Isaiah Scammon of Maine first settled on the banks of the Chehalis River near present-day South Montesano in 1852 after an unsuccessful gold mining adventure during the 1840's California Gold Rush. After making $500 on a land sale, he returned to Maine and brought back his wife, Lorinda Hopkins Scammon and their son and two daughters. The Scammon home became the focal point for river traffic on the Chehalis River and was known as the Scammon Hotel. For 26 years it was the only public house and landing for boats at Montesano.
After the territorial legislature split Chehalis County from Pacific County in 1860, the Scammon house was selected as the county seat. Isaiah Scammon became the postmaster when his home was selected as the first post office. (Chehalis County became Grays Harbor County in 1915.)
Another settler, William Medcalf, was the first settler to build on land north of the Chehalis River in the area of present-day Montesano proper. Together, Mrs. Medcalf and Mrs. Scammon established the first regular church, the Methodist church, in 1869. Later that same year, Rev. J.S. Douglas became the community's first assigned minister.
One of the Medcalf daughters, Elizabeth,
married Charles Newton Byles, recognized as the father of Montesano. He
was a surveyor who came to the area with a surveying team from the Northern
Pacific Railroad. Between the time he moved to Montesano in 1869, and his death
in 1897, Mr. Byles was elected to the positions of county auditor, county
treasurer, mayor, councilman, and school board member. He also founded the first
bank. As county treasurer, he relocated the county seat from South Montesano
near the Scammon home to present-day Montesano, carrying the bank's gold and
silver money to the new location in a pair of boots. Charles Byles also platted
the city. The Byles home is the present day Whiteside funeral home.
- From The Daily World, July 23,
1983.
In
the 1860's, Lake Sylvia was discovered by Michael F. Luark, who located a claim
on it and named it Sylva Lake, though the name was later corrupted
to Sylvia. In 1868, Mr. Luark built a water-powered saw mill where Sylvia Lake
Falls is today. The cement foundation can still be seen from the Lake
Sylvia Creek Trail. The mill had only one up and down saw and could produce
a few thousand feet of lumber a day. The finished product was hauled by oxen
over a winding road via Spruce Street to Sylvia Street.
- From The Vidette, July 29, 1927.
Lumber from Luark's mill was used to build
the Byles home in 1872. An account ledger of the building costs survived,
showing the total cost of the home was $182.16, which included $79.61 for 5,112
board feet of lumber, $28 for 1,600 feed of cedar siding, $31.25 for 1.25 acres
of land, and credit for 10 pounds of butter ($4), 486 of apples ($6.60), and 1/2
gallon of oil ($0.50).
- From The Vidette, May 1, 1948.
In 1881, Mr. and Mrs. Mullen came to
Montesano from Olympia, a trip requiring 2 and one-half days by express wagon
over roads deep with mud. Mr. Mullen became the first clerk of the court and
helped organize the court. Judge Irwin presided over the first tribunal.
- From The Vidette, September 10, 1920.
In
January, 1883, J.E. Calder and J.W. Walsh founded the Montesano Vidette.
"Vidette" is a military term meaning "outpost". The
Montesano Vidette was the most westerly newspaper in the United States.
The men used a hand-operated press, purchased new in Portland, Oregon for $400.
In 1883, The Vidette had a circulation of 480 copies and a subscription
cost $3 per year. Revenue came from publishing timber claim legal descriptions,
required by law, for which the paper received $10 each. The newspaper grossed
$8-$10,000 the first year.
- From The Vidette, August, 1939
(Follow-up note: In 2002, The Vidette was purchased by Stephens
Media Group, the same company that owns the The Daily World.)
Later that same year, on October 9, 1883,
Montesano officially became a city. On this date the city adopted its
Articles of Incorporation and elected its first slate of public officials.
Families, churches, courts, and taxes had been established, and the city had a
population of 300. By 1890, just seven years later, the population had
more than quintupled to 1,632, a growth rate that has not been surpassed even
today.
- From The Daily World, July 23, 1983
If you want to learn more about the history of Montesano and the Grays Harbor area, peruse fine old photographs of logging operations, early Montesano town buildings, and settlers' activities and homes, you are encouraged to visit the Chehalis Valley Historical Museum, operated by the Chehalis Valley Historical Society. The museum is located in the former Lutheran Church at:
703 Pioneer Avenue West
Montesano
Open: Saturday and Sunday, noon - 4:00 p.m.
Phone: (360) 249-5800.
This page last updated on 4/24/08