The following section of Whatcom County Remembered was written by one of our lovely clients Karol Weston in regards to their farm it’s history with the late Elizabeth Carey (Rich’s Mother) and her family…
Elizabeth Carey’s family started the farm adventure in the year 1916 for 2 years. Her family consisted of 6 brothers and 2 sisters and both parents. Elizabeth shared that she was the age of about 6 to 8 at the time, but had lovely memories of the farm. The family rented the farm from Mr. Robertson who at the time wished to sell and return to Russia. Her father was a Marine Draftsman and was short on funds and could not purchase the whole farm and instead just rented.
The farm has the same exciting house, garage and stone house as still stands today, long gone are the chicken coops and greenhouse which once stood there as well. The farm was surrounded with evergreens from the North, East and South. Everywhere you turned was trees. 32nd St was just a skid road for logging, which consisted of a path with gates that had to be opened and shut as you drove a horse and wagon down the road. The main route out of the farm was Douglas St, weaving around toward 24th St and into Fairhaven on a rough path.
Mr. Carey and his sons delivered produce daily on a route throughout the Southside of Bellingham. What they didn’t sell by the end of the day they would venture to downtown Bellingham to sell or to the Fair Market. The Holiday Meat & Grocery on 20th and Harris would also purchase their produce and sell it in their store.
On the farm they raised strawberries, raspberries, loganberries, parsnip, spinach and much more…. The stone house they used as a cooler for storage of their produce. The water supply to the farm for irrigating was supplied by the creek flowing above 32nd St from the upper Samish Hill area. The water would flow into a reservoir and then was gravity fed by a pipe to the garden area. The watering system ran along the top of the garden and would flow into the long overhead pipe sprinkling system which is still used today…. the pipes maybe still used today, but gone or some of the old problems which once disrupted it….
Elizabeth recalls on day in early October when her father noticed that the irrigation water flowing was brown and muddy. This was unusual so up to the reservoir he went. His first thoughts were that some kids where playing in the water, boy was he shocked when he realized that it was not kids, but instead two black bears frolicking in the reservoir. The walls where then built up higher to keep the bears out and the water clean.
After two years the family could no longer rent the farm. The farm was purchased in 1933 by Joe and Ann Bertero , carrying on the business of growing vegetables. The Stone houses, house and garage still stand today just as they did in Elizabeth’s time. New greenhouses have been replaced by new owners and the farm’s deep roots just keep growing. In Karol Weston took over the farm, then in 2007 the Weston Brothers. The Weston brother’s now share the pleasure of working the farm and growing for a better and healthier tomorrow.
Last Thursday morning I opened my Herald to the large black headline “Fountain Galleria to close.” My audible response was: “How can that be, I was just there yesterday?” The Fountain District has been one of the anchor points of my life since March of 1951, 57 years, when my husband and I moved into our new home on East Maplewood Ave.
Those anchors have been the Fountain Drugstore, George’s Meat Market, Hall’s Bakery, Fountain Motors, Fountain Hardware, and Griffith Furniture. Each having dependable services, hard to find anywhere else.
The Fountain Drugstore in 1951 was a small sort of variety store, with a drug department. For years all of our drug needs were met there. It even carried clothing. One of my favorite pictures of my son was taken in 1956, plodding up our driveway in an adoreable red jumpsuit, a gift from his Godmother, from the Fountain. Everyone asked where it came from, it was a new thing. At this time the store was located next to George’s Meat Market in the building next door to the present parking lot. Whatever you needed, everyone used to say “you’ll find it at the Fountain,” be it some sewing notion, small hardware items, candles, gifts, baking dishes; you name it, it was there. Then they expanded, building the present building. Again, the saying was true.
After expanding, during the Christmas Season there was a sleigh in the basement complete with a real, live, well-dressed Santa Claus. Another special memory: My son had arrived at the age in the 1961 Christmas Season when Santa was very questionable to him. One Saturday we were shopping at George’s Meat Market, and as we came out the door a car was parking across the street. The door opened and Santa got out of the car, beautifully groomed, and headed for the Fountain Drugstore. When he saw my son, he waved and yelled, “Hi Chuck.” Chuck WAS impressed, Santa remained a reality that year. Santa knew him because his kids went to Parkview School too.
The Fountain has grown constantly over the years in their offerings. Want to learn to decorate a cake? The Fountain. The best in baking equipment? The Fountain. Cards for special occasions? The Fountain. Lovely gifts of all kinds, handbags, jewelry, chimes, Christmas decorations, toys, etc., etc., etc. It has been my tradition to give my great nieces and nephew a Christmas ornament each year. Where do they generally come from? The Fountain. Where else would you find a crystal motorcycle the year the nephew added a motorcycle to his life, or a mandolin, guitar, drum, etc., when he was in a band? The Fountain.
That is why last Wednesday I stopped there for a candle, a certain color and texture. Had been to several other places and found that no one carried candles anymore. I also picked up a Valentine. As I stood at the checkout stand, a young friend with small children came up beside me. I commented, “This is the store that has everything you can’t find anyplace else.” She commented: “Their toys are wonderful.”
How else could I respond the next morning when I read, “Fountain Galleria is closing”?
When I saw my young friend in church, Sunday, I commented on this fact. She hadn’t read the paper. Her response, “Oh, they have such wonderful toys!”
Only the name has changed, “Fountain Galleria,” they have always given excellent service and products. For me it is not the end of a chapter, along with the demise of several of the other anchors in the Fountain District, it is the end of an era.
This journey began in earnest about 8 years ago, after having been mentioned at various times prior to the time of actually beginning. A special committee has been working diligently investigating all of the ramifications involved: location, parking, public input, cost, etc., etc. Now they have come to the place where they appear to be ready to say to the community, “Here it is, are you willing to accept the proposal?”
My mind began thinking of the libraries that have met my needs since I was a little girl of about 5 when the library stood high on a rock across from the Mt. Baker Theater. I called the archives at the Museum and learned some interesting facts:
The first library in the area was the Carnegie Library in Fairhaven, now the Fairhaven Library. It was built in 1904, the property a gift from the Larabee family which at that time owned a significant amount of property in Whatcom County. Property was a requirement before the great philanthropist would give the gift. It cost $12,500. The main library was on the upper floor, and the lower floor was a workman’s reading room for men to have some place to go other than saloons. There was a special entrance to this basement room since the men would come from work in their dirty clothes and were not considered appropriately groomed to come in the main entrance. That door is still there.
In 1908 another library was built on the high point at what is now where Champion and Commercial streets cross. Again the Carnegie Institute came through with the needed $20,000 after Pierre Cornwall, another large property owner, gave the gift of property.
It is this library that played such a distinctive role in my growing up years. It was interesting to learn it had originally been built on a high place, flat ground, but that as the city grew the hill kept getting shaved down until it became Champion and Commercial (1910 and 1926). When I began going to the library (1928), 57 steps were taken to the adult library, the children’s was reached after ascending 25 steps to the bottom floor. Mrs. Gilfilen was the children’s librarian, her daughter became my friend during high school.
Many things have run through my mind as I have absorbed all of this information. Obviously when the downtown library was built not much thought was given to the future of the City. I had always assumed there wasn’t much concern for handicap availability, but it would seem no thought was given to the City’s growth, it began on flat ground and ended with 57 steps. It also reminded me that those many years ago, ordinary citizen input didn’t exist. Our early history reveals that Bellingham and surrounding areas were controlled by the “Upper 400,” families of wealth and property, some of whom contributed lavishly to their community, but they ran the show. I remember the names: Larrabee, Bloedel, Donovan, Deming, Cornwall, Welch, Brooks, Loggie. These people were mostly involved in lumber and fishing. During many of these years the local newspaper was controlled by the Sefrit family, you never questioned which side they were on, there was always just one side; when KVOS Radio became a reality the voice of Rogan Jones gave the other side, but only that side. How interesting it used to be.
Fast forward to 2008: Our present library has been in use 57 years, having been paid for by the citizens of the community, built on the edge of the old City dump, a facility that has been used for many activities besides books. The population was probably about 37,000, now we have over 70,000. If this passes 10 years will have elapsed since the planning began, with input from anyone that chose to let their ideas be known. Not all could be chosen. It will cost $56.3M, paid for by all of us. Bellingham is high on the charts nationally for livability, etc. Our No.1 desire in any poll is to have good paying jobs. Companies with good paying jobs always measure the aesthetic qualities of a community prior to moving. I doubt that Bill Gates will pick us as a community which cannot take care of itself.
The “Good Old Days,” how often we hear how much better it was back then. I wonder about that. Now all of us are a part of the mix, good and bad; times have changed, we live in a time when numbers of homes are valued at over $1,000,000. How does $56.3 million for one new library and the refurbishing of a second compare to that? THE CHOICE WILL BE OURS!
“1800s-era landmark will house shops, million-dollar condos”/Trippo Costello and Mary Kink deceased. In my mind these headlines represented an obvious new era, the gradual updating of the Fairhaven district and a remembrance of the community I had known as I grew up and lived in over the past 80 years.
As the article stated today, the Fairhaven community had its heyday in the late 1800s; it was assumed it would be the San Francisco of this northern corner. It had a beautiful hotel, banks, shops and waterfront activity. There was a crash and all of this changed. Pacific American Fisheries (PAF) did grow and flourish at the foot of Harris St. becoming the largest fish cannery in the world, complete with a shipyard where their fishing fleet was docked during the winter for repairs in preparation for the next summer’s season in Alaska while maintaining fish traps in Bellingham Bay and Alaska. My father-in-law, Jim Chevalier I, was the Superintendent of the shipyard spending his summers on Liza Island until the 1930s maintaining the fish traps in the Bay. After his death in 1947 his son Jim Chevalier II filled that niche until PAF closed in 1964. During World War II Bellingham Shipyards set up an operation next to PAF, and after the war Uniflite became part of the mix a little further up Harris.
Other than the busyness at the bottom of Harris, Fairhaven was mostly a sleepy little village with many empty buildings, everything run down. Its renaissance began when Ken Imus arrived on the scene in the early 1970s. My husband grew up on Cowgill just above PAF. Tony’s Coffee Shop was Berthume’s Drugstore where Jack and I drank milkshakes at the ice-cream counter 67 years ago. The Train and Bus Depot are now located in the old PAF office building, with the Alaska ferry docking at the docks. A boardwalk skirts the Bay to Boulevard Park, then a trail on to the center of town. There are delightful little specialty shops, eateries, and the wonderful Village Book Store. Memorial Day weekend The Sea To Ski Race ends in Fairhaven, attracting hundreds of teams from all over the United States. There is a Village Green where special events take place including movies on an old brick wall. It is a fun place to explore.
Perhaps the greatest difference is the makeup of the people who live in the area. During my growing up years it was known as Little Yugoslavia., housing families with names like Costello, Kink, Mardesich, Kuljis, Evich, Glenovich, Zuanich, Mustappa, Muljat, etc. At that time they were the heart of the fishing fleet that fished Alaska waters as well as Bellingham Bay. In these names you will recognize teachers, politicians, real-estate companies, Port enthusiasts, even Santa Claus. They brought to our community a rich heritage.
Today a large segment of the population are condominium dwellers. What will their contribution/legacy be? It is a new era.
Wow! Sixteen years of memories came rushing into my mind when I opened this morning’s Herald. On November 10, 1971 I became a member of the Bellingham Police Department; I was hired to develop an administrative secretary’s position. There had never been such a position before, and I quickly became aware of that reality. The second week I was there I was asked to develop the presentation to the City Council for the 1972 budget. I asked for a copy of the previous year’s and there wasn’t one. The Chief and Assistant Chief just stood behind me and gave me the details. It only took a few hours to complete. In those days there was a real effort made to have money left at the end of the year to exhibit good management.
In November of 1975 Bellingham elected a new, young Mayor, Ken Hertz, who immediately announced that the Bellingham Police Department was going to be one of his top priorities. At that time they were just beginning to develop policies and procedures, just beginning to have any outside training, college training of any kind was not a necessity. I recall Sgt. Kveven telling me that when he came on the Department in 1965 that he had been handed a gun and put on the street. Training began later. When Mayor Hertz announced there would be a nationwide search, disbelief was the prevailing attitude. Whoever heard of such a thing. The final six were chosen and one Bellingham officer was on it, Harold Raymond. Everyone simply assumed he would get the nod, he was a very capable person.
I will never forget a gray, rainy May day when I was called to the front desk because there was a man by the name of Terry Mangan, one of the finalists, and he wanted to arrange riding with an officer. The front desk area was gray whether it was raining or not, with holes in the linoleum here and there. Why would anyone be interested in coming?
Terry Mangan was the choice, Harold Raymond came in second. July 1, 1976 Chief Terry Mangan arrived on the scene, a former priest turned Police Chief from southern California. The Bellingham Police Department made a 180 degree turn; Harold Raymond’s gifts of developing policies and procedures went into high gear, training was immediate, budgets took months to prepare and there was no effort to have some left over, and numbers of new young officers were hired. The position I had been hired to develop skyrocketed. Three cases: a drug bust, the apprehension of the Hillside Strangler, and a local kidnapping sent the Bellingham Police Department off the charts nationally. The policies and procedures, the training, and the new addition of young new officers paid off.
On August 22, 1977 one of the new officers to come on board was Randy Carroll. His presence was noticed immediately, he did have a presence. His tall good looks, his pleasant personality, his conscientious attack to his work was evident. In the administrative area it was often mentioned that Bellingham would not be his home forever, he had a future. In 1977 Bellingham had not yet arrived, it was just on its way. Isn’t it amazing how things can change. Chief Carroll has been here 30 years. The department has continued its reach for excellence. There is no longer a gray front desk area with holes in the linoleum.
I have been retired for 20 years, and I look back on those 16 years as an amazing and challenging part of my life. In 1971 it was the time of hippies and Viet Nam, police officers were frequently called pigs. When I first went to work my friends were concerned that it just didn’t fit me, I had been administrative secretary to the Superintendent of Bellingham Schools, the chairman of the Science Department at Western, and the Bellingham Education Association. As the department developed its new persona, they no longer felt concerned. Since I was 49 when I began, the new recruits were “my boys and gals.” I was old enough to be all of their mothers and some of their grandmothers. I must add that at times they referred to me as the General. It added a completely new dimension to my life.
Mayor Pike is wise to use the complete survey method, Bellingham has benefited from the broader look and done well also from within the Department. May it continue.
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