Edmonds Beacon - Your Hometown News Source

In studying history, like art and architecture, perspective is paramount. An acquaintance sent me a note, probably paraphrased of what he had read in an old journal from an early resident of...

I have heard various people complain that the history they remember isn’t taught anymore. And to some extent that is true. Many voices had been left out of the historical narrative. When I was...

I saw a high-school classmate posted a photo from Grays Harbor County on Facebook. It turned out to be the Moclips Hotel collapsing into the ocean. Before I read the caption I had thought it might be...

Washington has some lovely state parks that were once a part of the coast defense system. Fort Casey on Whidbey Island was one of the forts. Also Fort Worden at Port Townsend, and Fort Flagler on...

Twenty-five years ago, I began to calculate the Abarim Snohomish County Stock Index . My hope for the index was that it would shine light on Snohomish County companies that survived in the shadow of...

I think we all realize that western Washington isn’t like what it used to be. The forests we have are different from the forests that were once here. To see an old-growth tree, you must go to Olympi...

If you take the ferry from Edmonds to Kingston, and then drive to Port Townsend, you will likely drive through Chimacum on Highway 19. A farm near Chimacum was the source of the story "The Egg and I"...

"You have no chance of winning. You are too old and your reflexes are too slow. These young people will all be faster." Such was the cheerful advice of Alex Trebek at dinner. One of the perks as a...

I grew up in Seattle. Washington state history was in the curriculum one year; another year included U.S. history. One year in elementary school, we were taught Seattle history. But...

Thanks to William Russ, an article from 1907 in the Aberdeen Herald passed through my hands. The article reported the competing railroad plans to build belt lines around the Olympic Peninsula. Union P...

Thanks to William Russ, an article from 1907 in the Aberdeen Herald passed through my hands. The article reported the competing railroad plans to build belt lines around the Olympic Peninsula. Union P...

People give me things because they know that I am interested in history. Some of the things are given to me as gifts for me, such as a set of photos of cabooses, or books about ghost towns or... Full story

The display on my phone came from the 509 area code. I almost didn't answer, and waited several rings before I did. A young-sounding man on the other end identified himself as Tyler Thompson,... Full story

"History is written by the winners." I have seen that quote attributed to George Orwell, Napoleon and, more recently, Dan Brown. The phrase itself represents how difficult it is to reconcile...

Pop quiz. What was the deadliest natural disaster in the Northwest, in terms of loss? I bet I get a lot of Mount St. Helens answers. The infamous eruption of May 18, 1980, was a major event, but...

Have you picked up your 2019 Historic Edmonds calendar? At last report, two boxes of calendars remained. Have you ever given any thought to how that calendar comes into being? It’s the Edmonds...

Like most baseball fans in Seattle, I have been an Edgar Martinez fan for many years. My first remembrance is that I thought that Edgar should be batting behind Ken Griffey Jr. instead of in front of... Full story

The railroad is a source of controversy in Edmonds. Many wish it weren’t here. But if you ask in many other towns in the state, most would say that Edmonds was fortunate to have the railroad. I was...

Holmes Corner in Edmonds at 212th Street SW and 76th Avenue West isn’t the only corner around. There’s Thrasher’s Corner, Turner’s Corner, Murphy’s Corner, Wintermute’s Corner and...

Not all of the history of this region is human history. Before anyone lived here, super-charged geologic forces dug up and dug out our geography – and ice was a major tool. Something over 10,000...

Edmonds is now a city of 40,000. In many states, that would make it a major metropolis. As it is, Edmonds is just a suburb in the Seattle metropolitan area. Edmonds is certainly out-rivaled,... Full story

I intended to write about the man who, more than any other, has framed our perceptions of the Old West. And I was going to write about his connection to Puget Sound. But, as I researched and... Full story

I belong to several historic groups. Several are national, but information about Edmonds sometimes turns up there. One of the groups is GNGoat – “Rocky” the mountain goat was the symbol of the...

Edmonds is identified with the ferries that shuttle back and forth to Kingston, and a ferry is prominent in the city’s logo. No wonder – they’ve been a part of the Edmonds seascape for 95 years....

A lot of people know I’m interested in railroads and railroad history. I have been given two railroad books in the last couple of weeks. “Great Northern Pictorial: Volume 3,” by John Strauss Jr....