Noah Bosworth Dead
Died, at the home of J. H. Long, Monday morning July 26, Noah Bosworth. The funeral was held Wednesday afternoon and the interment was in the I. O. O. F. cemetery at Claquato. Rev. Kenneth Brown officiated. There was a large attendance, largely of the old settlers who had known Mr. Bosworth so well and so favorably so many years.
Mr. Bosworth was one of the early settlers in this part of the state of Washington. He was well known to all of the old settlers, and a sketch of his long life, which has kindly been furnished by Hon. J. H. Long, with whom he made his home for many years, will without doubt be of much interest to the Nugget's readers.
Noah Bosworth was born in Halifax, Mass., 17 miles from the historic Plymouth Rock, on April 28, 1817. He was the son of Joseph and Deborah Bosworth, who had a large family. He lived with and cared for his father and mother after all the others had left home for a number of years. He never married. When his mother died Mrs. Hodgdon, one of his sisters, came home to keep house, her husband having left Boston in 1849 for the gold fields of California with a brother of Mr. Bosworth, where they remained sometime over a year. Mr. Hodgdon left there for Oregon in 1851 where he took a claim on the Columbia slough. Not satisfied there, he concluded to return to Boston. He purchased a ticket to sail the General Warren, but before sailing he heard something of the Puget sound country. He disposed of his ticket and in compnay with Samuel Davenport prospected the country along the route from the Columbia to the sound. He took a donation claim, but on account of the hostile Indians he could not send for the family until after the war of 1855-56. In the latter year he built a blockhouse at Saunders' Landing, where the Mealy-Lacy mill now stands. After the war he sent for his wife and daughter, the latter being the late wife of J. H. Long. They came by steamer via the isthmus, and were accompanied by Mr. Bosworth. They landed at Rainier, Ore., opposite the mouth of the Cowlitz river, from where they were taken by Indians in canoes across the Columbia and up the Cowlitz Landing, where Mr. Hodgdon met them. From there they were tkaen by Charles Bishop to Saunders' Landing, and went in canoes down the Chehalis river to Cochran's landing, the present site of the old Woodham flouring mill at Centralia. They arrived at their new home, the present site of Tenino, in May, 1857. In 1862 the Idaho gold fever caught them, the farm was rented, and they left for the Boise mines, wintering in Walla Walla in 1862. They took up their journey in 1863, traveling that spring with the government troops ordered to Boise valley to build Fort Boise, in the building of which all took part for a time. Instead of mining, they secured land and began farming. Stephen Hodgdon, Noah Bosworth and Robert McComb formed a partnership for that purpose. The latter two purchased Mr. Hodgdon's interest in 1865, and he returned to the sound. Mr. Bosworth sold out the next year and returned to his farm at Tenino. In the fall of 1866 he purchased the Decker farm in Lewis county, now the home of J. H. Long. Mr. Bosworth sold the farm to Mr. Long in 1872, but lived there afterwards until his death.
Mr. Bosworth was county commissioner of Lewis county for two years, 1868 and 1869, serving with Horace Howe of Cowlitz Prairie and John Tullis of Skookumchuck. He always live [sic] a quiet and retiring life, but his kindness and accommodating disposition in many ways in days gone by will always be remembered.
Source: The Chehalis Bee, Friday, 30 Jul 1897, p. 21.
Transcribed by Jenny Tenlen. She has no further information on this individual.