Behind the Sign

Situated beside the Skagit River in one of the most fertile valleys of the Pacific Northwest, it's no surprise that Mount Vernon developed from a small river settlement into the commercial and governmental center of the Magic Skagit. Its history, going back to "time immemorial," encompasses Indigenous peoples, pioneer settlement, logging and agriculture, steamboats and railroads, destructive fires and floods, highway construction, and the continuing effort to preserve both farmland and a historic downtown identity. Through all of these changes, the Skagit River (the largest river flowing into Puget Sound) has remained Mount Vernon’s most defining feature.

In 1869, John Barker opened a trading post at the south fork of the Skagit River on Fir Island in what would eventually become known as Skagit City — the oldest of the Skagit Valley’s river towns. Over the next decade, Skagit City boasted hotels, stores, saloons, a school, church and other public buildings. Today, however, only a single physical reminder of Skagit City remains. The river giveth, and the river taketh away.

Back in late September, I posted a short video taken along the Padilla Bay trail and asked our Meyer Sign friends and followers to do some history sleuthing. As always, you rose to the occasion...and in the process introduced me to the term "stump farm."

Hugo Helmer was a musician, a teacher, a band leader, and a businessman whose retain venue continues to thrive under its fourth generation of family ownership. Not bad for a Swedish immigrant whose American Dream started in the rough and tumble of logging and led to the world's first accordion marching band. Broadway couldn't have scripted this story, but you can read it here.

Bruce McCormick is a living link to the Skagit Valley’s pioneer past — a first hand witness to a bygone era of immigrant settlement. For Bruce, that past is more than a collection of newspaper clippings or museum artifacts — it is remembered oral history learned at the knee of his grandfather, David McCormick. They’ll be more to say about David McCormick…but first, l’d like you to meet his grandson.

The Tulip Festival is back. The Tulip Festival is back. The Tulip Festival is back. Have I made myself clear on this point?

Erin Von Fempe of the Mount Vernon Police Department thinks of homelessness and the issues that are its causes and consequences in terms of pathology. “I feel like people without homes in our society are shunned,” she says. “I think most people want to play a positive social role in life, and no one on the street wants to be a drug addict, a transient, or homeless.” This is a story about her job.

August is Fair Month, which makes it a cherished four weeks on my calendar. Take the Fair out of August and what you’re left with is parched grass, wilted gardens, dust, grasshoppers, and sticky nights without A/C. Thanks, but no thanks.

When your grandchildren ask about your experience of the Great Pandemic of 2020, what will you remember -- and how will you make sense of it?