North Cascades

SETTLEMENT PATTERNS IN THE NORTH CASCADES

CORRIDORS OF SETTLEMENT: STEHEKIN RIVER

Pershall

Other early settlers locating homes in the Stehekin valley were members of the Pershall family. Three brothers--Lloyd, Al M., and Robert N. -- were actively engaged in mining in Horseshoe Basin in the 1890s. They located a base camp just south of the basin. [182] The brothers also maintained a store in Chelan, selling various goods, including fruit boxes made at their "cottonwood fruit-box factory" in Stehekin in 1896. Little is known of Lloyd except that he was a miner; Al was also a miner, having claims in the Methow River valley and Horseshoe Basin where he worked the Davenport claim in 1895. [183]

Of the three brothers, Robert Pershall seemed to be the most active in the Stehekin area. As early as 1895 Robert and his wife lived on their Stehekin "ranch" in the winter. [184] In November of that year, he built an addition to the north end of his residence. [185] In 1898 Pershall sold "the improvements on his ranch at the head of the lake to Mr. Wm. Purple . . ." [186] By 1892, however, Robert had acquired a second homestead farther up the valley that had belonged to his cousin, M.M. Kingman. By selling a quarter of his interest in the Horseshoe Basin mine to Kingman for $20,000, he obtained Kingman's Stehekin ranch as a partial payment. [187] This homestead, also referred to as the old Perry Wilcox ranch, was 6-3/4 miles up the valley from the head of the lake (prior to flooding), on unsurveyed land (T33N R17E, Section 8) adjacent to the McGregor Flat Ranger Station site. In 1907 Pershall filed the 100.5-acre homestead claim for entry but his application was quickly rejected "on account of the small area of agricultural land and the poor transportation facilities and the distance from market and the heavy snow fall and killing frosts that came early [to the area]. . ." [188] Persistent, Pershall reapplied for a homestead on August 3, 1911, filing on 92.07 acres in the same area. Five years later he filed for nearly 16 additional acres of land (July 18, 1916). A USFS ranger carefully recorded Pershall's improvements as of 1918: the 1-1/2 story log house (14' x 28') with its lumber kitchen addition on the east end (14' x 12') was furnished with 2 beds, cookstove, heating stove, sewing machine, kitchen table and chairs; an open hay shed, chicken house, barn, and cellar were used for storage and housing the family's horse, cow, calf, and 22 chickens. Five acres of land were under cultivation and the crops were used solely for the family. [189] Robert Pershall received full patent on his homestead claim on October 30, 1919. Within three years time, however, he had moved downlake and was living in Chelan.