Cows & Horses

Farm animals have, and continue to be, an integral part of island life. Looking through my family's collection of photos, I notice they appear in quite a few...sometimes with people, and other times by themselves. Here's a selection of the first kind. Enjoy! 

My grandma is the little girl on the wagon

 

My grandma's brother, Eldon, in 1945

My grandma, with her brother Eldon, and father Gunder

Here's my grandma, Marie Boe, years later...milking cows on her own farm!

Doe Bay Postcard 1945

Here's a wonderful postcard of a cabin at Doe Bay, on Orcas Island. It's addressed to my great grandma, from her friend Francel. The back reads, "Wed. a.m. Dear Adah, We are having such a nice time, just the four of us. Wish you could come and spend the day with us. The men caught a nice silver this morning, so we are going to have fried salmon for Peg and Al's anniversary today. It is so pretty here, and so much activity on the water all day. We are just enjoying ourselves reading and doing a little cross stitch. Wish I had a sweater started tho. See you soon after we get home. Isn't our cabin cute? Love, Francel." The card is postmarked August 1st, 1945...67 years ago, today.

San Juan County Fair Books 1967 & 1971

Since the fair is coming right up, I thought it would be fun to show two of the fair premium books from the past; from the years 1967 and 1971. It's interesting to read about some of the things that were done during the fair back then, such as the 4-H knitting activity. Any 4-H member enrolled in a knitting project could participate, and they had 3 hours (with a 15 minute rest period) in which to make a pot holder or TV slipper. The premium book assures that "a knitting area will be set up with rocking chairs, ample working area and good lighting for each girl." The book suggests that the girls "wear a school dress or slacks that do not collect lint."

It's also fun, for me, to see how many departments and contests my grandma was a superintendent in; dairy foods, bread making, meal preparation, knitting...she was an integral part of 4-H at the fair!

One more important thing to notice is that the fair only lasted 3 days during those years. Now we get a total of 4...gives everyone plenty of time to eat elephant ears and take a look at all those amazing entries!

English Camp 1960s

Here are six photos from the 1960s, of English Camp, on San Juan Island. Notice that the Barracks and the Blockhouse were in much need of repair, which occurred in 1970.

American Camp

Here are two wonderful images of islanders posing next to the monument at American Camp. The top one is undated, and the bottom one is dated March 25 1923.

Lopez School

Here's a great photo of Lopez School, in 1940!

Knights of the Maccabees

For a long time I didn't know the story behind this image; I just knew that my great-grandma's brother, Frank Armstrong, was the man on the far left in the back row. Interestingly, the Lopez Island Historical Society submitted a copy to the Washington Rural Heritage site. Plus, it is also shown in the Images of America~Lopez Island book by Susan Lehne Ferguson and the Lopez Island Historical Society and Museum. I was thrilled when I was looking through my copy of the book, and saw the image. What's really interesting is that my photograph is unlabeled, but the one held by the LIHS is labeled, with one exception...my great-grandma's brother Frank! So, here you have the Knights of the Maccabees group, on Lopez Island, in the very early 1900s. They are (bottom row left to right) Johnny Graham, Tom King, John Cousins, Norman P. Hodgson, and Erv Eaton. The second row (left to right) are Frank Armstrong, Nick Davidson, Robert Cousins, Amoe Carr, Joe Cousins, and Ab Graham. I love looking at the clothes, and each man's expression!