Squak Valley: by Bessie Wilson Craine (page 4-5 from original book)

William Pickering Moves to Squak Valley In 1862, President Lincoln appointed William Pickering as governor of Washington Territory. He gave him the choice of sitting in his cabinet or of becoming the fifth territorial governor. Pickering chose the latter. He came West at that time and was in office until 1886.

Shortly after coming West, he and his son William heard of this wonderful valley only a day's journey from Seattle. It sounded like a likely place for homesteading.

When they reached Bush's place, they were told that the Casto place was for sale. Governor Pickering asked for the loan of a shovel. After a few turns of the shovel, into the rich black loam, proved to him that it was worth the twenty-five dollars per acre. He bought the place and a few years later William Pickering, Junior, his son, homesteaded the one hundred sixty acres joining this property on the south. he built his home on a hill overlooking the entire Valley with the Lake in the distance. It was in this house that the first post office was established, and he was appointed postmaster and he made as much as two or three dollars per year.

First Mail Route - Pickering Post Office

This was in 1870, and Clarence B. Bagley established the first mail route through that part of the country. He would pick the mail up from a steamer in Seattle at four o'clock in the afternoon and take a horse immediately for the Clymer's farm, where he spent the night. Early the following morning he was on the trail for the Pickering Post Office, then on to Jerry Borst's Post Office at Snoqualmie Prairie. By nightfall he would be back at the Pickering farm where he would spend the night, starting early the following morning on the return trip to Seattle.

First School

A man by the name of Sloan taught the first school in the same Pickering home with an attendance of half a dozen children.

History of the Wold's Hop Fields

The Wold brothers had the next largest holding, adjoining the Pickering property. In 1868 they planted a half acre in hops, acquiring the necessary 2000 plants from Ezra Meeker at Puyallup. This was added to until in 1893 they had fifty acres in hops. Tom Cherry and the Bush's started small fields.

For a time it looked as if it was to become the main industry. It was the one thing that could be baled and gotten to the Seattle markets by hauling over the New Castle Hill and across Lake Washington; or shipped on a spur of railroad which had been run into New Castle to haul coal from there.

Mr. Wold started a small store on his place. It made a trading center for the settlers and hop pickers. He also built an Indian camp where the Indians could live during the hop picking season. The Indians were coming into their own now. This was good lazy work, and they received one dollar per box, which was a lot of money to them or anyone else at that time.

Crane Family History

Father's sister, Aunt Bea, married George W. Tibbetts in Missouri. In 1874 they came to .the Valley, renting the Casto place from Pickering until 1882 when they bought the Ohm homestead, the first place as one enters the Valley from Renton. He planted hops. He also built quite a sizeable hotel, or as we used to call it "The Halfway House."

It consisted of a large kitchen, a very large dining room, a parlor and a number of bedrooms upstairs. At one end was a large store with a hall above it. This became the gathering place for community affairs and dances. The post office was moved from the Pickering place to Tibbetts' store. A stage line was established over the New Castle Hill to Lake Washington. The Halfway House was one of the main stops on route to Fall City, Snoqualmie and North Bend.

This stage line afforded a better outlet for produce from the Valley, and also for getting supplies into the county. Of course there was always that tough haul over New Castle Hill, but even that was better than crossing Lake Sammamish, poling through Squak Slough and across Lake Washington.

Another of Father's sisters, Aunt Savilla, left Missouri and came to the Valley where she met and married William Pickering, Jr. That is how come the governor's son became my uncle.

He passed away early in life, leaving my Aunt with three sons and more property than she knew what to do with.

In 1882 I was born to Robert and Cora Wilson in Carthage, Missouri. The following year my Grandfather and Grandmother Wilson came to the Valley. They bought the Adams' place that joined the Tibbetts' property on the north toward the Lake. Mr. Adams moved to the head of the Lake joining the Brunk property where they had located several years before.

My Uncle Mike had come out from Missouri several years previously, and settled in the White River Valley. When Aunt Mollie came west, she married and settled near Renton. That about takes care of the Wilson tribe, with the exception of Uncle Tom, who moved into the Valley several years later. I wish they had come out in a covered wagon and saved me all the trouble of getting them into the Northwest one by one.

 

Next Page | Previous Page | Table of Contents