of the Seattle area. David Denny (1832-1903), John Low (...

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Denny Party lands at Alki Point near future Seattle on November 13, 1851.

On November 13, 1851, the Denny Party lands at Alki Point, not far from the site of the future Seattle.

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Charles Terry opens first store in future King County no later than November 28, 1851.

No later than November 28, 1851, Charles C. Terry (1828-1867) opens a store on Alki Point. This is the first store in the future King County. Terry arrived at Alki Point with the Denny Party on the sc...

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Settlers begin loading logs on the ship Leonesa in King County's first export on December 9, 1851.

On December 9, 1851, all seven adult male settlers at New York (renamed Alki) begin cutting down trees and loading lumber on the ship Leonesa, bound for San Francisco. This represents the future King ...

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First contingent of Denny Party relocates to site of Seattle on April 3, 1852.

On April 3, 1852, the first contingent of the Denny Party relocates from Alki Point to the eastern shore of Elliott Bay, the site of future downtown Seattle. Those who make the move on April 3 are: Wi...

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