HISTORY OF LOPEZ ISLAND
Compiled by Nancy McCoy, Curator, Lopez Island Historical Museum. 1990's
Copy from Lopez Island Library
Samish and Lummi Indians historically occupied the San Juan Islands. Lummi occupied the north and west
shores of Lopez Island; Samish the south and east.
1780- Devastating raids by Haidas and epidemics of measles, small pox and ague diminish western Washington
1855 Indian population by 90%.
1790 Spaniard Manuel Quimper led expedition to Strait of Juan de Fuca and San Juan island, with his pilot
Gonzalo Lopez de Haro.
1792 Capt. George Vancouver traveled through San Juan Islands looking for the northwest passage.
1841 U.S. Captain Charles Wilkes named Lopez Island: Chauncey’s Island.
1843 Hudson Bay Co. established headquarters at Victoria.
1845 Hudson Bay Co. posted a notice of possession on San Juan Island.
1846 British Captain Henry Kellett restored island to Spanish name of Lopez after Gonzalo Lopez de Haro.
1848- As the story has been handed down, Hiram E. Hutchinson established a trading post on Fisherman
1850'S Bay early mouth
1850 Hudson Bay Co. established salting salmon station on S.E. San Juan Island.
1852 Hudson Bay employee, Wm. Pattle granted license to cut timber & trade with Indians on S.W. Lopez.
He built 2 log huts and began cutting spars for San Francisco export. He left same year to mine
Bellingham coal.
1853 March. Washington Territory created, attaching San Juan Islands to Whatcom County.
American Richard W. Cussans (or Cousins), after taking over Pattle’s camp, was asked to leave by
Victoria Gov. Douglas. Cussans retorted he was British & so was issued a license until end of year.
Cussan, upon expiration, departed and Gov. Douglas unsuccessfully attempted to find British subjects
to settle on Lopez.
December. Charles Griffin with 1300 sheep and Hawaiian shepherds disembarked from steam side—wheeler
Beaver to south San Juan Island and established Bellevue Farm for Hudson Bay Co.
1855 Pt. Elliot Treaty signed by Wa. Territory Gov. Isaac Stevens and about 630 Puget Sound Indians. In return
for giving up land and rroving onto reservations, Indians are guaranteed right to fish in common with
citizens of WA.
Arthur “Billy” Barlow, with 3 other sailors, jump ship fran British warship H.M.S. Satellite. Later
settled on S. Lopez with Indian wife Lucy.
1857 Fraser River gold rush. Many disappointed miners later settled in San Juan Islands.
1857 Joseph Merrill, Lopez deer hunter, sold deer at Esquimalt and San Juan Island garrisons via his 40' canoe.
He owned 600-700 sheep with H. Hutchinson.
1859 American Lyman Cutler shot Hudson Bay pig, resulting in 12-year joint U.S./British military occupation of
San Juan Island.
1862 Danish James Nelson settled just south of Port Stanley; Charles A. Swift at north Lopez; and Charles Brown
near Bakerview Road area. Brown was first mail carrier in S.J. Islands, transporting mail from Pt.
Townsend to American Camp soldiers. Married Indian Mary Jane in 1870 at American Camp.
1865 Civil War ends.
1866 Telegraph line built across Lopez, connecting it with Victoria and the mainland.
1869 James Davis family, Charles Anderson, 3 Flint brothers and John Shearer settled on Lopez. Shearer was
first coroner and probate judge in San Juan County.
1870 Lopez census: 80 people, including 10 families.
1871 0. Boyce visited Lopez. “Nothing there, no fields or cleared land. Mr. Hutchinson had small store on
beach,”
1872 Kaiser Wilhelm I of Germany ruled in favor of U.S., establishing boundary line through Haro Strait.
First Lopez school taught by English Mrs. Thompson. Pupils were sisters Mary, Maggie & Maria Brown.
1873 Sampson Chadwick contracted with John Keddy, San Juan Island, to run 200 sheep on Lopez for two years.
Hiram Hutchinson established first Lopez post office at Fisherman Bay.
John Cousins family settled on Lopez.
1874 Irene Hutchinson Weeks and husband arriced to help brother Hiram operate store. George S. Richardson &
John Bartlett families also arrived.
1875 3 Carr brothers, Andrew Manns, Fred Hanson, Wesley Warners (S .J. Co. commissioner), & Hezekiah Davis
family (father of James Davis) settled on Lopez.
1876 John Coffelts & Wm. Humphreys settled on tPpez.
John Bartlett brought 1st threshing machine to Lopez, a sweepstake 8HP. Crew had to hew roads to move it
across island.
1877 The Grahams, Hodgsons & Phillips settled at Richardson. Sam Hinton, a sailor, settled on Lopez.
1878 Edwin H. HUrrrnel family located at Lopez lake.
1880 Lopez census: 180 people. John Sperry, painter Carr Cary, James Cousin Sr., Edmund Cochran, George
Washington Richey, Benjamin Franklin Wood, Theodore Spencer, Franklin Troxell, Buchanan, Biggs, Kent,
Lemaister, Blowers, Carrothers, Jasper, Jensen, Jones, Hastin, and 3 brothers who changed their last
name to get visas:Norman, Jorgenson & Schroeder, were some of the families who settled on Lopez in
the 1880's.
Joseph Merrill established post office at McKay for 1 year. 2 school districts have been formed.
1882 Lopez Islanders used to say their climate was so good they had to kill a man to start a cemetery.
1st murder on Lopez. John Kay shot neighbor John Anderson on Sperry peninsula.
1887 Mrs. Mary Mann 1st postmistress at Richardson.
Center church built.
1890’s Fagerholm, Dr. Muscott, Ender, Bolton, Bruns, Davies, Butler, Cantine, Bell, Blake, Gallanger, Kilpatrick,
Towell, Orcutt, Kjargaard, Higgins & Lichtenberg families settled on Lopez.
1890 Robert E. Kindleyside built store at Richardson. Richardson Hotel built by Hamilton Carr.
1891 San Juan Islander newspaper founded on San Juan Island.
1892 Pt. Stanley Townsite & Development Co. platted 25’ lots over lagoon and beach on Swift’s Bay.
Pt. Stanley post office established.
1894 First cannery opened in Friday Harbor. Two fishtraps near Lopez, at Fisherman Bay & Long Island.
Edwards post office established by Mrs. Elisa Sperry at Mud Bay. Name changed in 1899 to Otis to end
confusion with Edmonds, WA.
1896 J. Groll arrived, established sawmill & planing mill on Fisherman Bay.
1897 Oceanic Canning Co. in operation near Richrdson.
Richardson Canmunity Hall built for social events, schoolhouse and church services.
1900’s Woodman Hall built at Fisherman Bay. Later known as American Legion Hall.
Burt, McCauley, Mead, Oliver families settled on Lopez.
1901 Over 1 million fish caught near Richardson.
1904 Lopez Congregational Church built.
1906 Friday Harbor Journal founded. Lopez Creamery started.
1907 150,000 boxes of fruit were shipped from San Juan County.
1908 Farmer’s phone system organized. Subscribers installed poles, wire and bought own phones. No long distance
calls.
1909 Lopez Improvement Co. sets up Islandale tract & sells lots for $50. Same co. established Islandale II at
McKay Harbor in 1911. Islandale was described as “the finest part of the best island of the loveliest
group of islands in the world.”
1910’s Greenwood, Evans, Lowery, Lee, Weir families settled on Lopez.
1910 Islandale post office established.
1913 Salmon Bank Cannery built by Hodgson & Graham. Hidden Inlet Cannery built by Fred Comieu at Bay at
Richardson. Chinese laborers brought in from Seattle. Richardson also boasted a bakery, barbershop,
creamery & poolroom.
Kelp plant built at Pt. Stanley to extract chemicals for WWI.
1916 Al Douglas of S . J. Island established Long Distance Telephone Co. Some islanders had 2 phones, one for
each company.
Hodgson & Graham’s parthership, store, cannery, etc., sold to Ira Lundy.
Richardson dock fire destroyed wharf, warehouse & purse seiner “Saga”.
1922 Salmon Bank Cannery burned. Hidden Inlet Cannery closed shortly after.
1926 Car ferry service began at Upright Head. Charlie Coffelt, manager.
1928 New store built by Lundys at Richardson.
1934 Fish traps outlawed.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Borg, Esther. “History of Lopez Island.” Lopez Island Historical Society, 1979.
Cardle, Doug. Who the hell was San Juan? Lopez Island: Coastal Press, 1982.
Everett Morning Tribune. Lopez Island Historical Society reprint. Everett, Wa.: July 18, 1908.
Hansen, Kenneth C. The Maiden of Deception Pass. Anacortes, WA : Samish Experience Production, 1983.
McDonald, Lucile. “Explorers of 1791 Gave Many Spanish Names to San Juans.” Seattle Times, Nov. 6, 13, 1955.
Morris, Gary J. History of Lopez Island, Washington. Unpublished manuscript, 1979.
Murray, Keith A. The Pig War. Tacoma: Wa. State Historical Society, 1968.
“No Real Evidence Hermosa Existed.” Bellingham Herald. May 13, 1975.
Ramsey, Guy Reed. Postmarked Washington. Island Co. San Juan Co. Published by Lopez Is. Historical Society.
Friday Harbor, WA: Long House Printcrafters, 1976.
Records of San Juan County. Compiled by David W. Hastings. Olympia, WA: Div. of Archives & Records Management,
1977.
Richardson, David. Pig War Islands. Eastsound, WA: Orcas Publishing Co. 1971.
San Juan Islander, The. Illustrated Supplement to the San Juan Islander. Friday Harbor, WA. 1901.
Suttles, Wayne P. The Economic Life of the Coast Salish of Haro & Rosario Straits. New York: Garland, 1974.
Wood, Bryce. San Juan Island Coastal Place Names & Cartographic Nomenclature. Ann Arbor, MI: Wa. State Historical
Society, 1980.