National Map (1908)

Map of National
Map of National

This is 1908 plat map of National, filed with Pierce County.

Pat Walgamott says, “An “unofficial” plat of the National townsite;  as far as I know the town never fulfilled its expectations!  This was sent in response to my request for a map of that area.”

Photo courtesy of Pat Walgamott.

Click on image to enlarge.

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25 responses to “National Map (1908)”

  1. I am very interested in this subject. My grandparents lived and worked here. My mother was born in National and worked at a store there while in high school (Eatonville).
    Any further information would be most welcome.
    I did see the site in the early 1960’s and it consisted of cellar holes marking the places where homes used to be.

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      • Hi, all of this information is very interesting. My mother, Lorrain Elinor Groeper Cochran was born in National on August 12th 1923. She passed away only 2 days ago. I haven’t gone through all the pictures she has, but I am sure I will find some from her National days. I would like to find out more about it and see more pictures. My logger grandfather was Frank Groeper. I think the family lived there until Mom was about 10.

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    • My dad was also born in national. My grandparents owned a service station there for quite a while. I have a very nice panoramic picture of the mill along with some other pictures of logging in the area. My dad had a hand drawn map of the town at one time but he donated it to either a museum in that area or something.

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      • We lived in National When I was Young I remember an Ahron g
        Getsfrid and still remember a lot of the people from there. I started school in Ashford and went to Columbia Crest the first year it was opened. Dad was Russ Davis and his brother Carl Sr. lived in asshford after all the houses in National was sold. We lived there until my grandmother had a stroke and we moved to the farm in Morton to take care of her. I still run the hills up there and and haave very fond memories of the people. My dad raised moms children their names are Bob McCarty,Don McCarty, Fay McCarty and Jeannette McCarty who married Dick Sokol from Mineral.

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  2. I live in Battle Ground Wa. The panoramic is about 53″ x 10″ not sure how to email it or even copy it. I could take a picture of it the best I can and either text it or email it to you. Dad said he thought that it was the only one he ever saw of the entire mill.

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  4. My West Seattle next door neighbor until 1979, Robert Miller, was born in National. Some years ago I ended up in a chat in comments with one of his family members.

    Mr. Brand who runs the homemade Ashford Alpine Crafts shop in Ashford was a logger born in National. I hope he’s still alive as he’d have great stories. His wife, Sandra A. Brand sells her paintings in shop which is attached to their home. It’s on Hwy 706 just East of “downtown” Ashford as you drive towards Mt. Rainier National Park. There are lots of chain saw sculptures, birdhouses, paintings on saws, and things like that out front. Near Wild Berry restaurant.

    Does anyone know the Mr. Brand I am talking about? I haven’t talked to him in about 10-12 years.

    #nationalPierceCounty

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    • We were up there Last weekend and he is still there, he is confined to a wheelchair but is still very lively and full of stories. We allways buy something when ever we can stop in.

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    • Genealogists probably wonder when they read about #NationalWashington or #NationalPierceCounty Maybe parts of what was “National, Washington” are within the boundaries of #AshfordWashington #piercecounty #ghosttown #logginghistory #roadtorainier

      Are there any buildings left standing in National? I think that church or grange building near the highway is still there? People find logging artifacts in the woods. Does the Mt. RAINIER railroad run through any of what was National?

      #piercecountyhistory #20thCenturyGhostTown

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      • Those are good questions. I know that some people (not many now) who lived there are still around. They could be able to answer the questions. I don’t think the railroad goes through there. I think it stops at about Mineral.

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  5. At present all I have in my possession is a photo of my Grandfather and Grandmother (Eric and Hanna (Dahlstrom) Anderson. I did give some photos to my brother that I will try to get copies of. I also have a copy of the marriage certificate (he was 40 and she was 34). My mother was born in 1921 and had an older sister and a younger sister. Some of the photos you’ve posted are truly enlightening.

    I can send any photo by any means.

    I was born in Tacoma but never lived in Washington. After dad came back from WWII, I grew up all over the western states but now I live in Massachusetts.

    I’ll contact you for an email address when I have several pictures to send. My personal favorite was my grandfather standing by a long rope between two trees with his annual salmon catch hanging on the rope. He was about 5’6″ and the salmon were about the same or close to it.

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  6. My grandparents lived there in the 30’s after my dad was born. Pete & Lillian Rochefort. So great to find this chatroom.

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  8. Just found out my grandmother and my great grandparents lived in National for over 12 years, starting in about 1912. I do a lot of genealogy and found this out from the Census. On the Census, it says my great grandfather was a “Classer” do you know what type of job that was? Also, apparently my grandmother went to Centralia High School, when they lived in National. I can’t figure out how she did this without living in Centralia, since it was 36 miles one way from National. Any ideas of how teenagers went to high school, when their families lived in the logging camp at National?
    Thanks for any info you can give!

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    • National was a logging town. I’m not familiar with a Classer job. It could have been written down wrong. There were cruisers, who checked out trees to be cut. There Chasers, who unhooked chokers from the logs at the landing. There were choke setters, the person that put the choke around the log to be skidded up to the landing. (a dangerous job). Those are the closest thing I come up with.

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    • Some of it. I finished a book on the Rock Festival. And I’m working on one for Ohop Valley. Actually, I have hundreds of more photos to log in. I guess I better get busy. 🙂

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    • There is a book called History of Southeastern Pierce County, which has LOADS of information. You can get it at the Eatonville Library.

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