Blazing The Way Part 21

Almost to the last day of his life he took interest in the progress of the nation and of the world, following the great movements with absorbing interest.

He expressed a desire to see his friends earnest Christians, his own willingness to leave earthly scenes and his faith in Jesus.

So he lived and thus he died, pa.s.sing away on the morning of November 25th, 1903, in the seventy-second year of his age.

He was a great pioneer, a mighty force, commercial, moral and religious, in the foundation-building of the Northwest.

In a set of resolutions presented by the Pioneer a.s.sociation of the State of Was.h.i.+ngton occur these words: "The record of no citizen was ever marked more distinctly by acts of probity, integrity and general worth than that of Mr. D. T. Denny, endearing him to all the people and causing them to regard him with the utmost esteem and favor."

On the morning of November 26th, 1903, there appeared in the Post-Intelligencer, the following:

"David Thomas Denny, who came to the site of Seattle in 1851, the first of his name on Puget Sound, died at his home, a mile north of Green Lake, at 3:36 yesterday morning. All the members of his family, including John Denny, who arrived the day before from Alaska, were at the bedside. Until half an hour before he pa.s.sed away Mr. Denny was conscious, and engaged those about him in conversation."

MARRIED IN A CABIN.

The story of the early life of the Denny brothers tallies very nearly with the history of Seattle. Mr. and Mrs. David Denny were married in a cabin on the north end of A. A. Denny's claim near the foot of Lenora street, January 23, 1853. The next morning the couple moved to their own cabin--built by the husband's hands--at the foot of what is now Denny Way. The moving was accomplished in a canoe.

Though they professed a great respect for David Denny, the Indians were numerous and never very reliable. In a year or two, therefore, the family moved up nearer the sawmill and little settlement which had grown up near the foot of Cherry street. D. T. Denny had meanwhile staked out a very large portion of what is now North Seattle--a plat of three hundred and twenty acres. Later he made seven additions to the city of Seattle from this claim. In 1857 it was a wilderness of thick brush, but the pioneer moved his family to his farm on the present site of Recreation park in that year. The Indian war had occurred the winter before and the red men were quiet, having received a lesson from the blue jackets which were landed from the United States gunboat Decatur.

Three or four years later the family moved to a cottage at the corner of Second avenue and Seneca street. In the early '70s they moved to the large home at the corner of Dexter and Republican streets, where the children grew up. In 1890 the family took possession of the large house standing on Queen Anne avenue, known as the Denny home, which was occupied by the family until a few years ago, when they moved to Fremont and later to the house where Mr. Denny died, in Licton Park, some distance north of Green Lake.

Until about ten years ago David T. Denny was considered the wealthiest man in Seattle. His large property in the north end of the city had been the source of more and more revenue as the town grew. When the needs of the town became those of a big city he hastened to supply them with energy and money. His mill on the sh.o.r.es of Lake Union was the largest in the city, when Seattle was first known as a milling town. The establishment of an electric light plant and a water supply to a part of the city were among the enterprises which he headed.

The cable and horse car roads were consolidated into a company headed by D. T. Denny more than a decade ago. In the effort to supply the company with the necessary funds Mr. Denny attempted to convert much of his property into cash. At that time an estimate of his resources was made by a close personal friend, who yesterday said that the amount was considerably over three million dollars, which included his valuable stock in the traction companies. In the hard times of '93 Mr. Denny was unable to realize the apparent value of his property, and a considerable reduction of his fortune was a result. Since then he has been to a great extent engaged in mining in the Cascade mountains, and for the past three years has been closely confined to his home by a serious illness.

Among the gifts of D. T. Denny to the city of Seattle is Denny Park.

Denny Way, the Denny school and other public places in Seattle bear his name. D. T. Denny was a liberal Republican always. He was at one time a member of the board of regents of the territorial university, the first treasurer of King county, probate judge for two years and for twelve years a school director of District No. 1, comprising the city of Seattle.

Several of those who were a.s.sociated with David T. Denny during the time when he was in active business and a strong factor in local affairs have offered estimates of his character and of the part he took in the founding and building of the city. Said Col. William T. Prosser:

"It is sad to think that David T. Denny will no more be seen upon the streets of the city he a.s.sisted in founding more than fifty years ago. During all that time he was closely identified with its varying periods of danger, delayed hopes and bitter disappointments, as well as those of marvelous growth, activity and prosperity. The changing features of the city were reflected in his own personal history. The waves of prosperity and adversity both swept over him, yet throughout his entire career he always maintained his integrity and through it all he bore himself as an energetic and patriotic citizen and as a Christian gentleman."

Judge Thomas Burke:

"D. T. Denny had great faith in Seattle, and his salient characteristic was his readiness in pus.h.i.+ng forward its welfare.

I remember him having an irreproachable character--honest, just in all his dealings and strong in his spirit. In ill.u.s.tration of his strong feeling on the temperance question I remember that he embodied a clause in the early deeds of the property which he sold to the effect that no intoxicating liquors were to be sold upon the premises. Yes, he was a good citizen."

Charles A. Prosch:

"Although Mr. Denny's later years were clouded by financial troubles, reverses did not soil his spirit nor change his integrity. He was progressive to the last and one of the most upright men I know."

D. B. Ward:

"I first met David Denny in 1859 and I have known him more or less intimately ever since. I know him to have possessed strict integrity, unswerving purpose and cordial hospitality. My first dinner in Seattle was eaten at his home--where a baked salmon fresh from the Sound was an oddity to me. His financial troubles some years ago grew out of his undaunted public spirit. He was president of the first consolidated street car system here, and in his efforts to support it most of his property was confiscated. I knew him for a strong, able man."

Judge Orange Jacobs:

"Mr. Denny was a quiet man, but he carried the stamp of truth. He was extremely generous, and as I remember, he possessed a fine mind. In his death I feel a personal, poignant grief."

Rev. W. S. Harrington:

"D. T. Denny was a man of much more than average ability. He thought much and deeply on all questions which affected the welfare of man. He was retiring and his strength was known to few. But his integrity was thorough and transparent and his purpose inflexible. Even though he suffered, his spirit was never bitter toward his fellows, and his benefactions were numerous.

Above all, he was a Christian and believed in a religion which he sought to live, not to exhibit. His long illness was borne with a patience and a sweetness which commanded my deep respect and admiration."

Samuel L. Crawford:

"A man with the courage to fight for his convictions of right and with a marvelous capacity for honest work--such is the splendid heritage David T. Denny has left to his sorrowing family. When but 19 years of age he walked from the Columbia river to Puget Sound, driving a small band of stock ahead of him through the brush.

"No sooner had his party settled and the log cabin been completed than David commenced looking for more work, and, like all others who seek diligently, he was successful, for early in December of that year the brig Leonesa, Capt. Daniel S. Howard, stopped at Alki Point, seeking a cargo of piling for San Francisco. David T.

Denny, William N. Bell, C. D. Boren, C. C. Terry, J. N. Low, A.

A. Denny and Lee Terry took the contract of cutting the piling and loading the vessel, which they accomplished in about two weeks, a remarkably short time, when the weather and the lack of teams and other facilities are taken into consideration.

"Other vessels came for cargo and Mr. Denny became an expert woodsman, helping to supply them with piling from the sh.o.r.es. In 1852 Mr. Denny, in company with his brother Arthur and some others, came over to Elliott Bay and laid the foundation of Seattle, the great city of the future. Mr. Denny, being a bachelor, took the most northerly claim, adjoining that of W. N.

Bell, and built a cabin near the sh.o.r.e, at the foot of what is now Denny Way. The Indians being troublesome, he moved into a small house beside that of his brother on the site of the present Stevens Hotel.

"In the meantime he married a sister of C. D. Boren, and a small family commenced to spring up around him, thus requiring larger quarters. In 1871 Mr. Denny built a large frame house on the southwest sh.o.r.e of Lake Union, on a beautiful knoll. He cleared up a large portion of his claim, and for many years engaged in farming and stock-raising. He afterward built a palatial home on his property at the foot of Queen Anne Hill, midway between Lake Union and the Sound, but this he occupied only a short time. In 1852, in company with his brother Arthur, Mr. Denny discovered Salmon Bay.

"Mr. Denny was a just man and always dealt fairly with the Indians. For this reason the Indians learned to love and respect him, and for many years they have gone to him to settle their disputes and help them out of their difficulties with the whites and among themselves.

"As Seattle grew, David Denny platted much of his claim and sold it off in town lots. He built the Western mill at the south end of Lake Union and engaged extensively in the building and promotion of street railways. He had too many irons in the fire, and when the panic came in 1892-3 it crippled him financially, but he gave up his property, the acc.u.mulation of a lifetime of struggle and work, to satisfy his creditors, and went manfully to work in the mountains of Was.h.i.+ngton to regain his lost fortune.

His heroic efforts were rapidly being crowned with success, as he is known to have secured a number of mines of great promise, on which he has done a large amount of development work during the past few years.

"In the death of David T. Denny, Seattle loses an upright, generous worker, who has always contributed of his brain, brawn and cash for the upbuilding of the city of which he was one of the most important founders."

DEXTER HORTON'S TRIBUTE.

"'I have known Mr. Denny for fifty years. A mighty tree has fallen. He was one of the best men, of highest character and principle, this city ever claimed as a citizen. That is enough.'

"By Father F. X. Prefontaine, of the Church of Our Lady of Good Help: 'I have known Mr. Denny about thirty-six or thirty-seven years. I always liked him, though I was more intimately acquainted with his brother, Hon. A. A. Denny, and his venerable father, John Denny. His father in his time impressed me as a fine gentleman, a great American. He was a man who was always called upon at public meetings for a speech and he was a deeply earnest man, so much so that tears often showed in his eyes while he was addressing the people.'

"Hon. Boyd J. Tallman, judge of the Superior Court: 'I have only known Mr. Denny since 1889, and I always entertained the highest regard for him. He was a man of firm conviction and principle and was always ready to uphold them. Though coming here to help found the town, he was always ready to advocate and stand for the principle of prohibition and temperance on all occasions. While there were many who could not agree with him in these things, every manly man felt bound to accord to Mr. Denny honesty of purpose and respect for the sincerity of his opinion. I believe that in his death a good man has gone and this community has suffered a great loss.'"

C. B. BAGLEY TALKS.

"Clarence B. Bagley, who as a boy and man has known Mr. Denny for almost the full number of years the latter lived at Seattle, was visibly overcome at the news of his death. Mr. Bagley would gladly have submitted a more extended estimate than he did of Mr.

Denny's life and character, but he was just hurrying into court to take his place as a juryman.

"'Mr. Denny was one of the best men Seattle ever had. He was a liberal man, ever ready to embark his means in enterprises calculated to upbuild and aid in the progress of Seattle. He was a man of strong convictions, strong almost to obstinacy in upholding and maintaining cherished principles he fully believed.

"'Mr. Denny suffered reverses through his willingness to establish enterprises for the good of the whole city. He built the Western Mill at Lake Union when the location was away in the woods, and eventually lost a great deal of money in it during the duller periods of the city's life. He also lost a great deal of money in giving this city a modern street railway system. His character as an honorable man and Christian always stood out boldly, his integrity of purpose never questioned.'

"Lawrence J. Colman, son of J. M. Colman, the pioneer, said: 'Our family has known Mr. Denny for thirty-one years, ever since coming to Seattle. We regarded him as an absolutely upright, conscientious and Christian man, notwithstanding the reverses that came to him, in whom our confidence was supreme, and one who did not require his character to be upheld, for it shone brightly at all times by its own l.u.s.tre.'"

SAMUEL COOMBS TALKS.