Isaac N. Ebey
Encyclopedia
Colonel Isaac Neff Ebey was the first permanent white resident of Whidbey Island
, Washington.
Ebey was born in Columbus, Ohio in 1818. During his childhood Ebey's father, Jacob, moved the family to Adair County, Missouri where as a young man, the young Ebey was trained in the law. At age 25, Ebey married Rebecca Davis and they later had two sons, Eason (who became Phoebe Judson
's son-in-law) and Ellison. Born with a naturally adventurous spirit, Isaac temporarily left his wife and young sons in Missouri
to discover the American west - specifically the Pacific Coast.
. After arriving in the Puget Sound
region he went to work for the U.S. Customs service. While with the service, Ebey spent some time in Olympia, the city he is credited with naming in honor of the Olympic Peninsula mountains to the west of Puget Sound. Ebey also sponsored a statute to name King County, Washington
. Hearing of the islands in the north end of the sound, Ebey came upon Whidbey Island
and fell in love with the natural beauty, climate, and rich land perfect for farming.
in 1850, Ebey claimed 640 acre (1 sq mi; 2.6 km²) for himself and his family overlooking Admiralty Inlet then wrote his wife to prepare for a move west with their sons. While awaiting their arrival, Ebey sent numerous letters to his relatives begging their relocation to Whidbey Island in order to snap up the best remaining land for homesteading and farming. Ebey's wife and sons arrived in the fall of 1851 with her three brothers and the Samuel Crockett family.
The remainder of Ebey's family followed in October 1854. Among those of Ebey's family who came to the Pacific Northwest
were: Ebey's parents, Jacob and Sarah; siblings, Mary, Winfield, and Ruth; Mary's two children, Almira and Polk Wright; a cousin, George Beam. Jacob Ebey claimed ridge land overlooking what is today called Ebey's Prairie. On the same ridge, Isaac Ebey built a blockhouse
for protection against raiding Indians. Isaac and Jacob Ebey's land would prove to be some of the most productive in the area and word of this fortune traveled, drawing settlers from the east into the region and starting a rush of settlers who claimed most of the prairie-land by the beginning of 1853. By 1860, all of the best farmland had already been claimed.
he built a dock for the commercial ship traffic on Puget Sound in order to facilitate trade from Port Townsend
on the Olympic Peninsula. Because most transportation in the area moved by water, the location of what was now called Ebey's Landing (on the main Puget Sound shipping route) minimized transportation costs. The landing remained active until the turn of the 20th Century when a new dock was built at Fort Casey
, just a few miles away.
During his nine years in the Pacific Northwest, Isaac Ebey was a vital player in territorial affairs. Serving as prosecuting attorney for the Whidbey Island community he also represented Thurston County (Olympia) in the Oregon Territorial Legislature when that county still stretched to the 49th parallel. Ebey also assisted in helping persuade the legislature to sign the Monticello Memorial, separating Oregon and Washington Territories in 1853, and assisted in breaking Thurston County into four smaller areas: Island
, Jefferson
, King, and Pierce
Counties. Appointed by President Franklin Pierce
to be collector for the Puget Sound district and inspector of revenues at the new state capital in Olympia, Ebey relocated his customs office to Port Townsend and made it the official port of entry for Puget Sound.
, the United States government bestowed the title of "Colonel
" upon Ebey. Well respected among the residents, prospective volunteers refused to enlist unless they would serve under his command.
, Rebecca died in 1853 following the difficult birth, and subsequent death, of the Ebeys' newborn daughter, Sarah. Ebey soon married Emily Palmer Sconce, a widow with a daughter named Anna.
In 1857, a party of northern (possibly Haida) Indians traveled by canoe
into Puget Sound
on a mission of vengeance. Following the death of one of their chiefs and 27 other tribal members in an attack by the USS Massachusetts
the previous year, the Indian party searched for a white Hyas Tyee (great chief) in retaliation. Originally, the intended victim was Dr. John Kellogg, who lived near the present day Admiralty Head lighthouse. On the hot summer evening of August 11, unable to locate Kellogg (who was out of the area), the natives beached at Ebey's Landing and traversed the steep cliff up to Ebey's home. Knocking on Isaac Ebey's door, the natives called him out of the house, shot him dead, and beheaded him.
Emily and the children fled to Jacob Ebey's blockhouse on the ridge, and George and Lucretia Corliss (in-laws of Phoebe Judson
) escaped into the forest. Unwilling to remain on the farm, Emily abandoned it, leaving forever with her daughter Anna. Isaac Ebey's relatives raised Ellison and Eason, and the two brothers later divided their father's farm between them.
There is question whether these raiding Indians were actually Haida (as inscribed on a historical marker at Ebey's Landing). Traditional stories of the Keex' Kwáan (Kake) tribe of Tlingits tell of the raid being led by a female relative of the slain Indian chief in the Massachusetts attack. Those stories also tell that the female leader of the raid was a member of the Tsaagweidí clan. In fact, the Puget Sound Herald of Steilacoom
published an article fifteen months after Ebey's assassination stating the Kake and Stikine Indians, "numbering a couple hundred," were responsible for the "cold blooded murder." However, it was never known which particular tribe perpetrated the death and beheading of Colonel Ebey.
Captains Swanston and Charles Dodd of the Hudson's Bay Company
steamer Beaver
attempted to purchase Ebey's scalp about a year after his death, but were unsuccessful when the Kake Indians took the request as a first step in an attack of their village. It is rumored the Kake refused to sell Ebey's scalp because it was customary to dance around the scalps of their enemies killed in battle during annual feasts. They also believed the scalp held great family importance and should be handed down through generations.
About three years after Ebey's murder, Captain Dodd now on the steamer Labouchere
again attempted to purchase the scalp of his slain friend, and was successful. Dodd acquired the scalp for a liberal reward of "six blankets, 3 pipes, 1 cotton handkerchief, 6 heads of tobacco, 1 fthm. cotton," and gave it to A. M. Poe, Esq. to be returned to Ebey's brother, Winfield. On April 5, 1860, Winfield Ebey noted in his diary the much awaited return of his brother's "poor head":
While some historians insist Winfield—a prolific diarist—had the scalp buried with his brother's body, no record of this claim exists. After Winfield's death in 1865, at least five separate accounts maintain that Ebey's sister, Mary Ebey Bozarth, inherited the relic. Albert Kellogg, the son of Dr. John Kellogg, recalled visiting Bozarth "ten or twelve years" after the murder and "she showed the scalp lock still retaining the long black hair. It was the only thing of that kind I had ever seen and I remember it caused cold chills to run over me." After Bozarth died in 1876, Ebey's scalp was passed on to his niece, Almira Enos. The next mention of its location occurred in 1892 when Almira visited Whidbey, an event noted by the Island County Times. In the newspaper's July 29, 1892 issue it was reported:
But Enos also visited an old friend, Hugh Crockett, who was quoted by the Times as saying that Enos "told me only a few weeks ago that she has (the scalp) at her house in San Francisco." Those two articles are the most reliable accounts to date of where that "sad memento" of Ebey's death was kept. At this time only one other reference to the scalp's whereabouts has been found. According to family reports, the scalp was last known to be in the possession of the Almira Enos family in California as of 1914.
Ebey's Landing, while no longer a docking port, is named for the beachfront located just below the still-standing Ferry House
built in 1860. The Landing is now a National Historical Reserve and was the first NHR in the United States
. External views of the Ferry House and the surrounding Ebey's Prairie can be seen in scenes from the 1999 movie Snow Falling On Cedars
, depicting the homestead of fictional German immigrant, Carl Heine, Sr.
Whidbey Island
Whidbey Island is one of nine islands located in Island County, Washington, in the United States. Whidbey is located about north of Seattle, and lies between the Olympic Peninsula and the I-5 corridor of western Washington...
, Washington.
Ebey was born in Columbus, Ohio in 1818. During his childhood Ebey's father, Jacob, moved the family to Adair County, Missouri where as a young man, the young Ebey was trained in the law. At age 25, Ebey married Rebecca Davis and they later had two sons, Eason (who became Phoebe Judson
Phoebe Judson
Phoebe Goodell Judson was an American pioneer and author. Along with her husband, Holden Judson, she founded the city of Lynden, Washington....
's son-in-law) and Ellison. Born with a naturally adventurous spirit, Isaac temporarily left his wife and young sons in Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
to discover the American west - specifically the Pacific Coast.
Journey West
During his journey west, Ebey briefly tried his hand at gold-mining during the California gold-rush and then headed north to Oregon TerritoryOregon Territory
The Territory of Oregon was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from August 14, 1848, until February 14, 1859, when the southwestern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Oregon. Originally claimed by several countries , the region was...
. After arriving in the Puget Sound
Puget Sound
Puget Sound is a sound in the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected marine waterways and basins, with one major and one minor connection to the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Pacific Ocean — Admiralty Inlet being the major connection and...
region he went to work for the U.S. Customs service. While with the service, Ebey spent some time in Olympia, the city he is credited with naming in honor of the Olympic Peninsula mountains to the west of Puget Sound. Ebey also sponsored a statute to name King County, Washington
King County, Washington
King County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. The population in the 2010 census was 1,931,249. King is the most populous county in Washington, and the 14th most populous in the United States....
. Hearing of the islands in the north end of the sound, Ebey came upon Whidbey Island
Whidbey Island
Whidbey Island is one of nine islands located in Island County, Washington, in the United States. Whidbey is located about north of Seattle, and lies between the Olympic Peninsula and the I-5 corridor of western Washington...
and fell in love with the natural beauty, climate, and rich land perfect for farming.
Homesteading Whidbey Island
In October 1850, Ebey moved from Olympia to Whidbey Island. When Congress passed the Donation Land Claim ActDonation Land Claim Act
The Donation Land Claim Act of 1850 was a statute enacted by the United States Congress intended to promote homestead settlement in the Oregon Territory in the Pacific Northwest...
in 1850, Ebey claimed 640 acre (1 sq mi; 2.6 km²) for himself and his family overlooking Admiralty Inlet then wrote his wife to prepare for a move west with their sons. While awaiting their arrival, Ebey sent numerous letters to his relatives begging their relocation to Whidbey Island in order to snap up the best remaining land for homesteading and farming. Ebey's wife and sons arrived in the fall of 1851 with her three brothers and the Samuel Crockett family.
The remainder of Ebey's family followed in October 1854. Among those of Ebey's family who came to the Pacific Northwest
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest is a region in northwestern North America, bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains on the east. Definitions of the region vary and there is no commonly agreed upon boundary, even among Pacific Northwesterners. A common concept of the...
were: Ebey's parents, Jacob and Sarah; siblings, Mary, Winfield, and Ruth; Mary's two children, Almira and Polk Wright; a cousin, George Beam. Jacob Ebey claimed ridge land overlooking what is today called Ebey's Prairie. On the same ridge, Isaac Ebey built a blockhouse
Blockhouse
In military science, a blockhouse is a small, isolated fort in the form of a single building. It serves as a defensive strong point against any enemy that does not possess siege equipment or, in modern times, artillery...
for protection against raiding Indians. Isaac and Jacob Ebey's land would prove to be some of the most productive in the area and word of this fortune traveled, drawing settlers from the east into the region and starting a rush of settlers who claimed most of the prairie-land by the beginning of 1853. By 1860, all of the best farmland had already been claimed.
Establishing a presence
Like other American farmers of European descent on Whidbey Island, Ebey grew wheat and potatoes, as well as onions, carrots, cabbages, parsnips, peas, barley and other grains. Taking advantage of the natural landing at his property on the shores of Admiralty InletAdmiralty Inlet
Admiralty Inlet is a strait in the U.S. state of Washington connecting the eastern end of the Strait of Juan de Fuca to Puget Sound. It lies between Whidbey Island and the northeastern part of the Olympic Peninsula....
he built a dock for the commercial ship traffic on Puget Sound in order to facilitate trade from Port Townsend
Port Townsend, Washington
Port Townsend is a city in Jefferson County, Washington, United States, approximately north-northwest of Seattle . The population was 9,113 at the 2010 census an increase of 9.3% over the 2000 census. It is the county seat and only incorporated city of Jefferson County...
on the Olympic Peninsula. Because most transportation in the area moved by water, the location of what was now called Ebey's Landing (on the main Puget Sound shipping route) minimized transportation costs. The landing remained active until the turn of the 20th Century when a new dock was built at Fort Casey
Fort Casey
Fort Casey State Park is located on Whidbey Island in Washington state. Admiralty Inlet was considered so strategic to the defense of Puget Sound in the 1890s that three forts, Fort Casey on Whidbey Island, Fort Flagler on Marrowstone Island, and Fort Worden at Port Townsend, were built at the...
, just a few miles away.
During his nine years in the Pacific Northwest, Isaac Ebey was a vital player in territorial affairs. Serving as prosecuting attorney for the Whidbey Island community he also represented Thurston County (Olympia) in the Oregon Territorial Legislature when that county still stretched to the 49th parallel. Ebey also assisted in helping persuade the legislature to sign the Monticello Memorial, separating Oregon and Washington Territories in 1853, and assisted in breaking Thurston County into four smaller areas: Island
Island County, Washington
Island County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. In 2010 census, its population was 78,506. Its county seat is Coupeville, while its largest city is Oak Harbor....
, Jefferson
Jefferson County, Washington
Jefferson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington, named after Thomas Jefferson. As of 2010, the population was 29,872. The county seat is at Port Townsend, which is also the county's only incorporated city....
, King, and Pierce
Pierce County, Washington
right|thumb|[[Tacoma, Washington|Tacoma]] - Seat of Pierce CountyPierce County is the second most populous county in the U.S. state of Washington. Formed out of Thurston County on December 22, 1852, by the legislature of Oregon Territory...
Counties. Appointed by President Franklin Pierce
Franklin Pierce
Franklin Pierce was the 14th President of the United States and is the only President from New Hampshire. Pierce was a Democrat and a "doughface" who served in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate. Pierce took part in the Mexican-American War and became a brigadier general in the Army...
to be collector for the Puget Sound district and inspector of revenues at the new state capital in Olympia, Ebey relocated his customs office to Port Townsend and made it the official port of entry for Puget Sound.
Colonel Ebey
After raising a company of volunteers to fight in the mainland Indian wars of 1855-1856Yakima War
The Yakima War was a conflict between the United States and the Yakama, a Sahaptian-speaking people on the Northwest Plateau, then Washington Territory and now the southern interior of Eastern Washington, from 1855 to 1858.- Naming :...
, the United States government bestowed the title of "Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
" upon Ebey. Well respected among the residents, prospective volunteers refused to enlist unless they would serve under his command.
Untimely deaths
Rebecca Ebey was never happy about the family's encounters with local Indians. Living some distance from the other Euro-American farmers, she stayed close to home managing the household during Isaac's long absences. Already weakened by tuberculosisTuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
, Rebecca died in 1853 following the difficult birth, and subsequent death, of the Ebeys' newborn daughter, Sarah. Ebey soon married Emily Palmer Sconce, a widow with a daughter named Anna.
In 1857, a party of northern (possibly Haida) Indians traveled by canoe
Dugout (boat)
A dugout or dugout canoe is a boat made from a hollowed tree trunk. Other names for this type of boat are logboat and monoxylon. Monoxylon is Greek -- mono- + ξύλον xylon -- and is mostly used in classic Greek texts. In Germany they are called einbaum )...
into Puget Sound
Puget Sound
Puget Sound is a sound in the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected marine waterways and basins, with one major and one minor connection to the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Pacific Ocean — Admiralty Inlet being the major connection and...
on a mission of vengeance. Following the death of one of their chiefs and 27 other tribal members in an attack by the USS Massachusetts
USS Massachusetts (1845)
USS Massachusetts was a steamer acquired by the U.S. Navy prior to the American Civil War. She was used by the U.S. War Department as a transport during the Mexican-American War and traveled widely, including transiting Cape Horn several times as part of her official duties on both sides of the...
the previous year, the Indian party searched for a white Hyas Tyee (great chief) in retaliation. Originally, the intended victim was Dr. John Kellogg, who lived near the present day Admiralty Head lighthouse. On the hot summer evening of August 11, unable to locate Kellogg (who was out of the area), the natives beached at Ebey's Landing and traversed the steep cliff up to Ebey's home. Knocking on Isaac Ebey's door, the natives called him out of the house, shot him dead, and beheaded him.
Emily and the children fled to Jacob Ebey's blockhouse on the ridge, and George and Lucretia Corliss (in-laws of Phoebe Judson
Phoebe Judson
Phoebe Goodell Judson was an American pioneer and author. Along with her husband, Holden Judson, she founded the city of Lynden, Washington....
) escaped into the forest. Unwilling to remain on the farm, Emily abandoned it, leaving forever with her daughter Anna. Isaac Ebey's relatives raised Ellison and Eason, and the two brothers later divided their father's farm between them.
There is question whether these raiding Indians were actually Haida (as inscribed on a historical marker at Ebey's Landing). Traditional stories of the Keex' Kwáan (Kake) tribe of Tlingits tell of the raid being led by a female relative of the slain Indian chief in the Massachusetts attack. Those stories also tell that the female leader of the raid was a member of the Tsaagweidí clan. In fact, the Puget Sound Herald of Steilacoom
Steilacoom, Washington
Steilacoom is a town in Pierce County, Washington, United States. The population was 5,985 at the 2010 census. Steilacoom is on the coast of Puget Sound, on a branch not visible on the map to the right...
published an article fifteen months after Ebey's assassination stating the Kake and Stikine Indians, "numbering a couple hundred," were responsible for the "cold blooded murder." However, it was never known which particular tribe perpetrated the death and beheading of Colonel Ebey.
Ebey's scalp
Isaac Ebey's headless remains were interred in the original Ebey family cemetery located at Ebey's Prairie on the bluff overlooking Isaac and Rebecca's home. Ebey's first wife Rebecca was already interred there, along with their daughter Hetty. The rest of the Ebey family is officially interred at Sunnyside Cemetery, 50 feet (15.2 m) from the burial place of Isaac.Captains Swanston and Charles Dodd of the Hudson's Bay Company
Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company , abbreviated HBC, or "The Bay" is the oldest commercial corporation in North America and one of the oldest in the world. A fur trading business for much of its existence, today Hudson's Bay Company owns and operates retail stores throughout Canada...
steamer Beaver
Beaver (steamship)
Beaver was the first steamship to operate in the Pacific Northwest of North America. She made remote parts of the west coast of Canada accessible for maritime fur trading and was chartered by the Royal Navy for surveying the coastline of British Columbia....
attempted to purchase Ebey's scalp about a year after his death, but were unsuccessful when the Kake Indians took the request as a first step in an attack of their village. It is rumored the Kake refused to sell Ebey's scalp because it was customary to dance around the scalps of their enemies killed in battle during annual feasts. They also believed the scalp held great family importance and should be handed down through generations.
About three years after Ebey's murder, Captain Dodd now on the steamer Labouchere
Labouchere (paddle steamer)
The Labouchere was a paddle steamer in the service of the Hudson's Bay Company,built in 1858 at Green's in Blackwall, London, England. Under the command of Captain J. Trivett it was mostly in service in British Columbia and the rest of the Pacific Northwest in the 1850s and 1860s...
again attempted to purchase the scalp of his slain friend, and was successful. Dodd acquired the scalp for a liberal reward of "six blankets, 3 pipes, 1 cotton handkerchief, 6 heads of tobacco, 1 fthm. cotton," and gave it to A. M. Poe, Esq. to be returned to Ebey's brother, Winfield. On April 5, 1860, Winfield Ebey noted in his diary the much awaited return of his brother's "poor head":
While some historians insist Winfield—a prolific diarist—had the scalp buried with his brother's body, no record of this claim exists. After Winfield's death in 1865, at least five separate accounts maintain that Ebey's sister, Mary Ebey Bozarth, inherited the relic. Albert Kellogg, the son of Dr. John Kellogg, recalled visiting Bozarth "ten or twelve years" after the murder and "she showed the scalp lock still retaining the long black hair. It was the only thing of that kind I had ever seen and I remember it caused cold chills to run over me." After Bozarth died in 1876, Ebey's scalp was passed on to his niece, Almira Enos. The next mention of its location occurred in 1892 when Almira visited Whidbey, an event noted by the Island County Times. In the newspaper's July 29, 1892 issue it was reported:
But Enos also visited an old friend, Hugh Crockett, who was quoted by the Times as saying that Enos "told me only a few weeks ago that she has (the scalp) at her house in San Francisco." Those two articles are the most reliable accounts to date of where that "sad memento" of Ebey's death was kept. At this time only one other reference to the scalp's whereabouts has been found. According to family reports, the scalp was last known to be in the possession of the Almira Enos family in California as of 1914.
Legacy
The area around Isaac Ebey's original homestead is today a living memorial to his pioneer legacy. Fort Ebey (established in 1942) on the west side of the central part of the island (just northwest of Coupeville) is named in Colonel Ebey's honor. The rich farmland claimed by Isaac and his father Jacob is still called Ebey's Prairie and is farmed to this day.Ebey's Landing, while no longer a docking port, is named for the beachfront located just below the still-standing Ferry House
Ferry House (Ebey's Landing)
One of the oldest residential buildings in Washington, the Ferry House was built in 1860 by Winfield Scott Ebey as an Inn to provide financial stability for his brother’s children, who were orphaned when Isacc Neff Ebey was brutally murdered and beheaded by Canadian natives...
built in 1860. The Landing is now a National Historical Reserve and was the first NHR in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. External views of the Ferry House and the surrounding Ebey's Prairie can be seen in scenes from the 1999 movie Snow Falling On Cedars
Snow Falling on Cedars
Snow Falling on Cedars is a 1994 novel written by American writer David Guterson. Guterson, who was a teacher at the time, wrote the book in the early morning hours over a ten-year period...
, depicting the homestead of fictional German immigrant, Carl Heine, Sr.
See also
- History of Olympia
- Port Gamble, WashingtonPort Gamble, WashingtonPort Gamble is an unincorporated community on the northwestern shore of the Kitsap Peninsula in Kitsap County, Washington, United States. It is also a small, similarly named bay, along which the community lies, near the entrance to Hood Canal. The unincorporated communities of Port Gamble and...
- Ebey's Landing National Historical ReserveEbey's Landing National Historical ReserveEbey's Landing National Historical Reserve is a unit of the National Park Service near Coupeville, Washington.-Description:The Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve, a rural historic district, preserves and protects an unbroken historical record of Puget Sound exploration and settlement from...