An Illustrated History of the State of Washington, by Rev. H.K. Hines, D.D., The
Lewis Publishing Co., Chicago, IL. 1893

JOHN GOULD, a well-known and respected resident of Oak Harbor, Island county,
Washington, and a pioneer of the Northwest, was born at Phillipsburg, Warren
county, New Jersey, April 24, 1823. His father, John A. Gould, was born at
Philadelphia, February 28, 1797. April 26, 1820, he was united in marriage to
Eliza Phillips, who was born at Phillipsburg, New Jersey, February 4, 1798. Her
father was the founder of the town of Phillipsburg, where he and his family
resided for many years. John A. Gould died at Phillipsburg, June 11, 1834, aged
thirty-seven years, three months and fourteen days. His widow survived until
July 5, 1874, when she passed away at Easton, Pennsylvania, aged seventy-six
years six months and one day. Thus, at the early age of nine years, the subject
of this sketch was deprived, by death, of his father, and his boyhood days were
passed in a far different and less auspicious way than they would have been had
his father been spared to him. After the death of his father, our subject went
to live with neighbors, doing such work as he could, in return for his board and
clothing. During boyhood he drove mules on a canal in New Jersey for about one
year, and, as he grew older, he earned money to support his mother and his
younger brothers and sisters. When fourteen years of age he secured employment
in a large nail factory and rolling-mill, where he did for three years the work
of a man. He walked three miles, morning and evening, to and from his work, and
labored twelve hours a day. The foundry and mills were in South Easton,
Pennsylvania, and he made his home in New Jersey, and he was obliged to cross
both the Delaware and Lehigh rivers. After three years in the rolling-mills he
severed his connection there and apprenticed himself to a millwright, which
latter occupation he followed during his residence in New Jersey, or until he
was twenty-seven years of age. At the end of that time, having heard of the gold
excitement in California, he decided to try his fortunes in the far West, and
accordingly, on May 13, 1850, he took passage from New York on the steamer
Georgia, which had 1,100 steerage and 200 cabin passengers, all, like himself,
bound for the new El Dorado. So great was the rush that he was detained two
weeks in New York city before he could get a steamer, and was even then obliged
to buy a ticket from another man, giving the latter $70 to remain in New York
and permit Mr. Gould to go in his place. On arriving at the isthmus, Mr. Gould
came up the Chagres river as far as possible, and thence walked to Panama. Here
he was again obliged to wait two weeks before getting a boat, at last securing
passage on the bark Circassian, and as a memento of his voyage he now holds a
receipt for hospital fees which he paid on board the vessel, which is dated on
the bark Circassian, and reads: "Received $2, hospital fees of John Gould. First
Mate, W. Wilkinson, San Francisco, August 5, 1850." After arriving in San
Francisco, Mr. Gould followed mining and prospecting for two years. He then, in
1852, bought, in company with several others, the brig Eagle, which they fitted
out for the gold fields, and set sail for Queen Charlotte's island via Puget
Sound. Arriving at Portland, Oregon, Mr. Gould hired a man to take his place on
the boat while the former remained ashore during the ship's absence. In the
meantime Mr. Gould proceeded on the Columbia river to Cowlitz, and thence
overland to Olympia, Washington, whence he afterward went to Whidby and Camano
islands. In 1853 Mr. Gould built a sawmill at Tulalip Indian reservation, in
Snohomish county, Washington, where he also acted as carpenter one year during
his stay there. At the end of that time he took a claim of 160 acres, and in
1855, when the United States Government made a treaty with the Indians, his mill
was closed and his land reverted to the reservation. He waited four years for
the treaty to be ratified by Congress, when he was paid for his property in
deficient currency. He then left all his interests there, where the old mill
still stands, and secured work as ship carpenter. In 1858 he went to the Fraser
river mines, remaining there one season, at the end of which time he returned
and again engaged in carpentry. The last contracting and building he did was the
erection of the Freeport mill in West Seattle, Washington. He then bought a
merchandise store on the Tulalip reservation, which he conducted two years, when
he sold it and removed to the Stillaguamish river, where he opened another store
of general merchandise, which he also conducted two years. In 1868 he came to
Whidby island and bought one-half of the Ebey donation claim of 640 acres, on
which he engaged in farming, which occupation he followed successfully for
several years. He then leased his farm and bought 320 acres more near Crescent
Harbor, besides which he entered forty acres adjoining the latter tract, all of
which he now has under good cultivation; but it is rented, as he does no farming
himself, having retired from active pursuits. In addition to the land mentioned
he also owns a large farm on the Evey landing. All his farms are rented.
Although not a politician in the strict sense of the word, Mr. Gould has enjoyed
some prominence in public affairs, and has served his county efficiently as
Commissioner and Treasurer, gaining in the various walks of life the universal
esteem of his fellow-men.

Submitted to the WA. Bios Project in January 2004 by Jeffrey L. Elmer

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Notice: These biographies were transcribed for the Washington Biographies
Project. Unless otherwise stated, no further information is available on the
individual featured in the biographies.