Kirkland uses the latest technology to promote itself these days by providing a website (City of Kirkland Home Page) to help people from other parts of the country learn more about our city. 70 years ago, they were doing the same thing but on a much larger screen: the motion picture screen.

In the early part of this century, most development around Kirkland was handled by the land agency of Burke and Farrar, Inc. In 1910, they bought out the Kirkland Development Company. This company was then owned by Peter Kirk, who still had hope in the city of Kirkland although his attempt at making her a steeltown had failed 20 years prior.

Burke and Farrar made it their business to promote Kirkland in order to develop land and sell property. By 1913, newspaper ads proudly proclaimed them as the Owners of Kirkland. Their offices were located at the northwest corner of what is now Lake St and Kirkland Avenue. This office was the most noticeable sight that ferry travelers saw as they approached the dock at what is now Marina Park, especially since the names Burke and Farrar were emblazoned across the entire roof.

In 1922, the developers decided on a new method of enticing people to move out into this land of milk and honey. They hired the Educational Film Company to produce a motion picture about the area, showcasing all of the highlights and beauty of the Kirkland/Redmond region. This film would then be shown throughout the Midwest in the hopes of convincing the workers and farmers of that region to pull up their stakes and come to the Northwest. The film was titled My Country.

On January 21, 1923, it was shown at the Gateway Theatre in Kirkland to an approving audience of local residents. The East Side Journal praised the film and its depiction of the beauty of Pacific Northwest lakes, forests and rivers. Scenes of the ferry were included along with views in and about Kirkland.

Footage was also included of the W.P. Perrigo home in Redmond. The home, built in 1877, was still standing at that time and was included in the film because Mr. Perrigo, a local pioneer, was to accompany the film back east. Since My Country was a silent movie, Mr. Perrigo would also provide free lectures wherever the film was shown.

Throughout the rest of the winter, showings were held in Montana, North and South Dakota and Minnesota. There must have been enough people who came in from the bitter cold to hear the lecture and see the film, because by the summer of 1923 the East Side Journal started printing many articles about people who were moving here from those states. Many of these newcomers talked about the motion picture they had seen that convinced them to move on out.

Since My Country was such a success, by September of that year, new films were sent back to those states, once again during the winter. These films were taken by Frank Jacobs, who filmed weekly newsreels for the Liberty Theatre in Seattle. W. P. Perrigo again accompanied these films along with William Watson, of Burke and Farrar.

Before they left, the films were shown at the Gateway, along with stereopticon slides of homes, life and industry here. As the Journal put it, "Maybe you'll see yourself in the motion pictures or slides. In any event, you'll see what your friends and acquaintances look like." Just like today, reality is more interesting if you see it on the big screen.

The film and lecture tour was as successful as the previous year. In the summer of 1924, more articles appeared describing new residents from Minnesota and the Dakotas who were interested in, as the paper put it, "a milder climate and profit-making land.". Burke and Farrar's campaign had paid off.

What has since become of these films? This is unknown. Since less than a handful of copies were probably made, little chance exists that any survive. Most likely they have crumbled away to dust, or were burned to regain the silver nitrate on the film. But, you never know. Years ago, hundred of reels of early Charlie Chaplin films were discovered in a warehouse. The reels were still in the cans, and when they were shown, they proved to be of almost the same quality as when they were made. Since the films were kept airtight, they survived through the decades. So, there is a slim chance that My Country or the newsreel footage are around somewhere. If you have some old film canisters up in your attic, or if you have any information about early films of Kirkland, please contact Alan Stein at sangreal@nwlink.com. Given the rapid development of recent years, even films up into the 1960's and 1970's may prove to be valuable historic records of our local area.

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