Eglon, Washington facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Eglon, Washington
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 Eglon, Washington
Location in Washington (state)
Eglon, Washington
Location in the United States
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| Country | United States |
| State | Washington |
| County | Kitsap |
| Time zone | UTC-8 (Pacific (PST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-7 (PDT) |
| GNIS feature ID | 1512182 |
Eglon is a small, unincorporated community located in Kitsap County, Washington, in the United States. This means it's a place where people live together, but it doesn't have its own local government like a city or town. Eglon is a quiet spot with a community center, a church, a cemetery, a place to launch boats, a beach, and a picnic area for everyone to enjoy. The local fire department, North Kitsap Fire and Rescue, provides fire protection services for the area.
Contents
History of Eglon
Early Settlers and Land Grants
The story of Eglon began with government land grants to early settlers. The very first land record in this area was made on December 1, 1864. It was for 160 acres given to Isidro Martyn, who had served in the US Army during the American Civil War.
Later, in 1891, another settler named Charles R. Silver received 160 acres of land along the waterfront. A stream flowed into Puget Sound from his property, so he named the area Silver Creek. Soon, the surrounding community also became known by this name. Silver only owned this land for a few years. In 1894, it was bought by Edward Scannel, who was the lighthouse keeper at Point-No-Point.
At this time, most landowners probably didn't live in the area all year. They would come to cut down trees (log) and fish on their land. They usually lived in bigger, more established communities nearby, such as Kingston, Edmonds, and Seattle.
A New Name and Growing Community
In 1904, Albert Halvorsen, an immigrant from Norway, bought over a mile of waterfront land from Scannel. This included the former Silver property. Halvorsen brought many of his relatives from Seattle to live on his new land. These families became the first permanent residents of Silver Creek.
At first, settlers had to row boats to either Edmonds or Point-No-Point to get their mail and supplies. As the population grew, Halvorsen decided to open a general store near the beach in 1906. He also applied for a post office. Postal officials said they couldn't use the name Silver Creek because another place in Washington already had that name. So, the community chose the name Eglon, after a figure from the Hebrew Bible. The Eglon post office officially opened on October 8, 1906, with Albert's wife, Marie Halvorsen, as the first postmistress.
Building Schools and Churches
The Eglon school district was created in 1907. There were nine school-aged children living in Eglon at the time. Classes began on January 8, 1908, and the first schoolhouse was built that same year.
Between 1918 and 1920, the Eglon Community Church was built. This church still stands today and continues to hold services. Many of the early church services were held in Norwegian or Swedish, reflecting the heritage of the community. In 1921, a summer camp for girls called Camp Cohoe was started. A larger Eglon schoolhouse was built in 1922. Today, this building is used as the community center.
Industry and Transportation Growth
Over the next ten years, more businesses came to Eglon. A logging company called Cook's Camp started in 1906 at Sandy Beach, south of Eglon Beach. A sawmill followed in 1908, and a fish trap was built in 1916.
In 1912, a one-way wagon road was built to Kingston. This was the first road connecting Eglon to the rest of the county. A community dock was built in 1913, but it wasn't very strong and had to be replaced in 1918. On November 18, 1918, regular ferry service began. The Puget Sound Navigation Company started sending their steamer Puget to Colman Dock in Seattle. This was part of the "Mosquito Fleet," which was a group of small boats that traveled around Puget Sound.
In 1919, the Port of Eglon was created, and the dock was sold to the Port for just $1. Boats brought passengers, goods, mail, daily Seattle newspapers, and fresh produce from the Public Market in Seattle. Other steamboats that often visited Eglon included the Dode, Perdita, "Weary Willy", Monticello, Dauntless, and Virginia III.
Roads, Telephones, and Electricity
Logging in the area increased in the 1920s when the Puget Mill Company arrived in 1922. They first logged along Hansville Road, moving logs by train to Gamble Bay. From there, the logs were floated to the Port Gamble mill. In 1926, Puget Mill started logging closer to Eglon Beach, floating logs from a special logging dock built north of the beach. In the summer of 1929, a large forest fire burned much of the logged land. Firefighters from nearby towns helped protect the Eglon dock, and with a helpful wind, they succeeded.
In 1921, construction began on Hansville Road, which would allow cars to reach Eglon for the first time. Early car owners in Eglon used the old wagon road, but they often needed horses to help them. Sometimes, they even had to drive up steep hills in reverse! Hansville Road opened in sections and was finished in 1924. Highway 104 opened in 1926, connecting Eglon to Kingston and its ferry service to Edmonds. However, the road wasn't in good condition for year-round use until improvements were made in 1942.
The first telephone connection to Eglon was completed in December 1926. Electricity service arrived in 1929, bringing modern power to the community.
Changes in Transportation and Communication
With the new roads, the "Mosquito Fleet" boat service to Eglon became unprofitable by 1933 and was stopped. For one year, Eglon was a "flag stop" for the passenger steamer Mohawk, meaning it would only stop if someone waved a flag to get on or off. This service ran three times a week but was also stopped in 1934 because not enough people were using it. The Eglon post office eventually closed in 1964.
See also
In Spanish: Eglon (Washington) para niños
