The History of the Yakima Valley, Washington, Comprising Yakima, Kittitas and
Benton Counties, The S.J. Clarke Publishing Co., 1919, Volume II, page 382
A portrait of William N. Irish appears in this publication.
A photograph of William N. Irish’s residence appears in this publication.

WILLIAM N. IRISH.

William N. Irish has contributed in substantial measure to the progress and
upbuilding of Yakima county through the development and sale of orchard lands
and also as an active operator in the field of fruit raising. He was born in
Erie county, New York, January 18, 1857, a son of Ransom and Lodema (Chase)
Irish, who in the year 1870 left their home in the east and removed westward to
Minnesota, where the father secured farm lands, which he further developed and
improved to the time of his death. His wife has also passed away.

There were no unusual features in the boyhood of William N. Irish, who divided
his time between the acquirement of a public school education, the work of the
fields and the pleasures of the playground. When not busy with his textbooks he
assisted with the work of the home farm until he reached the age of nineteen
years, when he turned his attention to commercial interests and spent six years
as an employee in a drug store. He was afterward with the Crescent Creamery
Company for twenty-one years, spending a part of that time at Rochester,
Minnesota, while later, as secretary and treasurer of the company, he had his
headquarters at St. Paul. In April, 1903, he made his way to the coast, settling
at Yakima, where he had purchased land in January, 1895, becoming owner of ten
acres on Nob Hill, adjacent to the western suburb of the city. In the meantime
the land had been improved through labor that he had employed and in 1903 he
took up his abode upon this place, on which he erected a fine residence. He has
since bought and sold many tracts of land in this section of the state, selling
on January 3, 1919, for thirty thousand dollars, a thirty-acre orchard on the
Selah which he had purchased in 1911. He still has a sixteen-acre orchard at
Grandview. He has improved and sold over three hundred acres of fruit land in
the Parker Heights district in connection with E. J. Haasze. He has been a very
prominent factor in the development of this section, especially along the line
of promoting the fruit-raising interests, and the value of his services is
widely recognized. He has closely studied all the questions bearing upon the
subject of fruit growing in the northwest, is familiar with the condition of the
soil and the demands of different kinds of fruit along that line. He knows the
best methods of spraying and caring for the trees and his broad experience
enables him to speak with authority upon questions relating to horticultural
interests in the valley. He is recognized today as one of its most prominent
fruit men and he is equally familiar with irrigation problems and opportunities
along that line, being the vice-president of the Yakima Valley Canal Company,
which owns and operates the Congdon ditch. He assisted in the organization of
the Growers' Service Company in 1916 and has since been its president. He
likewise aided in the organization of the Yakima County Horticultural Union and
has served as its president and as secretary. He is now vice-president of the
Northwestern Fruit Exchange of Seattle, a position which he has occupied since
its organization in 1910. His name also figures in financial circles as a
director of the Yakima Trust Company.

In 1881, Mr. Irish was married to Miss Caroline Vreeland, of Wisconsin, the
wedding being celebrated in Minnesota. Their children are: Anna, now deceased;
Harry, who is assistant treasurer of the Growers' Service Company; Grace, at
home; William, who is a member of the Hospital Corps of the United States navy;
and Colburn, deceased.

Mr. Irish is well known in Masonic circles, having membership in Yakima Lodge
No. 24, F. & A. M.; Yakima Chapter No. 21, R. A. M.; Yakima Council No. 12, R. &
S. M.; Yakima Commandery No 13, K. T.; and Afifi Temple of the Mystic Shrine. He
is a past patron of the Order of the Eastern Star, to which Mrs. Irish and Miss
Grace also belong. He also has membership in the Yakima Commercial Club, on the
official board of which he served for two years. He was delegated by the club,
on several occasions, to represent the organization at large exhibits in the
east. The first big display he was in charge of was when, in 1907, he exhibited
a car of fruit at the Minnesota State Fair at St. Paul. His religious faith as
well as that of the family, is that of the Methodist church, to the teachings of
which they loyally adhere. His political support is given to the republican
party. It is characteristic of Mr. Irish that he is faithful to any trust or to
any cause which he espouses. In business affairs he is thoroughly reliable as
well as progressive and his career measures up to high standards of manhood and
citizenship.

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Submitted to the Washington Bios Project in December 2007 by Jeffrey L. Elmer.
Submitter has no additional information about the subject of this article.