"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. 173. MRS. JACOB OTT "I wish Mr. Ott were here to tell you about the exciting experiences he went through in early days," said Mrs. Jacob Ott, when interviewed and asked to tell the story of her life in Olympia. "I never knew any hardships, and, although the life in America, was new and strange to me, upon my arrival from my girlhood home in Switzerland, I was always comfortable. All dangers from Indian outrages was over and civilization was quite well advanced. "But when Mr. Ott came to America in 1850, he found the country very different from what he had been accustomed to. He was also born in Switzerland and it was there that he learned his trade of carpenter. When quite a young man he came to this country, stopping first in St. Louis. Later he joined a train of emigrants bound for the Golden West. All places were alike to the young man, adventure, and perhaps a chance to gather some of the gold he heard so much about was what he was looking for. The trip was made in the regulation way, ox teams, to Portland, Oregon. After six months in that settlement, Mr. Ott heard so much talk of the opportunities to be found on Puget Sound, that he determined to try his luck there. Tumwater was the only place of any importance then, so he came, arriving here in 1852. From Monticello Landing, Mr. Ott made the trip to Tumwater on horseback. The prospects of this section of the Northwest looked good to him, so he decided to stay here. "Among the first things Mr. Ott did was to buy a number of lots of timber land in the town and begin clearing them off. The lots were very heavily wooded, and almost the first thing that happened to the young man was an incident that at the time frightened him into a cold perspiration. One morning he had laid his ax at the root of a tall fir and had it chopped part way through, so the mighty trunk began to bend towards the ground, when there dropped at the feet of the young woodsman a small Indian baby, which had apparently only been dead a short time. Mr. Ott was simply paralyzed with fear and for a while thought the child must have been thrown at him by some unseen Indians as a menace of some sort. But after a while it occurred to him to examine the top branches of the tree, and there he discovered the rude cradle in which the papoose had been put to sleep his last sleep. A further search disclosed three other Indians reposing in the tree tops and then it dawned on him that he had intruded on an Indian 'burying' ground, if I may call it that. The experience, was an unusual one to a young man fresh to the manners and customs of the wilderness. He always looked carefully in the branches of a tree before beginning cutting after that. "Before Mr. Ott had lived in the West very long, he took up a claim, five miles out from Tumwater, and built a little shack on the land, living there alone while he cleared and got the place ready for planting. "He didn't spend much time or labor on the house and used shakes he cut himself, in the construction. So flimsy was the structure that many a night he stood guard all night long, with an ax in his hands, to protect himself and provisions from the cougars, which whined and growled at the rude door and threatened to break in at any moment. The wild animals smelled the meat which Mr. Ott would have in his shack and were determined to have their share. This lasted till he could take time to build a more secure house. "Mr. Ott served his six months in the Indian war, as did most of the men living here in the days of the trouble with the Indians. His special work was teaming for the government, hauling supplies to the forts and wherever troops were stationed. As the rascals were anxious for the provisions and blankets, with which the wagons were loaded, this was considered to be especially dangerous, and Mr. Ott used to tell me about sleeping at nights holding the lariat ropes of his cattle all night long to prevent a stampede. "One night, I remember my husband telling me about, the Indians were all around the teams and an ambush was feared at any moment. There were five or sic teamsters in the train and their wagons were loaded with what would have been a rich haul for the Indians. Night was coming on and the men were worried at the prospects of camping there, being almost sure they would be attacked before morning. A halt was called to discuss the situation when there was seen coming towards them, the most wrinkled old squaw the eye of man had ever beheld. She must have passed the century mark in years, so old and feeble did she appear. Holding up her hand in sign of peace, she came up to the men and in Chinook told them not to go that way that night for they would surely be killed if they did, but instead to camp for the night under a certain tree which stood all by itself on a cleared place a little way off. "The men didn't know anything better to do, although they were afraid of treachery on the part of the squaw. But after a consultation, they decided to take the warning and camp where the squaw directed them to do. "Sure enough, the tree was found just as had been described and when the teams reached the spot, the wagons were corralled and the men prepared to spend the night. They were not molested, and in the morning proceeded on their way in peace. The mystery of the squaw's protection was never explained, nor why they were not attacked during the night. Mr. Ott often wondered if there was not some sort of an Indian superstition about the tree which safeguarded anyone who sought shelter beneath its branches. "After a number of years, Mr. Ott prospered so well that he began to think he would like to see his boyhood home and friends again, so he went back to Switzerland on a visit. While there he met me, then quite a young girl, and induced me to come to America with him. We were passengers on the second train that ever started to cross the continent. "When I arrived here I couldn't tell 'yes' from 'no' in English, and I thought I never would be able to make myself understood. I could have learned Chinook quicker than I did English, only I was so afraid of the Indians. Mr. Ott was a favorite with them and when we got here they came in dusky swarms, crowding right up to the door of the house to see Jake's wife. I nearly died, I was so frightened of them. "I was that lonesome and homesick that when my Henry was born I thought if anything should happen to that baby I'd just end it all by jumping into the bay. But he kept me from moping around much, for he was the greatest care for a long time. The poor little thing was so tiny that for the first six weeks we kept him in a ten-pound tea box, wrapped in cotton. He was too small to dress and when he was big enough to handle, I had to make him a complete new wardrobe, for everything I had made before he was born was too large for him. "When we finally decided to move from Tumwater and came to Olympia, Mr. Ott built this house, where we have lived ever since. Every stick in the house was put here by Mr. Ott's own hands. "Fifteen years ago, in August, 1899, my husband died in this house, after an illness of only a few moments, so fulfilling the desire of his later years that when Death called him he would go quick. "We have had three children. Henry, born February 18, 1870; Walter, born in Baker, Oregon, March 20, 1872; Gertrude, born at Globe, Arizona, February 28, 1875." ******************* 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.