Historical Photos and Documents of Samish Island

1964 Photo



Samish Island Photo, July 24, 1964

 
In the foreground is the eastern end of Samish Island with Scott Point at the lower right. At the lower left are the reclaimed dike lands with the Samish Island road. Fish Point is the arrow-like point on the right, which terminates the North Beach area.

We are looking toward the western end of Samish Island and northwest into the Strait of Georgia. On Samish Island itself, you can see the south-facing spit (formerly known as Dean Point) and the wooded area called Point William.

In the distance you can barely see from left to right: Jack Island & Guemes Island, Cypress Island, tiny Towhead Island, Orcas Island with Obstruction Pass, Sinclair Island, Vendovi Island (our closest neighbor), faint islands of Clark, Barnes, Sucia, Matia, Patos Islands out in the Strait, Lummi Island, Eliza Island, Portage Island and Gooseberry Point. Beyond Orcas is the coast range of British Columbia.

 
Historical Photographs



Chuckanut Drive Photos, from the University of Washington Digital Collections: 1900 and 1926, 1926.

Samish Tribe longhouse site
location: Freestad Plat along Alice Bay. This village was known as Ehtseh'kun. Another village on the north side, whose name is unknown, was the "biggest village of the tribe [late 1800s]. It had one large building, 4 smaller [60’x40’] buildings." (Coast Salish Villages of Puget Sound website)



Samish Island Aerial Photographs, from the Dept of Ecology, 1994.

Between 1992 and 1997, the Washington State Department of Ecology acquired oblique aerial photography of the state's entire 2,500 miles of marine shoreline, to provide a valuable educational monitoring tool for coastal managers and the public.


The Samish Island Post Ground Observer Corps, 1957
location: at Vicmar Drive & Samish Island Road intersection, on the current Langley property.

The "Atlanta Home" Hotel, existed from 1883 to 1933. The location is a few hundred feet west of the intersection of Seacrest Lane and Samish Island Road, according to residents who uncovered dishes & silver from the hotel when they were building homes in that area. The hotel was destroyed by fire in 1933.


Proposed Industrial Park between Padilla Bay and Samish Island
During the 1950's, Skagit County proposed an industrial park that would cover almost the entire Padilla Bay area.
 

Harry Samish (xwuhl-xwhal-tun) was a wealthy and influential Samish tribal fisherman, who owned reef-net sites on south Lopez Island.

He is buried on Samish Island, and his descendants live throughout coastal Skagit County and as members of the Samish and Swinomish Tribes.

The tombstone on Scott Point says "Harry Samish. Died June 6, 1899. Age Unknown."

 

 

 

An aerial photo of the area of Skagit Regional Airport, Paccar Technical Center, Bayview, Highway 20, March Point, Samish Island, etc. Photo taken circa 1983.

Historical Documents
Sue & Fred Miller book: Samish Island History, due out in July 2007.

Chuckanut Drive Photos
1900 and 1926, 1926.

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