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"The Boat for Olympia" -
"Pieces of Rope"
(Washington)
Folklore
Circumstances of Interview
STATE- Washington
NAME OF WORKER - Verna L. Stamolis
ADDRESS - P.O. Box #112, University Station, Seattle, Washington
DATE - Dec. 21, 1938, 11:30 a.m.
SUBJECT - Pioneers
1. Name and address of informant - Charles A. Kinnear, 1010
4th and Pike Building, Seattle
2. Date and time of interview - Dec. 21, 11:30 a.m.
3. Place of interview - Offices of G. Kinnear Co., 4th and Pike Bldg.
4. Name and address of person who put me in touch with informant -
Frank R. Atkins, 608 Olympic Place, Seattle, Washington.
5. Description of rooms - suite of offices, well furnished; an
old-fashioned safe in entrance room.
Folklore
Personal History of Informant
STATE - Washington
NAME OF WORKER - Verna L. Stamolis
ADDRESS - P.O. Box #112, University Station, Seattle, Washington
DATE- Dec. 21, 1938
SUBJECT - "The Boat for Olympia" - "Pieces of Rope"
NAME AND ADDRESS OF INFORMANT - Charles A. Kinnear, 1010
4th and Pike Building, Seattle.
1. Ancestry - American
2. Place and date of birth - March 22, 1868, Metamora, Illinois.
3. Family - Father served in Union Amy in Civil War
4. Places lived in - Illinois, Washington, Michigan
5. Education - University of Washington, B.A.; University of Michigan,
Bachelor of Laws.
6. Occupations - Realtor. Now president of G. Kinnear Co. which deals in
real estate and rental properties.
7. Special skills and interests - Photography, horticulture
8. Community activities - Leader in civic and social groups. Belongs to:
Masonic Order, Ancient Order of Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. Accepted
Scottish Rite Orders. Member of Seattle Chamber of Commerce, and
Washington Athletic Club.
9. Description of informant - A man of seventy, looks fifty-five; fairly
tall, comfortably stout; very carefully dressed; courteous, but wastes no
words - goes straight to the point.
THE BOAT FOR OLYMPIA
"When I was a boy, my father and I were down on the beach at the edge of
Seattle one day. He turned over some small boulders a foot or so in size
each way, and showed me the tiny crabs which scuttled out from under. They
were about an inch long. He told me to find an old can and gather up as
many of the crabs as I could find and put them in the can. We would go
fishing the next morning at Yesler's Wharf, and use the little crabs for
bait.
"On the way home he told me we should have to get up early. I asked how we
could wake up in time. He answered that everybody in Seattle got up by the
boat whistle, the boat that left for Olympia each day. Its whistle blew at
six o'clock, half past six, and a quarter to seven.
"The next morning there was a thick fog. We could see only a dozen feet
ahead. As we were going down toward the wharf, we saw ahead of us two tall
men wearing long coats and silk hats. We found out later they were two
preachers.
"The two men came to a wide doorway barely visible in the fog. They
entered and sat down on a bench near the door. There was a huge engine in
the room, and a caretaker who was looking after it.
"My father went on down to the wharf. But I stood outside a window looking
in and listening through the door which was open an inch or two. After
about ten minutes, the two men showed signs of restlessness, and at last,
one of them asked the caretaker, 'What time does this boat leave?'
"'What boat?'
"'Isn't this the boat for Olympia?'
"'Hell, no! This is Yesler's Sawmill. The boat for Olympia left ten
minutes ago.'"
PIECES OF ROPE
"A young man, a Mr. Reynolds, held in high esteem by all the citizens of
Seattle, left his home one morning for his place of business down town. He
had been recently married to a beautiful young woman. She came down to the
gate with him that morning. He kissed her good-bye and went down the
street while she stood watching him.
"Suddenly two men appeared in front of him with revolvers in their hands
and commanded him to give them whatever money he had. Instead, he reached
for his revolver. The two robbers shot at the same instant. Mr. Reynolds
fell to the sidewalk - dead.
"The whole town was soon in an uproar. The old fire bell clanged its
summons. Men came running from everywhere. They were informed of the
terrible affair and told to search in every possible place for the two
murders. They scattered about the streets, the woods, and the waterfront.
Every place was watched. Holes were bored in all small boats so that no
one could escape by water.
"That night, one of the men on guard in the streets, trod on something
that went soft under his feet. He stooped down and found it to be a rubber
boot with a human foot and leg inside it. He pulled the man out from under
the sidewalk where he had been hiding, at the same time yelling for help.
They found the second bandit a few feet away.
"The next morning a brief trial took place at Yesler's store. In the
meantime, the town sheriff had taken a boat across the Sound to Kitsap
County, thus shirking all responsibility for whatever happened.
"The two murders were taken over to Yesler's home where a row of maple
trees had grown up. A strong timber had already been placed across the
branches of two trees standing side by side. The men were strung up. The
streets were filled with people, men, women and children.
"The crowd was in a sort of frenzy. Men of the town stretched out their
hands eagerly to get hold of the ropes. They kept raising and lowering the
culprits, keeping time to a 'Heave, Ho! Heave, Ho!'
The scalps and faces of the men were terribly lacerated when they were
bumped with great force against the overhanging timber. They tried to
shield their faces and heads with their hands and arms. It was an awful
sight.
"The mob was not satisfied with the death of the two murderers. They
rushed to the town jail, and with heavy timbers broke open the doors,
dragged out a prisoner there, took him down to the place of execution
under the maple trees, and hanged him also. This man had shot a policeman
who had run after him at night. The man, not knowing it was an officer,
but believing it to be a robber, shot his pursuer. The policeman died the
next day. Before he died, he told people that he himself was to blame, for
he had not told the man he was an officer, and he was not wearing his
uniform.
"The three men were left hanging on the cross-beam until four o'clock that
day. We boys climbed up on the fence and cut off pieces of rope hanging
from the necks of the dead men.
"The bodies were cut down and carted off late in the afternoon, and buried
in the Potter's Field. Two men were put into one rough casket, and the
other man alone. Long ends of rope were left hanging from the coffins, and
those ropes were held up while the earth was filled in, so that they lay
along the ground outside the graves.
"The boys and girls of the town used to go to the Potter's Field and pull
at these ropes to see what would happen. We boys went to school wearing
pieces of rope tied to our suspenders, and the girls with pieces of rope
tied to their pigtails of braided hair.
"For a long time, Seattle was a peaceful, law-abiding place. People did
not even lock their doors at night."
Text from: Library of
Congress, Manuscript Division, WPA Federal Writers' Project Collection
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