Natural Disasters of Eatonville
An Essay by Hannah Perry
High School Grade Level
In the one hundered years it has been a town, Eaonville has experienced both highs and lows. It has prospered through economic boom and struggled buring economic bust. Eatonville has gone through everything from the coldest of winters to the hottest of summers. This town has thrived as a community during the all around good times, and pulled together during the hard ones. But no matter what struggles or blessings come towards the town, the community always seems to come together to face them as a group. The natural disasters that have come upon Eatonville offer a glimpse of how the residents of this town come together as a community both during and after the storms.
Like any town during the first half of the twentieth century, fires were not uncommon. What was uncommon was a huge forest fire right at your doorstep. This is exactly the case on Sunday, September 21, 1924. A fire started in the woods near Alder early in the morning, but unfortunately because of the wind it traveled north towards Eatonville. Many of the people of the town were enjoying a nice Sunday afternoon and to their surprise the fire “by three o’clock Monday had completely encircled the town” (Engel, 105). Hundreds of people fled town in an attempt to escape the fire. Streets were empty as only a few people remained in town. The Dispatch from 1924 covering the story said, “When the fire was at its height east of town, it covered about two miles in length and was a most spectacular sight.” Almost as if it were a miracle, just as the fire was licking the feet of the town, the winds changed towards the east, saving the little town. Damage from this fire was minimal in Eatonville. The fire claimed a few farm homes and barns including those of the Van Eatons, the Overlis, and the Biggs.
Although the forest fire of 1924 was not completely a tragedy and blow to the town, the Lumber Mill fire of 1932 caused substantial damage to the main industry in Eatonville, the mill. On December 8, during the worst winter of the Great Depression, a fire broke out early in the morning at the lumber mill. “Cause of the fire is unknown. It started in the south end of the saw mill and within a few minutes the entire structure was a mass of roaring flames” (Dispatch, 15 Dec 1932). Hundreds watched as the fire destroyed their only hope of income in the hard depression. Fortunately the fire did not spread because there was no wind and local firemen and volunteers helped to put it out. On December 15, only one week later, the Eatonville Dispatch read, “What was only a short time ago one of the largest and most productive mills in Western Washington is now a jumbled mass of blackened ruins.” After the initial shock of what had just happened to them, the community came together and constructed a new mill which continued to run until it shut down in 1954.
Fires may be a result of human carelessness and fortunately can be put out, but windstorms on the other hand are not preventable and the only thing to do is wait it our. One of the worst windstorms in all history happened to hit Eatonville on October 12, 1962. The windstorm that came to be known as the “Columbus Day Storm” began at 7:30 p.m. on Friday the twelfth with heavy rain and gust of wind as high as 83 M.P.H. and did not slow down until after 10:30 p.m. Telephone and electricity was completely shut off in Eatonville with 35 lines down (The Eatonville Dispatch, 1962). A little over half were back in service by the next night. As for damage, many homes were destroyed. Roofs came off houses, sheds were thrown around, and buildings flown from their foundation. On one instance, the porch of Miss Thorvaldson was tossed from its sturdy foundation, over the top of the house, and landed in the backyard (The Eatonville Dispatch, 1962). Neighbors of Erick Swanson showed their community spirit by helping hold down his roof even as it was really blowing.
Many people living now would probably remember the great windstorm now referred to as the “Inauguration Day Storm.” On January 20, 1993, as people all over Eatonville were about to watch Bill Clinton become the 42nd president, a powerful wind storm ripped through the town. As a result power was out of 22 hours (Dispatch, 1993) in most places and thousands of trees fell, some even injuring people. One person died in La Grande after having a heart attack.
Along with windstorms, earthquakes are completely unstoppable. But one thing about an earthquake that’s different from a windstorm is that earthquakes are unpredictable. On Wednesday, April 13, 1949 at 11:52 a.m., while students were at school and men working at the mill, an earthquake struck Eatonville. It lasted approximately 40 seconds and was an estimated 8 on the Richter scale. “At the high school and grade school buildings frightened children scattered among the falling plaster” (The Eatonville Dispatch, 1949). The damage from the quake was unfortunately severe. Both the high school and the grade school were badly hurt, especially the auditorium and east and west walls of the building. Expensive dishes, liquor bottles, and chimneys were among the most frequently damaged. Residents swore buildings swayed for feet, while other buildings received substantial cracks in their foundations and walls.
A more recent and less severe earthquake hit Eatonville in the late winter of 2001. To many this may be a familiar memory. At 10:54 on February 28 the earth jolted and shook Eatonville for about 20-45 seconds. It measured a 6.8 on the Richter scale, enough to put cracks in walls and foundations and break many items. While the liquor store amazingly only suffered two bottles broken, the other damage was worse. The high school received a few cracks in the walls and a big crack right through the newly laid asphalt on the tennis court. Volunteers banded together real quick helping the town get back to normal by repairing cracks, picking up messes, and donating service wherever else needed.
Eatonville has had her fair share of disasters and has scars to prove it. This town has seen windstorms, fires, and earthquakes, to only say a few. But it’s not always about the disaster. It, a lot of the time is all about how the community reacts afterwards. Often times people loose that sense of community and it takes a tragedy like a fire, windstorm, or earthquake to bring us all back together again.
Bibliography
1) “Clip and Save Map of Eatonville.” The Eatonville Dispatch.
25 Feb 1960.
2) “Earthquake.” The Eatonville Dispatch. 14 Apr 1949:1-2
3) “Eatonville Narrowly Escapes Forest Fire”. The Eatonville Dispatch. 26 Sept. 1924: 1, 4.
4) “Eatonville Saw Mill Destroyed by Fire Thursday Morning”. The Eatonville Dispatch. 8 Dec 1932: 1.
5) Engel, Pearl and Hlavin, Jeanette. History of the Tacoma Eastern Area. Eatonville: History Committee, 1954.
6) “Hundreds Watch Big Mill Burn”. The Eatonville Dispatch.
15 Dec 1932: 1.
7) “Local Area Hit Hard by Windstorm”. The Eatonville Dispatch.
18 Oct 1962:1.
8) Lohman, Karin. “Shaken, not Stirred.” The Dispatch. 7 Mar 2001:
A-1, A-7.
9) Martin-Almy, Jamie. “Storm” The South Pierce County Dispatch.
27 Jan 1993:1-2.
10) Padgett, Keith W. (Ed.). A Pictorial History of Pierce County Washington. Dallas: Taylor Publishing, 1990.
