Messages of the Governors of the Territory of Washington to the Legislative Assembly, 1854-1889
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UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON PUBLICATIONS IN THE SOCIAL SCIENCES Volume 12,pp. 5-298 August, 1940 MESSAGES OF THE GOVERNORS OF THE TERRITORY OF WASHINGTON TO THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY, 1854-1889 Edited by CHARLESi\'l.GATES UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON PRESS SEATTLE, WASHINGTON 1940 FOREWORD American history in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries is in large part the story of the successive occupation of new areas by people of European antecedents, the planting therein of the Western type of civilization, and the interaction of the various strains of that civilization upon each other and with the environment. The story differs from area to area because of differences not only in the cultural heritage of the settlers and in the physical environment but also in the scientific and technological knowledge available dur- ing the period of occupation. The history of the settlement and de- velopment of each of these areas is an essential component of the history of the American Nation and a contribution toward an under- standing of that Nation as it is today. The publication of the documents contained in this volume serves at least two purposes: it facilitates their use by scholars, who will weave the data contained in them into their fabrics of exposition and interpretation, and it makes available to the general reader a fas- cinating panorama of the early stages in the development of an Amer- ican community. For those with special interest in the State of Washington, whether historians or laymen, the value of this work is obvious; but no one concerned with the social, economic, or diplomatic history of the United States in the second half of the nineteenth century can afford to ignore it. Topics of more than local interest for which pertinent material can be found in these documents include: the promotion of immigration; transportation, including roads and trails as well as the Pacific railroads; Indian affairs; relations with England and Russia; postal service; crime and punishment; the treat- ment of the insane; repercussions of economic depressions; reaction to the Civil War; education, including the beginnings of higher edu- cation; public finance; commerce, external and internal; industrial development, including agriculture, manufacturing, mining, and fish- ing; the public land system; international expositions; and many others. It is to be hoped that this volume will inaugurate a comprehen- sive series of documentary material for the history of vVashington that will ultimately be comparable to the published collections of many of the older states. SOLON J. BUCK National Historical Publications Commission Washington, D. C. (v) CONTENTS Page Foreword v Introduction ..xi Isaac I. Stevens, biographical sketch 1 Message, February 28, 1854. 3 Message, December 5, 1854 9 Charles H. Mason, acting governor, biographical sketch. 15 Message, December 7, 1855, by acting governor Mason 16 Message, January 21, 1856 23 Message, December 3, 1856 28 Fayette McMullin, biographical sketch. 49 Message, December 12, 1857 50 Message, December 8, 1858, by acting governor Mason 55 Richard D. Gholson, biographical sketch 65 Message, December 7, 1859 66 Henry M. McGill, acting governor, biographical sketch 75 Message, December 6, 1860, by acting governor McGill 76 L. Jay S. Turney, acting governor, biographical sketch 91 Message, December 19, 1861, by acting governor Turney 92 William Pickering, biographical sketch 101 Message, December 17, 1862 102 Message, December 23, 1863 110 Message, December 12, 1864 115 Message, January 1, 1866 118 Message, December 11, 1866 124 Marshall Moore, biographical sketch 131 Message, December 9, 1867 132 Alvan Flanders, biographical sketch. 145 Message, October 7, 1869 146 Edward S. Salornon, biographical sketch. 157 Message, October 2, 1871 158 Elisha P. Ferry, biographical sketch 173 Message, October 9, 1873 174 Message, October 5, 1875 182 Message, October 3, 1877 193 Message, October 6, 1879 205 William Newell, biographical sketch 217 Message, October 5, 1881 218 Message, October 3, 1883 230 Watson Squire, biographical sketch 247 Message, December 9, 1885 248 Eugene Semple, biographical sketch 265 Message, October 9, 1887 266 Miles C. Moore, biographical sketch 277 Farewell Address, November 18, 1889 278 Governor Ferry's Inaugural Address, November 18, 1889 280 Index 285 ILLUSTRATIONS Facing Page Frontispiece Isaac I. Stevens . 1 Charles H. Mason 15 Fayette McMullin 49 William Pickering 101 Marshall Moore 131 Alvan Flanders 145 Edward S. Salomon 157 Elisha P. Ferry 173 William Newell 217 Watson Squire 247 Eugene Semple 265 Miles C. Moore 277 MAPS Between Pages Map of the Indian nations and tribes of the Territory of Washington 22- 23 Map of Oregon, Washington and British Columbia 110-111 Map of Washington Territory. 230-231 MESSAGES OF THE GOVERNORS OF THE TERRITORY OF WASHINGTON TO THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY, 1854-1889 Edited by C1IA1LES M. GATES INTRODUCTION TO THE GOVERNORS' MESSAGES Little more than a half century ago, on November 18, 1889, the members of the legislature of the State of Washington gathered at the open green in front of the capitol building in Olympia for the inauguration of Elisha P. Ferry as first governor of the state. The occasion was an historic one, and a large crowd of the citizenry of the city and visitors was there to witness the ceremony. On February 22, 1889, at long last, the Congress of the United States had passed the enabling act which authorized the framing of a constitution and the establishment of a state government. On November 11, after hay-. ing been notified of the ratification of the new state constitution and the election of state officials, President Harrison had proclaimed the ad- mission of Washington to statehood. Now, as the wheels of govern- ment were formally set in motion, it might rightly be said that the dream of the pioneers was being realized. Governor Ferry expressed the spirit of the day in his inaugural message. It was on the one hand a day of beginnings. So plain, he said, was the significance of it that in future years his listeners, young and old alike, would tell proudly of having been present. At the same time it was a day of achievement. To the many thousands of new- comers who had made their homes in Washington Territory during the preceding half decade this fact might not be clear. But to those whose hair has grown white beneath this sky; to those who in early days crossed a continent by long and weary marches; to those who planted the standard of civilization and Christianity within its borders; to those, the ever-to- be-remembered pioneers, it is an event of transcendent interest; to those it is the consummation of hopes long deferred yet ever renewed. It is the accomplish- ment of a result for which they had waited with anxious solicitude, and which they now welcome with joy and satisfaction.' In a peculiar sense the pioneers were identified with the terri- torial period of Washington history and represented the frontier culture that was associated with it. That culture was now outgrown. A new stage of social and economic development had been reached, and, as society moved forward, the pioneers gradually withdrew from positions of authority. The promised land was in sight, but younger men must guide the people to it.Statehood presented new problems, demanded new leaders. 1See below, p. 280. It is perhaps too much to say that the winning of statehood marked the transformation of a crude frontier society into a mature economy comparable to that of the East or the Middle West. Manufacturing was but slightly industrialized. At no time had direct imports to Puget Sound amounted to much more than $600,000 annually. In the year 1889 exports to the value of $3,803,533 consisted chiefly of agricul- tural goods, lumber, and a little coal.Moreover, society was but slightly urbanized; only three counties (King, Pierce, and Spokane) could claim in 1889 a population greater than 25,000 persons. The population of the entire territory was but little more than that of the city of Seattle twenty years later.2 Nevertheless, while society had not been transformed, important progress had been made. A settled agrarian culture had been extended over a large part of the arable portion of the territory. Although cities were small and few in number, the social institutions found there followed in general the urban pattern that was developing over the country as a whole. Economically and politically, the day of the isolated frontier was gone; by 1889 the Pacific Northwest was an integral part of the nation. Those who calculated maturity in terms of population announced that Washington had advanced rapidly during the territorial years. Gone and almost forgotten were the days when a few thousand inhab- itants lived in scattered settlements on Whidbey Island, on the Olympic Peninsula and the southern and eastern shores of Puget Sound, and in the Cowlitz Valley. Men who had lived through the slow growth of the fifties and sixties found each succeeding decade more encouraging than the preceding one. In the decade 1870-1880 the population in- creased from 23,995 to 66,979.It nearly doubled during the next five years. By 1889 the figure reached 239,544, of which 95,875 represented the immigration during the years 1887-1889. Despite the fact that the density of population for the territory as a whole was less than four persons per square mile, Washington 2 Report of the Governor of Washington Territory to the Secretary of the Interior, 1889 (Washington, D. C., Government Printing Office, 1889), 12-13; 21-22. These statistics only suggest the provincial status of the territory, since they represent commerce with foreign countries and do not include goods sent to or received from other parts of the United States.