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| A 1925 newspaper photo from a story about the arrival at the Seattle
waterfront of the two Model of 1898 seven-inch howitzers and two Model
of 1898 five-inch siege guns that Kirkland's American Legion post used
to decorate Kirkland's north and south entrances. The two howitzers that
would grace Kirkland's northern entrance are shown in the above image. |
Probably no organization was prominent and powerful force in
1920’s Kirkland
civic life than the Warren O. Grimm Post 83 of
the American Legion.
Its members were said to “run Kirkland”. Indeed, mayors and council members
of that era were often legionnaires, for example popular town physician, Dr.
Ernest McKibben, Sr., served as both the post commander and as Kirkland’s mayor.
Kirkland
was quite proud of its vets’ service. Given that, to honor them the legion guys
decided to redecorate the town--man cave style: with artillery pieces!
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| This image of Kirkland American Legion Post 83 members in uniform at the
southern guns' 1925 dedication is now in the Kirkland Heritage
Society's collection. The date written below was likely added by someone
years later, since it is incorrect--The record is quite clear that the
four artillery pieces did not even arrive in Washington until 1925. H.P.
'Dick' Everest is seen fourth from the right. |
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| This 1920's postcard views south and shows the two five-inch siege guns
mounted on their pedestals on Lake Washington Boulevard, near today's
10th Avenue South. |
Harold P. “Dick” Everest—Everest
Park’s namesake--graduated from Kirkland High School in 1912 and from the UW in
1917. Next came the Army, for World War One, but Everest was not sent to
France’s bloody trenches, instead he was stationed at Love Field, Texas, where
he worked with the crude wood and canvas earliest combat airplanes. Following the
war, Everest, Dr. McKibben, Sr. and A.C. “Coal” Newell formed Kirkland’s legion post and served as its
officers. In 1922, the post even obtained a war surplus freighter it moored on
the Kirkland waterfront as the post clubhouse, which
members named ‘Fort
Jackson’.
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| Former East Side Journal newspaper owner and publisher, Kirkland
Investment Company president and University of Washington professor,
department head, vice president and acting 1951-52 president H.P. 'Dick'
Everest (1894-1967) seen in 1918 as a young US Army officer and in the
1951-52 school year, as many of today's senior Kirklanders remember him.
Always a Kirkland booster, Everest led the 1920s effort to secure its
artillery from the War Department. |
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| H.P. 'Dick' Everest seen in WWI (Photo Kirkland Heritage Society, Everest Collection). |
In 1924, the legionnaires decided to decorate Kirkland’s
north and south entrances with artillery, so the high-achieving and persuasive
Everest convinced the War Department to donate four obsolete Spanish American
War-era pieces: two 5-inch M-1898 siege guns and two 7-inch M-1898 howitzers,
two of 30 ever manufactured, neither of which saw action. A howitzer is a type of artillery piece
characterized by a relatively short barrel which uses comparatively small
propellant charges to send projectiles at relatively high trajectories, with a
steep angle of descent. A gun has a longer barrel
than a howitzer with a smaller bore which allows firing a projectile at lower
trajectories at high velocities. Howitzer were typically used for ‘indirect
fire’—shelling an unseen target—whereas guns were used for ‘direct fire’—targets
in the gunner’s line of sight. So, guns’ barrels are typically longer and
mounted at a flatter angle, whereas howitzers’ barrels are shorter and project
at a higher angle. OK, enough Artillery 101...
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| Kirkland teen Stella Patty is seen in 1925 next to the seven-inch
howitzers near Kirkland's north entrance prior to their placement on
pedestals. Her friend, Alice Peck, is seen next to them the same day (below). Images of the northern entrance howitzers have proven
quite elusive until Patty descendent, Patty (Fessenden) Barnhardt and
her brother Warren Fessenden donated these from their family collection
to the Kirkland Heritage Society last year, so a big thanks to them!
(Stella Patty was their aunt). |
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The Seattle Times ran a gushing story with photo on January 4, 1925
about the four weapons’ New Year’s Day arrival on Seattle’s waterfront, from
California’s Benicia Arsenal, and journey east, using a tractor borrowed from
Seattle’s Central Ford Agency, up the hill via Madison Street to the Madison
Park ferry dock, loaded there on the boat to Kirkland where they were ultimately
placed on concrete pedestals; south, on Lake Washington Boulevard near 10th
Avenue South, and north, on Market Street, near the city line—then at 18th
Ave, a few blocks south of today’s Juanita Bay Park, by today’s Asian Wok
Restaurant.
The two northern howitzers left Kirkland
in September, 1937, when the legion donated the two to Washelli Cemetery
as a veterans’ memorial. On Memorial Day 1957 one was relocated to Brier’s Abbey View
Cemetery. The southern siege
guns were destroyed in 1942, falling not to hostile forces, but instead to a
WWII scrap drive.
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| The 1937 Seattle Times article showing it was the northern howitzers which were moved to Evergreen-Washelli, not the southern guns. In past years this has been the subject of much confusion. |
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| As part of a 1957 Memorial Day celebration, the Seattle times reported that one of the two howitzers was moved from Evergreen-Washelli Cemetery in Seattle to its affiliated Abbey View Cemetery, in Brier. |
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| This 1920's postcard views south and shows the two five-inch siege guns
mounted on their pedestals on Lake Washington Boulevard, near today's
10th Avenue South. |
Today:
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| The Model of 1898 five-inch siege guns that once stood at Kirkland's southern entrance were melted down as scrap during WWII, but this image is of an identical field piece on display at Fort Douglas, Utah. |
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Evergreen-Washelli
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| This plaque commemorates Kirkland's American Legion Post's gift of the
two northern entrance howitzers to Evergreen-Washelli Cemetery. One
remains at that location today and has for 75 years been a part of
Evergreen-Washelli's famous veterans' section. |
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| Manufacturer's plate for the Model of 1898 seven-inch howitzer at Evergreen-Washelli |
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| The three images above show the howitzer at Evergreen-Washelli veteran's section today. |
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Abbey View
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| The howitzer which was moved to Abbey View in 1957 is missing its manufacturer's plate. |
This post has been modified, but originally appeared May 15, 2012, on KirklandViews.com.
