It's time to recall old times
By Grace Reamer, Press reporter

This article appeared in The Issaquah Press, July 16, 1997

Last July, more than 400 people showed up at the biggest reunion in town -- Issaquah’s fifth annual Pioneer Reunion.

"There’s been just some wonderful reunions, people who haven’t seen each other in 50 years," said Nancy Horrocks, president of the Issaquah Historical Society.

She remembers getting a photo last year of five former classmates who got together for the first time in many years. Since then, two of them have died, she noted.

That makes each reunion even more important than the last, Horrocks said.

This year, Issaquah remembers its rich history of coal mining and dairy farming at the sixth annual Pioneer Reunion, scheduled for Sunday, July 27, at the Historic Train Depot.

The day-long reunion invites old-time Issaquah residents to return for a chance to take a look back at Issaquah’s past and share their memories.

Between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. on June 27, the Depot will be open and filled with exhibits put together by local pioneer families. They bring lots of historic photos, family artifacts, antique household times, heirloom jewelry and albums.

This year’s reunion is dedicated to the family of Issaquah pioneers Esther and Bill Bergsma. Bill, who was known as Issaquah’s Santa Claus for years, died Dec. 27, 1996, at 83. Their children will mount a display in memory of their parents, Horrocks said.

New this year, the Alaska boxcar parked at the Depot will be open for the first time to allow room for more exhibits from new families invited to participate, she said. The caboose also will be open all day for visitors, and the hand pump car will be available for rides.

Children’s activities will include free coloring books that illustrate Issaquah’s history, as well as old-fashioned paper crafts. Refreshments also will be served all day, and wandering entertainment is on the agenda, assuming the weather is fair.

But the reunion will continue, rain or shine, Horrocks said. Indoors, the Historical Society’s new award-winning documentary video, "Fire Rock," about Issaquah’s coal-mining history, will show continuously in the conference room at the Issaquah Library next door.

The Historical Society sponsors the reunion and funds it through donations. For more information or to make a donation to the non-profit society, write to P.O. Box 695, Issaquah, WA 98027, or call 392-6678 or 392-5187.