by Alan J Stein
(note: the photo described in this article is 154K in size)

At first glance, this photo might seem to be a picture of the old Kirkland ferry dock, given the signs and the presence of the ferry Lincoln. But, if you look closely below and to the left of the wheelhouse, you'll note that the sign says 'To Kirkland'. This photo was taken at Madison Park in Seattle, and gives testimony as to how heavily Kirkland development was promoted more than 75 years ago.

The Madison Park neighborhood was first settled by a man named John McGilvra in the 1860's. At the time the shores of Lake Washington were densely wooded, and along with clearing his property, McGilvra cut a direct trail from his home to Seattle. This tiny trail would prove to be the event that truly opened up development on the East Side of the lake.

Many early settlers and homesteaders of the East Side got their first glimpse of Lake Washington from McGilvra's property. Once they bought and set up their property, they saw the benefits of this trail as a (relatively) easy connection to Seattle. After rowing or sailing across the lake, it was just a (relatively) short walk up the hill and down the other side to sell their wares or perform whatever other business they needed to conduct in town.

Over the next few decades, more settlers meant more lake traffic. Many small, independent steamboats had set up passenger service, and a small settlement grew up around McGilvra's property. A steamer landing was eventually constructed, and the little trail became a trolley line. We now know this trail as Madison Street. A resort, Madison Park, was built and the little community between Seattle and the East Side became a major nexus for business and recreation on both sides of the lake.

By the 1890's Kirkland had started to grow. Peter Kirk's lure of a steel mill in Kirkland caused more development and therefore more people moved to Kirkland. More steamers appeared on the lake, one of which was the C. C. Calkins. The captain of the Calkins was a man named John Anderson, who had arrived in Puget Sound in 1888 with $20 in his pocket.

By 1893, Anderson had worked his way up from deckhand and had received his master's license. Along the way he had saved enough money to buy his own boat, the Winnifred, and soon formed the Anderson Steamboat Company. This was the beginning of a small boating empire that would last for decades. Even though Kirk's steel mill eventually failed, Anderson still saw the potential for East Side development. He continued to buy and build more lake steamers and also invested in lakefront property. One of his largest rivals for business were the Bartsch and Tompkins Transportation Company, but by 1907 he was able to buy their fleet and shipyard (located at today's Carillon Point), assuring him a virtual monopoly in the Lake Washington steamer industry.

Around this time, King County was persuaded to build its own ferry, the King County of Kent, and accompanying slips at Madison Park and Kirkland. This didn't bother Anderson one bit. In fact, he often used to pull his private steamers into the county slips, take on paying passengers and pull away before the county ferry arrived.

By the 1910's both Anderson and Kirkland were prospering. Anderson built over 10 modern excursion boats for the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition in 1909. More travelers on the lake meant more people discovering the appeal of living on the East Side, which in turn, meant more passengers for Anderson's ferry line. A healthy flow of economy was now in place.

Not being ones to miss out on the flow of money, in stepped land agents Burke and Farrar. They bought Peter Kirk's development company, and set up offices at Madison Park. This office can be seen near the center of the photo, emblazoned with the bold moniker "Owners of Kirkland Townsite". They soon set up offices in Kirkland, also. They quickly became the premiere developers of early Kirkland, and their legacy can still be seen today in many of the structures in the downtown area, and in the layout of some of the surrounding neighborhoods.

Another landmark that should be noted in the photo is the ferry Lincoln. This is probably the most fondly remembered ferryboat of long-time Kirkland residents, and was also built by Anderson's shipyard.

In 1914, Anderson was sued by the county for his practice of swiping passengers off the county docks. This and other lawsuits eventually led to the elimination of privately run ferries, but once again, it didn't phase Anderson one bit. He just started building boats, such as the Lincoln, to sell to the county. And, as a final footnote, within a few years Captain Anderson was once again operating all Lake Washington ferries. By the 1920's the county was losing large amounts of money in the operation of the ferry system. Captain Anderson offered to step in and cut the losses. He was taken up on his offer and continued to operate the ferry system until his retirement in 1935.

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© 1998 - Alan J Stein