Log cabin with sign 'Shoes, Boots, Saddles'
History,  Washington State

Old Mission, one man’s dream

November 10, 2021 / 20 Comments

In the quiet Washington State town of Cashmere is a rather special place, the realisation of one man’s dream. The pioneer village, known as Old Mission, brings together a collection of around twenty historic buildings assembled from the surrounding area. It and the attached museum owe their existence to the way that man’s dying wish inspired a town.

We were welcomed by an enthusiastic and friendly volunteer who took time to explain the collections to us and how the museum was founded. That story of the museum’s founding is told on its website. The account has been shortened since our visit; the extract below is as I read it at the time:

‘In 1955 Willis Carey had a dream, and he had cancer, and it was going to be a race to see which won.

During his lifetime he amassed a personal collection of Native American artifacts, historical relics, antiques and curios that were famous throughout Central Washington. As his cancer progressed, he lamented to friends there was no place to house his treasures after his death. The word spread among the local businessmen and the Chamber of Commerce, led by John McDonald, began exploring the possibilities of building a local public museum for the Carey artifacts.

On a late summer day the committee visited the terminally ill Willis Carey at his home to acquaint him with the proposal. McDonald later reported that “tears of joy streamed down Carey’s face” when he realized his collection might be preserved for the people of Cashmere. He immediately called for paper and pen and on the spot, signed over his entire treasure. He died the next day.

Nearly 30 years after Carey’s dream was realized another addition was opened, the Russell Congdon wing with its collection obtained from archaeological sites on the Mid-Columbia. It has been called the most significant collection in the world. During the same time, a small village of original pioneer cabins was growing below the museum, preserving the rich heritage of the pioneer’s contribution to the valley.’

Old Mission

We started our visit in Old Mission itself. The collection includes log cabins, a general store, small hotel, mission church, school house and more. You can’t go inside but can look into each through the doorways to see that all have been furnished with genuine artefacts from their era.

Here are some of my favourites, with descriptions taken from the free leaflet we were given along with our tickets.

Log cabin with General Store sign

The General Store was originally built as a home by Archie Smith, in 1846.

Cluttered old-fashioned shop

Inside it is crammed with all the items a pioneer family might need to buy; including linens, foodstuffs, kitchen and farm equipment and more.

Interior of a simple log cabin

The Horan log cabin was built in 1872 by Samuel C. Miller, the first permanent settler in the Wenatchee Valley, on his homestead. In 1898 it was the birthplace of Congressman Walt Horan, the Horan family having bought it in 1896. The Horan family provided all these antique furnishings.

Two log cabins on grass

The Buckhorn Saloon (on the left) was built as a cabin in 1886 on Badger Mountain, north of Wenatchee (a few miles east of Cashmere. It has been adapted to serve as Old Mission’s saloon. The Post Office (on the right) dates from 1872. It was originally a trading post in the city of Wenatchee, operated by the same Samuel C. Miller who built the Horan Cabin. It later became a post office.

Log cabin porch with hotel sign

The Mission Hotel was built as a cabin in 1898 but has been fitted out as a typical late 19th century hotel.

Old-fashioned room with table set for dinner

You can go into the corridor to see several rooms opening off it, including this, the dining room.

Old-fashioned room with dark furniture and doll

The Weythman Cabin was built in 1891 by Jim Weythman as an addition to his log cabin, to honour his new bride, Elizabeth; unlike most of the structures here it is not built of logs but of boards battened onto a frame.

Interior of a simple log cabin

The Richardson Cabin was built in 1888 with logs cut at Horse Lake above Wenatchee. It was home to a large family; the Richardsons had twelve children!

Interior of a simple log cabin school classroom

This one room schoolhouse, dating from the 1880s, was the first in the Cashmere Valley. The volunteer in the museum told us that for the last week of the school year the local fourth graders are taught in this school house; many of them wear historical costume for the classes. What a great idea!

Small log-built church

The St. Francis Xavier Mission is the only non-original structure here; it’s a replica of an 1873 mission church which burned down. This modern copy was built by volunteers from the local St. Francis Catholic Church.

Red train carriage on an overgrown track

This little stretch of railroad is named the John McDonald Railroad, after the man who led the plan to build the museum.

Red train carriage on an overgrown track

It has a 1922 Great Northern Caboose as well as a number of buildings. These include a ticket office and various pieces of railroad equipment.

Other buildings

In addition to the buildings I have described above there are several other cabins; a jail and sheriff’s office; millinery shop, saddle shop and blacksmith: plus a mine portal and assay office.

We had the village to ourselves. Maybe the heat had kept some people away or maybe it’s never busy on a weekday? I really enjoyed the tranquil atmosphere of this pretty setting. That is, apart from when one of the sprinklers that were watering the grass caught me unawares while taking a photo and I let out a yelp!

The museum

We then had a quick look round the museum, appreciating its coolness (it was a very hot day) and the clear way it was set out. We were most interested in the pictographs displayed and the objects relating to the Native American way of life in this region.

Petroglyph
Petroglyph

There are also paintings by local artists; artefacts from the pioneer days; archaeological finds (tools, jewellery and household objects); dioramas showing local fauna and other scenes; and much more. You could easily spend an hour here in addition to the time you take to walk round the outdoor buildings.

I was prompted by the fascinating posts of several other bloggers recently, notably The Eternal Traveller‘s posts about Miles Historical Village in Queensland and Suzanne of Cats and Trails and Garden Tails post about Nevada City, to share this excellent museum with you all.

I visited Cashmere in 2017

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