North Cascades

SETTLEMENT PATTERNS IN THE NORTH CASCADES

CORRIDORS OF SETTLEMENT: SKAGIT RIVER

Thornton

Farther east was William M. Thornton's ranch, located on the north bank of the Skagit River and east of the creek that continues to bear his name. A 1906 GLO map locates the homestead alongside the creek, but an early resident of the upper Skagit, Glee Davis, recalled that Thornton's ranch was along the Skagit about 1/4 to 1/2 mile up from the creek. [87] When the GLO surveyed the township, Thornton informed them that he had been a resident there for the past fifteen years (T37N R12E, Section 31). According to their notes, Thornton was a permanent resident and his improvements to the site included six outbuildings, approximately five acres in clover, with a "fine garden of about one acre in area." Glee Davis remembered the muskmelons that Thornton attempted to raise one year but which never grew because of the area's lack of sun. [88] Thornton also owned one horse, 35 chickens, several hogs, and a cow. [89]

Although Thornton may have tried his luck at mining like so many others in the region, it appears from the description above that he was a homesteader who succeeded in establishing a bonafide claim for himself. In 1909 he received a final certificate for the 166 acres, thus proving his established equity in the property. [90] Thornton remained on his ranch until 1917 when he sold his entire place to the Van Horn Shingle Company. [91] He probably left the area shortly thereafter. It is not known if his home or outbuildings were used or maintained by anyone over the subsequent years. A cursory field-check of the homestead's general location undertaken in the summer of 1984 revealed no extant above-ground remains.

Thornton's homestead along Skagit River, ca. 1910.
(Callahan Collection, Seattle)