"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. 107.
 
JOHN MILLER MURPHY

     Mr. John Miller Murphy has been more prominently identified with the growth
and development of Olympia and Thurston County, and for a longer continuous
time, than any of the men who braved the hardships and dangers of the
wilderness. For fifty years Mr. Murphy, through the columns of the Washington
Standard, worked for the advancement and prosperity of the community. For over
two thousand six hundred weeks the Standard was a welcome visitor in the
majority of the homes of Olympia and Thurston County. The editorials, in these
many issues Mr. Murphy penned with his own hand.
     Mr. Murphy has recorded the appointments, through the columns of the
Standard, of eleven Territorial Governors, commencing with Governor Wm. H.
Wallace, and including Governors Pickering, Cole, Moore, Flanders,. Salomon,
Newell, Squire, Ferry, Miles C. Moore, and the elections of Washington State
Governors Ferry, McGraw, Rogers, McBride, Mead, Cosgrove and Hay. When the
Standard was born James Buchanan was President of the United States. A search
through the back files of this paper show the announcements of the inaugurations
of Presidents Lincoln, Johnson, Grant, Hayes, Garfield, Arthur, Cleveland
(twice), Harrison, McKinley, Roosevelt and Taft. Among the most interesting of
Mr. Murphy's reminiscences, as recorded in The Standard, tells about the young
editor being in Portland, Oregon, for the purpose of attending his own wedding.
Just as the young couple were about to take the stage for their home on
Puget Sound, a Sail Francisco steamer arrived in port with the late
newspapers on board, bearing black letter headlines, "Fort Sumpter Fired On."
     Mr. Murphy called the boy selling the papers and bought the entire supply,
saying nothing of the great news to the rest of the passengers until reaching
Olympia.
Arriving here he hurriedly turned his bride over to the care of the hotel people
and rushed for the Standard office. All the printers in town were set to work at
the eases and
within a few hours an extra was cried upon the streets of Olympia with huge
headlines announcing the beginning of the war. "And," added Mr. Murphy, "as I
told the story of the firing on Fort Sumpter all in the headlines, the people
saw at a glance the reason for the extra's appearance and not one cent did I
realized from the issue. Besides, I paid the boys $1 for selling the papers on
the streets. Since that time I have kept part of my story for the columns of the
paper instead of spreading it all out in the headlines."
     The description of the way the news of Lee's surrender was received in the
Capital City was very amusing. There was no better way to celebrate important
events in those days than in patronizing the saloons, and as the news spread
along the streets a rush was made, first for the Standard office, then, all
together, to where the men
could properly air their enthusiasm as well as quench their thirst. There were
very few men in Olympia in early days who never visited saloons, but on this
glad time no one was exempt, and if a man refused to do his share of the
drinking it was up with him to the bar, spread him flat on his back and pour
brandy down his throat until the crowd felt that a sufficient amount of
patriotism had been imbibed.
      To this day the veteran editor's voice falters when he recalls the
reception in Olympia of the news of the assassination of President Lincoln and
the impression made upon the citizens.
      "We had planned a big celebration of some local event." said Mr. Murphy,
"and had brought the Fourth Infantry band  from Vancouver at an expense of more
than $200 to play for  the celebration and ball in the evening. At that time the
first telegraph office in the Northwest was just across from  the old New
England hotel. The band was on the balcony of  the hotel playing lively airs to
the delight of the entire population of the town. The telegraph operator came to
the door of the office with a face as white as a sheet. Without speaking a word
to anyone the operator stepped to the band leader and handed him a slip of
yellow paper. The leader glanced at the slip and gave a hurried order to his
musicians. Without preliminary warning they played the strains of one of the
saddest dirges I have ever heard.
    "The crowd was appalled and when the last strains died away a man stepped to
the front of the balcony and announced: 'President Lincoln has been
assassinated.' There was not a dry eye in the assemblage when the people
realized the meaning of the message."
    When the Standard was started Olympia was a village of about 1,000
population, Seattle consisted of two or three houses with a store and saloon to
represent its business, and Tacoma was unknown. There was a five column weekly
published in Seattle, The Seattle Gazette, but the proprietor was unable to
handle any job work at all, the consequence being that for several years every
line of job work for Seattle and all of the territory this side of Portland was
sent to Olympia and turned out in the Standard office.
     Among Mr. Murphy's proud boasts is that he was the first newspaper carrier
ever employed on the Oregonian, of Portland; and that he was an attendant at the
first school ever organized in that city. It was in that city, also, that
he learned the printer's trade, setting his first type on the Oregon Weekly
Times, within two years rising from office "devil" to foreman. The Standard has
fought the Democratic fight for the past half century with the exception of the
civil war period, when Mr. Murphy upheld the Lincoln administration.
     John Miller Murphy was born in Indiana and left an orphan at an early age,
living with his elder sister, Mrs. George Barnes. When nine years of age the
lad, in company with Mr. and Mrs. Barnes, crossed the plains with the
regulation yoke of oxen and underwent all the hardships attendant upon the trip
across the continent with that means of conveyance. This trip was made in the
year of 1850, and Mr. Barnes decided to settle in Portland, where he started a
store, selling general merchandise. John was put to work as a clerk in
this store, although little more than a baby. Among the pleasantest of the
recollections of these early days are memories of the good times the lad enjoyed
as a singer in the famous church choir with Dr. Griffin, of the M. E. church,
leader. Mr. Murphy, as boy and man, loved music and took keen delight in musical
associations.
    In 1851 Mr. Barnes decided to remove his store to Puget Sound and selected
Olympia as the best known settlement in the new country. The contents of the
store, together with the household goods, were shipped on the sailing vessel
Mary Taylor, around from Portland, but Mr. and Mrs. Barnes and Johnnie rode
horseback across country. The boy rode the same horse as his sister, sitting
astride, holding on to the woman to keep from slipping off. When Olympia was
reached the family had to wait three weeks for the arrival of the Mary Taylor
with their goods.
     The store was the first in Olympia. M. D. Simmons, of Tumwater, had a
trading post for Indian supplies, but the stock Mr. Barnes brought was the first
general merchandise store on the Sound. The lad, by this time ten years of
age, took his place behind the counter and was as efficient a clerk as any man
would have been,
     The experiences the lad had with the Indian customers were quite amusing.
He declares these people are the worst thieves in the world, or were in those
days. When he would be measuring calico, of which the aborigines bought
great quantities, a squaw would give the cloth a quick jerk to pull the length a
few inches longer than the regulation yard, much to the disgust of the young
clerk, who spent a good part of his time watching them to prevent them stealing
from the store.
     The currency of Mr. Murphy's early recollection in this section of the
world consisted of Spanish dollars, American halves and quarters, Spanish
doubloons, worth $16, and slugs, which were eight sided bars of solid gold, and
worth $50. For convenience in making change the Moffatt Company of
Sail Francisco coined five, ten and twenty dollar pieces. While these were of no
value as legal tender, everyone was anxious to secure the pieces as they weighed
exactly the denomination  represented and were of pure gold without alloy. There
were  very few dimes in circulation, no nickels, and to have tendered  a penny
piece to any one in those days would have been  equivalent to an insult.
      The Indians preferred silver. They didn't seem to understand gold money,
and greenbacks were so uncommon that they had no knowledge of them as currency.
If an Indian had a sum due him to the amount of $5, that sum must be paid him in
five one dollar pieces. Should a $5 gold piece be tendered the brave he would
shake his head and say: "Tenas chickamun, wake ticky" -- "little money, don't
want it." Mr. Barnes kept a candle box under the counter filled with silver
dollars to pay out to the Indians. However, the Indians had no appreciation of
the value of money. If they could be induced to work at all they would work all
day for the same amount they would charge for bringing a single bucket of water
from the spring.
     The early settlers all procured their water from the common spring which
flowed clear, cold and delicious on the present location of the Chambers Block
on the corner
 of Main and Fourth streets.   The housewives would hire the Indians to carry
the water for them to supply their daily needs.
     The young Murphy, still of tender years, was set to work clearing off the
block of land which was the Barnes home. With one half breed Indian as an
assistant, the lad toiled all one winter cutting down the huge cedar trees,
sawing them into lengths, rolling them together and finally burning the piles of
wood. The work of digging out the stumps left by these big trees taxed the lad's
strength and endurance almost to the breaking point, but finally the task was
accomplished and the land was afterwards built upon by Mr. Barnes and became one
of the beauty spots of the city.
     There were no bridges across the two arms of the bay for many years after
the town had become to be quite a place, and from where Fifth Street now extends
to Capitol Point was an unbroken line of Indian tepees and shacks. The entire
portion of the town was comprised by the blocks between what is now the corner
of Fourth and Main Streets down to the waterfront, and before the filling was
done the tide came up to Second Street.
      When the Indian war broke out, and reports of the White River massacre was
received here, the Indians were told they must go. They remonstrated at leaving
land which they had always looked upon as their own and did not fancy the
idea of pulling up stakes and moving away, but the settlers were firm. As the
alarm grew the citizens began to build the stockade which was one of the most
unique structures in the history of the Northwest. This stockade extended clear
across from bay to bay the length of Fourth Street.
    The stockade was 20 feet high, built of four inch plank.Crosby's mill at
Tumwater was kept running night, and day, and night and day did the citizens
work at the defense. Men, women and boys all helped in the building. When the
stockade was finished all moved inside, those few families who had their homes
outside the enclosure locking up their houses the best they could and seeking
safety with the others. This condition of affairs lasted several months and
until an armed cruiser, the Joe Lane, came up the harbor. This cruiser carried a
lot of arms and every woman and boy was furnished with one of those long
barrelled muskets, whose "kick" was more deadly than the bullet. To add to the
defense the citizens possessed an old cannon, which ancient piece of artillery
would certainly have meant sure death to the gunner if it had been fired off
with any considerable load, was mounted in position to sweep an approaching
enemy, and was the pride of the people When all was completed, the Indian chiefs
and head men were invited to inspect the defenses and were shown that the whites
were in readiness and able to protect themselves, but still they lingered until
the Joe Lane put in an appearance. When they saw the white man's big canoe and
heard the guns thunder forth a volley of salutation as the cruiser came into
port, they decided that quitting time had come, so "folded their tents like the
Arab, and silently stole away," never to return to settle in any considerable
number in  the immediate neighborhood of the town.
      "When I first came here, among the ladies I can recollect were Mrs.
Alexander, Mrs. Rider, Mrs. Forey, Mary and Barney Wood. There were always
enough ladies to fill out at least  two sets of a quadrille at the dances which
were then the popular amusement. And such dances, sometimes lasting not only all
night but two and three nights. Five dollars a ticket was the usual price, with
an elegant supper at the hotel. No punch and wafer affairs in those good old
days. The Connell Brothers and their fiddles were called into requisition,
but Oliver Shed was really the star musician at the dances for he could not,
only play the fiddle but call the figures as well. There
were no wall flowers. Everybody had a good time.
     "Among the business men I can recall during my first years in Olympia were
Lightner, Parker & Coulter Co., merchants, the second firm to open a general
merchandise store after Mr. Barnes; Chas. A. Weed, baker; I. C. Patten,
blacksmith ; Mr. Thornton F. McElroy, who started The Columbian about this time,
and two saloons, but as I never frequented them I cannot remember the
proprietors' names.
     "In connection with my recollections of the Indians I recall one incident
which has filled me with disgust for the breed ever since. What was called a
sulphur-bottom whale, probably 90 feet in length, floundered up the bay, one
morning in the early  ' 50s, and on reaching the shallow water was unable to
swim out to sea again and was stranded as the tide went out. This was a rich
find for the Indians. They cut off great chunks of the meat from the sides of
the whale, and when this part was cut into portions the Indians climbed right
into the location made famous by Jonah, the insides of the immense fish being
considered a special delicacy by the filthy things.
     "Well, I became tired of working for relations and wanted to go back to
Portland, so I bid the Barnes' good-bye and started out to seek my fortune on my
own account. When I reached there I apprenticed myself out to learn the printing
trade on the Oregon Weekly, with John 0. Waterman, editor, and owned by Carter &
Austin. Later I went to Oregon City and worked on a paper belonging to D. W.
Craig. After a year I located in Vancouver. Washington, where I started the
Chronicle. At the end of three months I sold out and returned to Olympia.
    "This was in 1860, and soon after my arrival here I started the Washington
Standard, which I personally conducted and edited until about a year ago.
    "When I returned to Olympia I was still unmarried, but had my courting done.
I was engaged to be married to Miss Maguire, a daughter of the family of Oregon
printers. As soon as I had established my business and saw reasonable prosperity
ahead of me, I went to Portland for my bride.
    "We came from Monticello landing by stage, making the trip in one day. This
trip had formerly taken three hard days' traveling. But, the roads had been so
much improved and a generally better service provided that the trip had lost
much of its tediousness.
     "For five years The Standard was published in a little building on the
corner of First, and Main Streets. In 1885 I purchased the land where my office
and home stand to
 this day.
     "When I was ready to move my office I procured a scow and floated it right
up to the door of the First street office loaded my cases and press and other
printing material on it and poled the scow over to the new office, unloading
and getting the scow out of the way on high tide. That is the time I cheated the
express man.
     "I well remember when the first pony express was started between Monticello
and Olympia. The riders made the trip in half a day, changing their riding
ponies every few miles. Twenty-five cents was charged for carrying a letter and
a proportionate charge for small parcels.
      "Music, sweet music, was ever my heart's delight. I have always taken the
greatest pleasure in music and although  I make no claims to ability in that
line I certainly enjoyed  plink plunking my guitar. Many a pleasant night, in
company  with Jim Hays, Dave Drewry and Henry Willard, have I gone from house to
house serenading the pretty girls, the  other boys all performed on violins and
with my guitar we  made some very creditable music. At least, we thought we  did
judging from the pleasant receptions we received from  our charmers We would
assemble beneath some fair one's window and pour forth dulcet strains until we
would see a  light appear in the window, a signal that we were heard
and appreciated. Sometimes the girls would invite us in and give us refreshments
along with their thanks.
       "Well the years have gone by. I have retired from the  publishing field,
but the lure of printers' ink calls me even yet, and one of my pleasures is in
writing some of the pioneer reminiscences as they occur to me.
       "I served as Territorial Auditor for three terms, and was a City
Councilman in the early ' 90s.  "Early in life I adopted the slogan, 'Be not
fearful to speak out, but be sure to speak right.  I can think of nothing more
to add. I am down to cases. William Mit

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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.