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M.P. Bogle
(Washington)
Spokane, Washington
January, 1937 Personal Narrative
M.P. Bogle,
1425 Old National Bank Building, Spokane,
in an interview with Veva V. Babb and G. H Lathrop.
Mr. Bogle, as a young man, arrived in Spokane from Stillwater, Minnesota,
on August 10, 1889 to behold a city of tents erected over the ashes of the
"Great Fire". Mr. Bogle helped clean the streets of debris, sold
newspapers and then opened a restaurant between Post and Lincoln streets.
According to Mr. Bogle's recollections, construction of the Spokane hotel
was underway; J. W. Graham's store was housed in a tent at Bernard and
Riverside; Kemp & Hebert's were a "Gents Furnishing" house, also in a
tent; John Tilsley was operating a large grocery store at 505 Howard
Street; McGowan Bros., Holly-Mason, Marks & Co., and Jensen-King-Byrd Co.,
were the pioneer hardware merchants.
Lodging tents would have as many as 125 beds per tent; most of these tents
were lined with heavy building paper.
In the manner of most western cities of the day, Spokane was wide-open.
Between Post and Lincoln streets, "Dutch Jake" Goetz and Harry Baer had a
combination saloon, dance hall, theatre and gambling establishment, which
occupied space from the one street through to the other with an entrance
on each. Saddle horses and animal drawn conveyances of every description
were hitched in front of the various establishments and on vacant lots.
Good equipment was scarce and anyone possessing a buggy was of the elite.
Mr. Bogle states that the winter of 1889-90 was one of the most severe
ever experienced here. He had gone to Sprague to visit a sister, Mrs.
Desmond, and while there was persuaded to buy same cattle. The temperature
went to 33 degrees below zero, and as early as December the snow was 2
feet deep and stayed on the ground. Feed was scarce; hay was $40.00 per
ton, and as the season progressed could not be obtained at any price. By
spring Mr. Bogle had lost all but five cows. When the weather had
moderated and the snow gone, Mr. Frank D. Garrett, then at Sprague, after
bringing his flock of sheep through the winter with little loss, turned
them out to graze. An unseasonable blizzard wiped out the flock at an
estimated loss of $75,000.00.
This same spring, 1890, Mr. Bogle and Mr. Desmond rode across country from
Sprague to Grand Coulee. This territory was littered with the carcasses of
thousands of cattle and horses. In the Grand Coulee, in many places, stock
had piled up and died in the winter storms in such numbers that it was
impossible to ride between the carcasses.
Mr. Bogle states that at this time grading for the Washington Central
Railroad was underway with some steel laid on the Spokane end.
Later in 1890 Mr. Bogle did considerable logging with Johnny Stone at
Stone's Switch, northeast of Rathdrum; for the Phoenix Lumber Company of
Spokane; and in the Douglas Fir, northeast of Seattle, for Day. Bros. Oxen
for skidding were still in use by Stone at Rathdrum.
In 1891, Mr. Bogle, and Mr. Desmond entered the dairy business at Bonners
Ferry. Memory of the financial panic of 1894 is still vivid With Mr. Bogle.
He states that, as he remembers it, the Pedicord Hotel was about the only
going concern on Riverside, east of Washington street. Other buildings
were vacant, many of them with broken windows. Mr. Bogle states that
Cowleyes Bank was the only one in the city to survive the panic. Choice
farm lands were offered at prices ranging from 75¢ per acre up to $500.00
per quarter section.
Floods occurred in 1895. At Bonners Ferry the Great Northern railway
tracks were under 8 feet of water, and train service was suspended for
thirty days or more.
About this time, Mr. Bogle was engaged in logging on a large scale in
northern Idaho, delivering logs by way of the Kootenay River and Kootenay
Lake to sawmills at Nelson, Kaslo and Pilot Bay in British Columbia.
In 1894, Mr. Bogle, while prospecting in British Columbia near Fort
Steele, located the first extension of the Sullivan Group mines. Mr. Bogle
held this claim until 1906, selling it then for $350.00. A vast fortune
has since been taken from that property.
Mr. Bogle, Mr. Desmond and Jim Cronin, were camped at Moyie Lake when the
"ST. Eugene" mine was discovered. An Indian discovered the ore and took it
to a priest, Father Kocolo, who immediately realized its value. Mr. Cronin
organized a company to develop the mine. Later, out of the proceeds, a
home and independent income were established for the Indian, while Father
Kocola received a substantial sum to further his missionary work.
Interesting spectacles of the times were the pow-wows held when the
Kalispell Indians of Montana would came to visit the Kootenay Indians of
Idaho near Bonners Ferry.
In 1902, Messrs. Stone, Shotes & Gleed, built a one-band sawmill at
Bonners Ferry. This mill was later purchased by R. H. McCoy and, after
being destroyed by fire, was rebuilt as a double-band mill.
It is interesting to note that, according to Mr. Bogle's records, thunder
and lightning were experienced at Bonners Ferry on January 15, 1902.
In and about this period, he bought logged timber for the Weyerhaueser
interests, and took out cedar and poles for the Lindsay Bros. (1899) at
Priest River, Idaho. There was some white pine around Bonners Ferry; but
yellow pine, red fir, and tamarack predominated.
Mr. Bogle bought stumpage at 50¢ per from the Northern Pacific railway,
cut the timber and delivered the logs at Nelson and Kaslo, B. C., for
$5.50 per.
Mr. Bogle states that at this time the Humbird Lumber Co. was contracting
for logs in the water at $3.60 to $4.00 per. Cedar poles, 30', were $2.00
each.
In 1909, Mr. Bogle made a deal whereby the controlling interest in the
Rose Lake Lumber Company, a one-band sawmill, was sold by Andy Devlin and
Al Page to Messrs. J. J. O'Neill, Joe Irvine and Jake Colaner. Mr. Bogle
was retained as logging and railroad superintendent. In two years, 32
million feet of white pine, red fir and tamarack were taken out. The
Winton Bros, purchased control of this company in 1911 and doubled the
capacity of the mill.
Mr. Bogle then organized the St. Maries
Lumber company, built a mill and a railroad back of Wallace along the
north bank of the St. Joe river, to a point known as Bogle's Spur on the
Milwaukee railway, 60 miles east of St. Maries. Mr. Wm. Kroll and Messrs.
Spae and Loggear of New York, financed this enterpriser Mr. Bogle logged
and operated the railroad until 1914. From 1914 to 1918, Mr. Bogle engaged
in the land business, selling same 50,000 acres of farm lands in
Washington, Montana and Alberta.
During 1919-1920 he was manager for the Pine Lumber company at Marcus.
Then was assistant superintendent for the Diamond Match company under
Chas. Olson, for two years, after which Mr. Bogle returned to the Pine
Lumber Company as manager at Pine Creek, Idaho until 1928.
Since 1928, Mr. Bogle has engaged in the insurance business and operated
the Bonna Dell Dairy at Marshall and Otis Orchards. Mr. Bogle is at
present active in placer mining.
An unusual feature of Mr. Bogle's extensive logging experience was the
absence of labor trouble. Mr. Bogle states that he attributes this to the
fact that he always gave his men every possible consideration. As early as
1909, in his camps at Rose Lake, Mr. Bogle, furnished his men with good
sleeping accomodations, showers, and laundry rooms, reading and recreation
rooms. Mr. Bogle was an early believer in good food and lots of it, for
his men. In this connection Mr. Bogle quotes prices on same of the items
purchased by him before the war. These prices are wholesale.
No.1 Ham and bacon..........12 1/2¢ per lb.
Prime beef, by the side..........08¢ " "
Navy beans..........03¢ " "
Woolen Sox (heavy boot)..........30¢ " pr.
Sugar..........5.00 " cwt.
Double-bit axes were purchased from Marshall-wells Hardware company
at..........12.00 " doz.
Hay and oats commanded about the same prices as at present.
The ordinary wage paid at that time,was 40.00
Teamsters and canthook man were paid 50.00
During the log-drive the usual rate of pay per day was..........3.50
Text from: Library of
Congress, Manuscript Division, WPA Federal Writers' Project Collection
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