North Cascades

SETTLEMENT PATTERNS IN THE NORTH CASCADES

CORRIDORS OF SETTLEMENT: SKAGIT RIVER

Rowland

Tommy Rowland (also spelled Roland) was the last inhabitant along the upper Skagit River within today's park boundary. From the international boundary south not one settler chose to live in the broad, densely-timbered river valley which spread to the north of his claim. Moreover, with the exception of an occasional fur trapper, few individuals passed through the region even after the trail beyond Marblemount was opened in the 1890s. Tommy Rowland lived a quiet existence here, and although he did not remain in the area very long, he was successful at carving out and sustaining a homestead for himself in an untamed wilderness. He is remembered through stories and place names that persist today, nearly a century after he first arrived in the North Cascades.

A Canadian from northern British Columbia, Rowland first journeyed up the Skagit River about 1885, although a second source claims ten years later. [142] Selecting an elevated site on the east bank of the Skagit across from Big Beaver Creek, Rowland eventually built a sizable log cabin, large barn, and root cellar. A small cleared area, believed to be a swamp before Rowland dredged it by hand, served as a garden where he cultivated vegetables. He also had a second place along the Skagit River, directly below this main homestead. There, Rowland erected a small cabin and outbuilding, and grew hay in a nearby pasture that John McMillan helped him clear. [143] Obviously impressed by the improvements, H.B. Ayres noted on his 1899 visit that Rowland's homestead and McMillan's across the river were "the two most improved claims" on the Washington Forest Reserve. [144]

View of Tommy Rowland's homestead, ca.1917.
(NOCA-Sedro Woolley photo file)

Rowland's primary reason for being in the North Cascades was gold. He placer mined along Ruby Creek, but also sold or bartered vegetables and hay to support himself and his simple lifestyle. Glee Davis purchased hay from Rowland for the Cedar Bar roadhouse many times. [145] Rowland periodically exchanged homesteads with John McMillan, who also used Rowland's hay. Unlike other settlers, Rowland was able to sustain himself with what he had, never needing to travel downriver to earn supplemental income.

Several colorful though undocumented stories exist about Tommy Rowland, more so than about any other individual within today's national park. One common thread in all these tales is that Rowland was or became, while living in the mountains, a religious fanatic who believed he was the prophet Elisha. In his eccentricity he christened his homestead "New Jerusalem." On one of his numerous visits to Rowland's, Glee Davis recalled how Tommy did not speak to Glee the entire three days he was there baling hay. On that last day just before Glee departed, Tommy let it be known that he was not supposed to talk for three days and three nights. [146] However odd a character, Rowland was never known by anyone to be a dangerous or bothersome fellow.

Possibly in an effort to take over Rowland's mining claims on Ruby Creek, an unidentified person had Rowland judged insane, sometime prior to 1903. Tommy was forced to move and remain downriver in a hospital until 1903 when authorities allowed him to return home. The last time Rowland was seen on his ranch by Glee Davis was in 1908; again, an unknown person was responsible for Rowland's permanent return to Northern State Hospital in Sedro Woolley, where he remained until his eventual death. [147]

While Rowland's principal homestead lay abandoned and ignored, his lower place was taken over by the USFS. On a 1913 Washington National Forest map both the lower and upper homestead were indicated; by 1917 only the lower place was shown, listed as "Roland Guard Station." [148] It retained guard station status at least until the late 1930s. [149] When the dammed waters of the Skagit River backed up to the north, this site was inundated, obliterating all signs of human activity.

Rowland's upper homestead in its forgotten state is extant today, approximately a quarter mile east of the campground at Roland Point. A large, cleared area in a sparsely-wooded pine forest contains the remnants of Rowland's log cabin, barn, root cellar, and outhouse. [150] Though it stands in ruins, much historically valuable information regarding Rowland and early settlement in the North Cascades can still be gleaned from what remains of this old homestead.

View of Rowland 's lower property, which became the Roland Guard Station, ca. 1916
(USFS-Mt. Baker-Sedro Woolley photo file)