"Early History of Thurston County, Washington; Together with Biographies and
Reminiscences of those Identified with Pioneer Days." Compiled and Edited by
Mrs. George E. (Georgiana) Blankenship.  Published in Olympia, Washington, 1914.
p. 206.
 
D. R. BIGELOW

    The name of D. B. Bigelow has held a prominent and honored place among
Thurston County Pioneers since the year 1851, when he first arrived in Olympia,
having, like his contemporaries, made the trip from his boyhood's home in
Wisconsin in an ox wagon.
     He was a graduate of a law school and upon his arriving here hung out his
shingle, meeting with such success that he soon had a considerable clientage.
     When Washington Territory was set apart from Oregon, the young man was sent
to Salem to codify the laws for the new Territory. Mr. Bigelow was a member of
the first Territorial Legislature, and enjoyed the distinction of having
delivered the first Fourth of July oration ever made in Washington. These
exercises were held in the first school house in. Olympia, which was built on
the hill on the block of land now bounded by Fifth, Sixth, Washington and
Franklin Streets. The school house was crushed down the following winter during
a heavy fall of snow.
     Mr. Bigelow died in 1905 survived by his widow and seven children.
     Mrs. Bigelow's reminiscences of her trip across the plains and her early
experiences on the frontier were interesting and often thrilling.
     That she came from sturdy stock is evidenced by the bravery of her mother,
Mrs. William White, who, with her five children, among them being Mrs. Bigelow,
then a young girl of fourteen years of age, came across the plains to join
her husband, who had come West the previous year, 1850.
     Mr. White wrote back to his wife in Wisconsin that if possible she was
to-sell the farm and join him-in Oregon. This the plucky woman prepared to do,
and after disposing of all their property, buying a couple of ox teams and such
provisions and outfitting as she deemed they would most need in their new home,
proceeded to St. Joe, Missouri.
    In speaking of the start along the Oregon Trail, Mrs. Bigelow said:
    "All the men started walking out of St. Joe beside their teams, with guns
over their shoulders and ox whips in their hands, but before they had gone half
the way to Platte Crossing the guns were put back in the wagons and the whips
were almost worn out."
    Although this train had many alarms, they were not molested by the Indians
throughout the entire trip. Several times teams before them and those following
after were set upon by the Indians and the people massacred, and the horses and
oxen driven off, but their train seemed almost to be under a special protection.
Many a time they would see an ox skull set up alongside the road bearing the
gruesome warning, "Beware the Indians."
    One day, Mrs. Bigelow relates, they came upon a wagon stranded in the middle
of the road, the mules unhitched, and on the wagon tongue sat a man crying like
a
six-year-old child.  Halting her wagon beside him, Mrs. Bigelow asked the man
the cause of his woe. He did not reply at once, but a tired tearful woman looked
out from the covered wagon and whimpered: "Joe says he won't go another step
without a drink of water." Mrs. White fortunately had a jug of water in her
wagon, and although the liquid was almost hot, she gave Joe a drink. He seemed
to pluck up courage after this wetting of his thirsty gullet, and from the
companionship, and proceeded on with the train to a camping spot.
    When the John Day country was reached, the White family were delighted to
meet the husband and father, who, with a fresh team, had started to meet his
wife and children.  When they arrived at the Columbia River the women and
children, with the wagons, were loaded on bateaus manned by Kanakas and floated
down the river to the Upper Cascades, above The Dalles.
    Arriving in Portland the emigrant train disbanded, the White family making
their home there for the following year.  Later the family came to Puget Sound,
taking up a donation claim on Chambers Prairie.  The first experience of Mrs.
White and her daughter, upon their arrival at Tumwater, is well worth relating.
When the family reached that place Mr. White told the women to take their horses
and ride on ahead along the trail till they reached the home he had prepared for
them on the donation claim, while he would follow at a slower pace with the
oxen.  Full of glad anticipation of at last enjoying a real home, Mrs. White and
the young girl set out along the trail. When they came out to the prairie they
were surrounded by a band of probably 100 Spanish cattle. The prairie at that
time was covered with roving bands of these long horned animals. The horses
stood still with fright and the ring of cattle crowded closer and closer around
the terror-stricken women. The brutes clashed their immense horns, bellowed and
pawed up the earth, always crowding nearer and nearer. When the women were
almost fainting with fright, David Chambers, the owner of the cattle, hearing
the disturbance, came to their assistance, calmly going among the herd and
shooing the beasts away like so many tame hens.
     At the beginning of the Indian war, Mr. White was killed by the hostile
Indians while walking behind a cart, in which were Mrs. White and her sister,
Mrs. Stewart. Each woman had a little child in her arms. The Indians came out
from the brush and attacked White. He gave the horse a sharp cut, which started
it running towards the White home. This spared the lives of the women and
children. But they killed Mr. White, after a fearful struggle which he made for
his life. His body was found the next morning, horribly mutilated by the
Indians, who, under the leadership of Yelm Jim, had taken advantage of the fact
that White was unarmed and alone with the women and the children. It was thought
at the time that had Mr. White stood in a little more fear of the Indians his
life would not have been sacrificed, but he could not believe that the alarming
reports of their treachery and hostility to the white settlers were founded upon
actual fact, so never carried a gun or other defensive weapon. The death of Mr.
White was one of the tragedies of those trying times.
      Mrs. Bigelow, then Miss White, was the first school teacher in Thurston
County, and the first institution of learning was the school she conducted in a
small bed room in the Packwood residence, on their claim on Nesqually bottom.
The pupils were the children of the Packwoods, the Shasers and the McAllisters,
which were all there were within travelling distance to the school.
     "Teacher" boarded with the Packwoods during the week, but every Friday
evening she rode on horseback to her parents' home on Chambers Prairie. The
curriculum taught was probably limited to the three "Es" and there was
absolutely no school room furnishing or equipment. The children sat around on
benches in the room wherever they chose. For teaching this school with all its
attendant hardships, the young girl received the munificent sum of $20 a month.
     Mrs. Bigelow had many thrilling incidents to relate, which happened to her
during the lonely rides between her school and parents' home.
     In 1854 Miss White was married to the young lawyer, D. R. Bigelow, the
bride and groom taking their wedding journey on horseback from the White home to
what has been known as the Bigelow addition for over half a century. The young
couple avoided coming through Olympia as Mr. Bigelow had learned that a number
of his young men friends had planned to give the newly weds a rousing reception
when they reached town. The ringleader of the jolly gang was Jim Hurd.
Bigelow's most intimate man friend. He had procured the cannon which figures so
prominently in the reminiscences of all the Pioneers of those days, and which
was kept in readiness to repel Indian attacks. Jim stood on guard with this
ancient cannon loaded to the danger limit, ready to give a rousing salute when
Mr. Bigelow and his bride should appear. By slipping around by a trail which
Bigelow had cut to his home they escaped the demonstration and the laugh was on
the assembled crowd who waited till dark for the young couple to appear.
    Mr. Bigelow purchased a quarter of the donation claim which he owned for
many years. A donation claim was just a mile square. The other purchasers of the
Caulkins claim, were C. H. Hale and Miles Gallagher. The Young Bigelows' first
married home was, in Mrs. Bigelow's own words: "A two-room mansion, built of
hand-split lumber with puncheon floors. A tiny cook stove, six plain chairs, a
primitive bedstead and table comprised our 'setting out'."
    No bridge was there over what is now known as the Swantown fill, and the
only way to reach the Bigelow home was by canoe or rowboat from Olympia. Later a
pontoon foot-bridge was strung across the arm of the bay where the Olympia
Theater now stands.
     When the Indian war broke out the Bigelows came to town for safety, making
their home in the block house for several weeks.
     One evening, soon after their return to their home, Mrs. Bigelow was
sitting alone in her kitchen, still nervous and afraid, when she heard a noise
in the front room, and on looking around, was almost petrified with fear at the
sight of a big, blanketed Indian's form which filled the doorway. It proved,
however, to be Betty Edgar, a friendly squaw, married to a white man. She was
looking for her halfbreed children who were late getting home. Mrs. Bigelow told
of another scare she had endured from the Indians. One evening was seen a large
number of Indian canoes coming up the bay. Each canoe was filled with braves in
war dress. The men hastily assembled for protection and the women, who were
too far away to seek refuge within the block house, prepared to flee to the
woods for hiding.
      Mrs. Bigelow had a young baby by this time, and in her excitement she
snatched a carpetbag and began stowing in it such articles as she thought would
he most needed. She laughingly said, "a heterogeneous lot went into that
satchel,  a loaf of bread, some of the baby's things, some of my own clothing,
etc." But before long the men returned with the  reassuring news that the
Indians were on a peaceful errand.  It proved to he Pat Kanim and his braves,
coming to deliver  up their guns in accordance with the terms of the peace
treaty  made between Governor Stevens and this Indian chief.
      The Bigelows have always been prominently identified  with the Methodist
Church, and even when living on Chambers  Prairie, Mrs. Bigelow would ride on
horseback the twelve miles to Olympia to attend divine service.
      When she was married to Mr. Bigelow, one of the town  jokes was that the
last white girl in the county was married the town wit getting in his work on
the family name as he does to this day.
    Eight children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Bigelow:  Tirzah now Mrs. Royal;
Eva, now Mrs. Bonney; Ruth, now  Mrs. Wright; Ellis, Duncan, Ray, George and
Margaret  With the exception of Ellis, who died several years ago, and Mrs.
Bonney, who lives in Tacoma, all the children live in Olympia and immediate
vicinity.                           
     The Bigelow name has always been honored and respected and in the stirring
days of his prime D. R, Bigelow was one of the prominent men of the Northwest,
and the sons and daughters have been a credit to their parents.

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Submitted to the Washington Bios. Project in May 2007 by Diana Smith.
Submitter has no additional information about the person(s) or family mentioned
above.