Research Information

The Issaquah Historical Society has a large collection of historical information on file at the Town Hall Museum.

Here at Issaquah OnLine, you'll find historical information like articles, maps, tables, and book chapters. We recommend using the search function at right to find what you are looking for. You can also investigate the following areas:

"History Mysteries, Solved!" - Questions submitted by the public pertaining to Issaquah history, and answered by staff and volunteers of the Issaquah Historical Society. Address questions to Erica Maniez, Museum Director, by telephone (425) 392-3500 or E-Mail

"Bits of Issaquah History" - A page is for contributed tidbits of Issaquah History.  If you have a tip or a photo that you'd like to submit, consider submitting it for inclusion on this page.

People and Stories of Issaquah. Issaquah has a rich collection of characters from its past. People and Stories consists of an index of biographical, genealogical, and assorted information about just a few of the interesting people from Issaquah history.

Good Places to Start

• A Short Issaquah History - Provides a version of Issaquah word origin and overview of the history of Issaquah.
• “Town” and “City” of Issaquah: Municipal History - Prepared by Linda Ruehle, Issaquah's City Clerk, who has worked for the city since 1971.

• Looking Back - Archives of the Issaquah Press series, "Looking Back," which featured photographs of old Issaquah and historical musings.

• Celebrate 100 Years, Part 1 - Eric Erickson takes us through the first century that Issaquah was called "Issaquah" - starting in 1899.
• Celebrate 100 Years, Part 2 - Eric Erickson's second installment covers how Native American place names are reflected in our current place names, and other aspects of Issaquah's last century not covered in the first article.
• History Articles in the Issaquah Press Online Archives - The Press periodically prints articles about our area's history.  Here is an extensive collection of links to articles archived on the Issaquah Press web site.
• Issaquah Law Enforcement History - This section is a repository for articles and information about the history of Law Enforcement in Issaquah.
• Articles about Issaquah on HistoryLink - The HistoryLink web site can be searched for articles about Issaquah's history.  See this sample search on "Issaquah", then go to their web site to perform a live search on the topic of your choice.
• History of King County - Chapter 42 on Issaquah - In 1929 early pioneer Clarence Bagley wrote a definitive volume on King County History, including a 15 page chapter on Issaquah.  The full text of the book's preface and chapter on Issaquah is available on this web site.
• History of King County - Chapter 13 on Coal - Bagley's book also included an extensive chapter on King County's coal mining history, reproduced here in its entirety.
• Along the Seattle & International - Article from Puget Sound Lumberman Magazine's Annual Summary Issue 1900
• Casto Massacre - Squak Valley, Washington Territory 1864.  A description of early Indian problems in the Issaquah Valley.  From Clarence Bagley's 1916 History of Seattle, Volume II.
• Abbie Casto's Fate, By Roger Knowles Thompson.  Mr. Knowles is related to Abbie Casto, who was killed in what is often referred to as “the Casto Massacre.”  Mr. Knowles has provided new new details of the story, handed down through his family, as well as the first photographs we have seen of the players in this early-Issaquah drama.
• New! How “Greenbacks” Saved the Lives of the Bush Family by Andrew Jackson "Jack" Bush. An account of the Casto Massacre of 1864 according to Andrew Jackson “Jack” Bush, the son of James and Martha Bush.
• John Bonser and His Family, By Roger Knowles Thompson.  About the family Background of William and Abigail Casto; early Squak Valley residents and victims in the Casto Massacre at their cabin near today's Pickering Barn.  Contains photos.
• 100 Years of Issaquah Banking History - Issaquah's first bank opened on the first day of the twentieth century, and we believe it was the first bank in King County headquartered outside of Seattle.  The name "Issaquah Bank" is long gone - but two present day bank branches in Issaquah still trace their roots back to this first bank.  From the notes of Eric Erickson.
• Over a hundred years of saw and shingle milling around Issaquah - By Eric Erickson - December 1999.
• Tiger Mountain and Grand Ridge - 1909 What do they have in common with the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition? - By Eric Erickson - August 2000.
• Original names don't necessarily reflect history: How Issaquah, Sammamish and other places got their names - By Eric Erickson - January 2002.
• 1900 Issaquah In The Eyes of a Juvenile - A recollection of early Issaquah from our archives.
• What ever Happened to Monohon?  By Eric Erickson - June 2000.
• Dedication of Hans Jensen's Boat Launch - Full text of the speech by given by William Bergsma Sr. at the dedication of the Lake Sammamish State Park Boat Launch, held June 4, 1966.
• 1928 Preston Shingle.  A South Dakota homeowner remodeling his 1928 home found shingles clearly marked as originating from the Preston Mill, just east of Issaquah.  Upon finding us on the Internet, he sent his best shingle!

Maps

• City Map: Circa 1908
• Issaquah From Space: Microsoft Terraserver
  In the Search TerraServer box, type "Issaquah"

Other Historical Information

• Issaquah Ordinance 752 - Renaming Issaquah Streets in 1960
• Mayors of Gilman and Issaquah, Washington - A table of mayors and years they served.
• Sheriffs, Marshals, and Police Chiefs of Gilman and Issaquah since 1891

Event Memories

• Pictures and Memories from the 2000 Pioneer Reunion Event.

Online Books

• Squak Valley, by Bessie Wilson Craine.

Recent History

• Urban Sprawl Dateline: Issaquah, WA [no longer on web] - The Economist; July 31 1999 - When it comes to unbridled urban growth, the new economy can be the chief culprit. . . added July 2, 2000
• The Issaquah Miracle [no longer on web] - Forbes ASAP article, June 7, 1993 - In the spring of 1989 when Michael Bookey first visited the Middle School in Issaquah, Wash., to help the school system with its computers, he was reminded of his early ventures into Communist China. After 20 years of working with computer networks, to enter Issaquah seemed to me like encountering an exotic tribe of primitives untouched by the modern world . . .