by James Canby | Feb 27, 2022 | SW People & Families
Mary and Joseph Smith gazed in perplexity at the log building which was to be their temporary home. They had just purchased a 40-acre farm from Will and Ada Campbell on what is now the intersection of the Campbell and Cultus Bay Roads, not far from Kyllonen Hill....
by James Canby | Feb 27, 2022 | SW People & Families
Wilhelm and Hilma Mattila were part of the Finnish social group that revolved around the Kyllonen establishment. There was a most unusual twist to their marriage. There was a 20-year span between 1892, when Wilhelm left Finland for Canada, and 1912 when he was well...
by James Canby | Feb 27, 2022 | SW People & Families
If Herman Kyllonen had been able to gaze into a crystal ball and see his future back in the 1880s when he left his native Finland to seek his fortune in America he would have been pleased.He would have been pleased to foresee that in 1889 he would homestead 160 acres...
by James Canby | Feb 27, 2022 | SW People & Families
Another well known early day man who is fondly remembered as a “character” was Charlie Stover who is claimed equally by Freeland, Cultus Bay, and Langley. He operated his own steam sawmill in Freeland during the 1930s where the bowling alley stands now. He...
by James Canby | Feb 27, 2022 | SW People & Families
One of the most unique and best known “native sons” of the Freeland area was Austin “Deke” Marshall whose father pioneered in the area prior to 1880. “Deke” was born in Langley in 1894 and died in Freeland January 9, 1974. The...
by James Canby | Feb 27, 2022 | SW People & Families
Edward Duville, who came to the Freeland area in 1908 from Mount Vernon, was a friend of the Spencer family, and another early day resident who is remembered by many. He lived alone at Freeland for a time, then went into partnership with George and Blanche Gardner;...
