Roslyn W ashington is a historical com m unity w ith a rich history of coal m ines, disasters, struggle and hard w orking people w ith a history all its ow n. Som e w ould even say that the ghost of Roslyn out num ber the residents.
W elcom e to PIH A ’s H istoric isto ric H aunting of W ashington State M agazine On behalf of the volunteer paranormal investigators of PIHA, I invite you to experience Washington State’s amazing historical sites and museums like never before. PIHA has created a program unlike any other in Washington State. Through our process of networking with local historical societies, museums and registered historical sites, PIHA hopes to help educate the public of our state’s exciting history and the process and technology utilized in today’s paranormal investigations. PIHA was created with two goals in mind: 1. PIHA hopes to bring our history to life by attempting to obtain significant evidence of these strange occurrences. Utilizing the latest in today’s electronic technology and dedicated paranormal investigators, we are accomplishing this objective. 2. PIHA wants to stimulate additional interest in our residents and visitors to Washington State’s fascinating history. We want to encourage individuals, families, schools and community organizations to visit these (and other) historical locations for a better understanding of our state’s history and the people who made it. PIHA is not out to prove or disprove the existence of possible paranormal activity, but to publish any significant evidence collected at an investigation and let each individual decided for himself what to believe or not to believe. Wherever your travels in Washington take you, best wishes for a “Trip to the Extraordinary”. For additional information about PIHA, visit our website at www.pihausa.com
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In this Issue: Welcome to PIHA’s Historic Haunting of Washington State Magazine…..2 Washington State History………….……..……....…….5 The History of Eastern Washington………….………..7 The History of Roslyn.…….………………….…..…….9 The Historic Roslyn Coal Mine Trail…….…………...11 The Historic Roslyn Cemetery……………….........…..13 The History of Paranormal Activity…………………..15 Contact PIH A:
PIH A M agazine Publisher:
PIHA (Paranormal Investigations of Historic America) Vaughn Hubbard: Case Manager/Historian Phone: 360.799.4138 Email: Info@pihausa.com Website: WWW.PIHAUSA.COM
Publisher………………...…..….Historic Haunting Chief Publisher…………..……..Vaughn Hubbard Program Manager:………….…..Debbie Knapp Marketing Manager:………….....Kathy Gavin Graphic Designer:…………...…..Christian Wells
Debbie Knapp: Lead Investigator/Historian Kathy Gavin: Lead Investigator Dave: EVP Specialist Christian Wells: Investigator
A cknow ledgem ents: We wish to acknowledge the HistoryLink for allowing PIHA to use their published historical research information as reference material. To read about the history of Washington State visit the HistoryLink website at: www.HistoryLink.org Special thanks to Dave from Silent Voices who works with the Grey Team as our EVP Specialist. To read more about the groundbreaking work that Dave is involved with and his instructions on EVP's techniques, visit his web site at www.SilentVoices.info 3
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Washington State History The State of Washington occupies the far northwest corner of the contiguous 48 United States. It occupies 66,582 square miles (176,600 square kilometers) between the Pacific Ocean on the west and the Idaho border at 117 degrees longitude. Washington borders Canada on the north along the 49th parallel and Oregon on the south along the Columbia River and 46th parallel. Great Britain and the United States jointly occupied the region between 1818 and 1846, when Britain ceded the Pacific Northwest below the 49th parallel to the U.S. In 1848 the U.S. created Oregon Territory, including the future states of Oregon, Washington, and Idaho and a portion of Montana. Washington Territory (including Idaho and western Montana until 1863) was separated from Oregon on March 2, 1853, and gained statehood on November 11, 1889. The federal government created Oregon Territory on August 14, 1848. The area of the new jurisdiction included the present-day states of Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and western Montana. The discovery of gold in California in 1848 triggered a large westward migration, and settlement of Oregon Territory was promoted by passage of the Donation Land Claims Act of 1850, which granted 160 acres to any U.S. citizen who agreed to occupy his or her land for five years. On August 29, 1851, 27 male settlers met at Cowlitz Landing (south of present-day Olympia) to petition Congress for a separate “Columbia Territory” covering the area between the Columbia River and 49th parallel. The petition was reaffirmed by 44 delegates who met in Monticello on November 25, 1852. Congress approved the new territory on February 10, 1853, but changed its name to “Washington.” President Millard Fillmore signed the bill on March 2, 1853, and Olympia was named the Territorial Capital and has remained the capital of both Washington Territory and State since 1853. President Franklyn Pierce named Isaac I. Stevens as the first governor of an area that included northern Idaho and western Montana until President Abraham Lincoln established Idaho Territory on March 4, 1863. Washington’s non-Indian population grew steadily to more than 300,000 over the following decades. Its residents began petitioning for statehood in 1881, and Washington was admitted to the Union on November 11, 1889, with the signature of President Benjamin Harrison. Thirty federally recognized sovereign Indian tribes and reservations occupy substantial areas in Washington, and there are an additional seven unrecognized but culturally distinct tribes. Native American Indian tribes have occupied this area; now know as Washington State for over 10,000 years and have a rich history in culture and survival. By the 1850s, when the first Euro American settlers arrived at Alki Point and along the Duwamish River, diseases had already taken a devastating toll on native peoples and their cultures. During the 80 year period from the 1770s to 1850, smallpox, measles, influenza, and other diseases had killed an estimated 28,000 Native Americans in Western Washington, leaving about 9,000 survivors. Historian Robert Boyd conducted extensive research on the effect of European diseases on Northwest coast Indians. In his book, The Coming of the Spirit of Pestilence, he states that the 1775 Spanish expedition led by Bruno Hezeta, commander of the Santiago and Juan Fracisco de la Bodega & Quadra, commander of the Sonora was the most likely carrier.
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The History Eastern Washington In the spring of 1853, Congress authorized a US Army expedition made up of engineers and explorers and led by Isaac Ingalls Stevens, to survey a route from the Missouri River to the Columbia River suitable for building a railroad. Stevens assumed the task, but also kept in mind that the route should be suitable for a wagon road A small, dark-haired young man, Lieutenant John Mullan just out of West Point, was placed in charge of surveying, and later improving, a wagon route (now commonly called the Mullan Road) between Fort Benton (Montana) and Fort Walla Walla (Washington). Lieutenant Mullan commanded a workforce of more than 200, including civilian workers, soldiers, engineers, and surveyors who carved a 25-foot wide road across the region. Although the road was never heavily used by the military, it was an important conduit for civilian passage, which hastened settling of the northwestern United States. In the first year after completion, it was used by an estimated 20,000 people, 6,000 horses and mules, 5,000 cattle and 83 wagons. The Mullan Road helped Walla Walla become the largest town in Washington Territory by 1870, with a population of 1,394. The road continued to serve as an important route until the completion of the Northern Pacific Railroad in 1883 provided faster and more convenient access to the region. In 1836 Marcus Whitman a physician and missionary in the Oregon Country, along with his wife Narcissa started a mission Waiilatpu (Why-eelat-poo, the 't' is half silent), which means "place of the rye grass" in the Cayuse language also known as the Whitman Mission. The mission was located 6 miles from current day Walla Walla Washington, just west of the northern end of the Blue Mountains. Whitman would later lead the first large party of wagon trains along the Oregon Trail, establishing it as a viable route for the thousands of emigrants who used the trail in the following The settlement was in the territory of both the Cayuse and the Nez PercÊ tribes of Native Americans. Marcus farmed and provided medical care, while Narcissa set up a school for the Native American children. The influx of white settlers in the territory brought new diseases to the Indian tribes, including a severe epidemic of measles in 1847. In what became known as the Whitman Massacre, Cayuse tribal members murdered the Whitman’s in their home on November 29, 1847. Most of the buildings at Waiilatpu were destroyed. Twelve other white settlers in the community were also killed. For one month 53 women and children were held captive before negotiations led to them being released. In 1850, the tribe handed over five members to be tried for the murder of the Whitman’s. All five Cayuse were convicted by a military commission and hanged on 3 June 1850. The hanging was conducted by U.S. Marshal Joseph L. Meek. This event triggered an ongoing conflict between white settlers and local tribes, known as the Cayuse War an armed conflict that lasted from 1848 to 1855. This was the first of several wars between the original inhabitants and Euro-American settlers in that region that would lead to the placement of many of the Native Americans onto Indian reservations.
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The History of Roslyn Washington Roslyn was founded in 1886 as a coal mining town, platted by Logan M. Bullet, vice president of the Northern Pacific Coal Company. On February 4, 1889, the citizens of Roslyn present a petition to Judge L. B. Nash requesting that their city be incorporated. He duly proclaims Roslyn to be an incorporated town, and the city government is organized. The city is re-incorporated on April 26, 1890, after Washington achieves statehood. Throughout the middle 1880s, the Northern Pacific Railway, the parent of Northern Pacific Coal Co., pushed to reach Puget Sound across the Cascade Mountains. The Northern Pacific began building across Stampede Pass just west of Roslyn, approaching from Wallula in the east and Tacoma in the west. Roslyn, which lies on the route to Stampede Pass, provided the coal for the railway construction work as well as the continuing railroad operations. This industry also brought many different ethnic groups of people together that worked in the coal mines. The prosperity that the coal mines brought to Roslyn came with a high price. On May 10, 1892, the No. 1 mine exploded, killing 45 miners. The City Hall on the right became a morgue where each lodge claimed its members. And again in 1909, No. 4 shaft exploded killing 10 miners. Tensions between management and labor in the Roslyn mines began spilling over in the summer of 1888, when management laid off a number of union workers who were petitioning for higher wages. The Northwest Coal Company organized over 300 black strikebreakers in Virginia, North Carolina, and Kentucky and transported them via special train across the continent to Roslyn. Eventually, the strike was settled and the African-American strikebreakers assimilated into the community of Roslyn. Today Roslyn prides itself as a historical community in Washington that attracts visitors from all over the world. Visitors can walk The Coal Trail that follows the right-of-way of the Northern Pacific Railroad branch line developed in 1886 to export coal from the Roslyn Cle Elum Coal Field and explore the sealed entrances of the old mine shaft openings along the way. The Roslyn Branch was extended in 1887 to the #3 Mine site where the community of Ronald developed. The branch line intersected the Northern Pacific Railway's Cascade Line in Cle Elum and for decades constituted the primary transportation link between the Upper Kittitas County communities of Cle Elum, Roslyn and Ronald. Visitors also learn how this ethnic mix brought about the unique Roslyn Cemetery. The Roslyn Cemetery is really an amalgamation of 25 separate cemeteries abutting each other on 15 wooded acres on Roslyn's west hill. To experience what those exciting years were like for the citizens of Roslyn, visit the Roslyn Museum and the many historic buildings in the town of Roslyn Washington. 9
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The Historic Roslyn Coal Mine Trail The trail begins in Roslyn and follows the abandoned Burlington Northern Railroad line through "coal country," goes through the small town of Ronald and ends in Cle Elum. Along the 4.7 mile long trail you will see mining artifacts scattered along the path. Several mine dumps exist all along the train along with some concrete remains, tangles of rusting metal and jumbled piles of old bricks. Benches are placed along the way and interpretative signs tell of the hard-working families that lived in the region and worked in the mines. The Northern Pacific Railroad developed the branch line in 1886 to export coal from the Roslyn Cle Elum Coal Field. In 1887 the Roslyn Branch was extended to the #3 Mine site where the community of Ronald was created. The branch line constituted the primary transportation link between the Upper Kittitas County communities of Cle Elum, Roslyn and Ronald. The Roslyn Ronald branch was used until 1986. Then in 1987, the branch line connecting Roslyn to Ronald was decommissioned allowing for the tracks and ties to be removed. In 1994 the Coal Mines Trail Commission was established to use the branch line right-of-way and created the historical and recreational Roslyn Coal Mine Trail.
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The Historic Roslyn Cemetery The Roslyn Historical Cemetery is comprised of 25 separate, but adjacent cemeteries located on 15 acres on a hill behind Roslyn. The land for the Roslyn cemetery was obtained from the Northern Pacific Railroad Company in 1887. Each fraternal ethnic and civic organization was granted a area in the cemetery for burial of their deceased members. Today, nearly 5,000 graves represent least 24 nationalities. Each country or ethnic group had its own burial practice and type of headstone. These served as a reminder of where the deceased was originally from. The Italians and Yugoslavians were known to use elaborate markers with pictures of the deceased encased in ceramic and embedded in the tombstone. You will also notice that many graves seem to be above the ground due to the placement of a low lying grave curb around the plot. Still others placed a "footstone" with the hope that a headstone could be purchased and erected at a later date when money permitted. Foraging cattle and wildlife were kept away from some areas by erecting ornate and picturesque fences around some plots. In 1978, The National Historic Register included the historic Roslyn Cemeteries in their listings.
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The History of Paranormal Activity Roslyn Washington has a history of paranormal activity that goes back generations. Some believe the stories of ghostly encounters while others will not even consider the idea of paranormal activity even existing. PIHA is not out to prove or disprove the existence of possible paranormal activity, but to obtain and publish any significant evidence collected at an investigation and let each individual decided for himself what to believe or not to believe. Over 40,000 years ago early man started leaving cave drawings depicting what appear to be representations of paranormal activity. This also occurred around the same time early man started burying their dead. The first Shaman appeared acting as a medium between the visible and spirit worlds by experiencing paranormal activity and asking the age old question “What happens to us after we die”. Today, we still have our religious leaders and are still searching for the answer to that age old question. Hopefully, with today’s electronic technology, the scientific community will begin to study that question and eventually give us some answers. Until that day arrives, paranormal groups like PIHA will continue to document our findings of possible paranormal activity and present our findings to society to evaluate and question. Many people who think that something paranormal exist, physics and logic can debunk. That said, occasionally PIHA obtains evidence that neither physics nor logic applies. When this occurs, we classify it as paranormal evidence and let each individual decide for himself what to believe or not believe. PIHA has no answers to what it is we are documenting with our electronic equipment, only questions for the scientific community. Any conclusions determined are based solely on speculation and conjecture with no scientific basis to support their theory.
Ghost, Demons, Spirits and Energy People have always believed that the night is full of ghosts, but the thought of a ghost sound is still disturbing. It is unsettling to listen to the sound of death as if they were occurring in the present and not a lifetime earlier. I suspect the world is far more mysterious than we’ve ever imagined. In subtle and unexpected ways science and religion are approaching common if uncertain ground. At some point as the scientific focus becomes more and more specific, as the particles examined by quantum physicists become more and more elusive, the paranormal escapes its cage of scientific incredulity. And there lies the mystery of the paranormal. They are messages, so dense that they require unraveling before they’re understood. It’s a little scary, acknowledging that something paranormal can exist, but also an affirmation that what lies beyond consciousness has tremendous power and potential.
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O n behalf of the volunteer paranorm par anorm al investigators of PIH A , w e invite you to experience W ashington State’s am azing historical sites and m useum s like never before. bef ore. PIH A has created a program unlike any other in W ashington State. Through our process pr ocess of netw orking w ith local historical societies, s ocieties, m useum s and com m unity leaders, PIH A hopes to help educate the public of our state’s exciting history and the process pro cess and an d technology utilized in paranorm al research. research . The PIH A “G rey Team ” is m ade up of dedicated paranorm al investigators w ith a passion for history and a curiosity in the paranorm al phenom ena. O ur approach, equipm ent and procedures to paranorm al investigating are a re prim arily based on research and logic in obtaining evidence of possible paranorm al activity.
The PIH A A pproach to Paranorm al Investigations PIH A never use m edium s, psychics or O uija B oards in our investigations. M any people w ho think that som ething paranorm para norm al exist, physics and logic can debunk. That said, occasionally PIH A obtains evidence that neither physics nor logic applies. W hen this occurs, w e classify it as paranorm al evidence and let each individual decide for him self w hat to believe or not believe. beli eve.
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