Lester, Washington | |
|---|---|
 Guard house, gas and oil shack, and warehouse in Lester | |
  Lester  Lester | |
| Coordinates:47°12.55′N121°29.64′W / 47.20917°N 121.49400°W /47.20917; -121.49400 | |
| Elevation | 1,634 ft (498 m) |
| Population (1984) | |
• Total | 0 |
Lester is aghost town nearStampede Pass, just south ofSnoqualmie Pass inKing County, founded in 1892 by theNorthern Pacific Railway (now theBNSF Railway). Lester is located along what is currently National Forest Development Road 54, on land now owned byTacoma Water, a division ofTacoma Public Utilities.
Although most remaining freestanding buildings were demolished in 2017, numerous foundations from the settlement remain.
Lester was founded in 1891 as the logging camp of "Deans", named after the owner of Dean's Lumber Company. In 1886, theNorthern Pacific Railway constructed a large depot, roundhouse, coal dock and othersteam locomotive support facilities for theStampede Pass railway;[1] the town was at the foot of the railroad's maximumgrade.[citation needed] It was later renamed "Lester" in honor of Northern Pacifictelegraph operator Lester Hansaker.[2][3]
In 1902, a series of forest fires devastated the local logging industry, but Lester continued to thrive as acompany town forNorthern Pacific Railway. In the 1920s, the town's population peaked at approximately 1,000, and most of the modern structures in Lester were built during the decade.[2][4] During the 1940s and 1950s, the town transitioned away from railroading and towards logging, with new camps established at Lester by Soundview Pulp Company, later acquired byScott Paper Company.[citation needed]
The city ofTacoma began purchasing property in Lester in 1963, seeking to protect theGreen River watershed where the city sources its drinking water.[2] Tacoma attempted to block access to the town and the state trust land in the Green river basin, leading to protests and the destruction of gates on the only all-weather road leading to Lester, in an incident known as the "Battle of the Lester Gate".[5] King County sued the city of Tacoma over blocking access to Lester, arguing that the road was owned by the county. In July 1962, theKing County Superior Court ruled in Tacoma's favor to temporarily keep locks on its Lester gates.[6] In 1965, the court determined that the county's failure to include other landowners in the suit hampered the court's abilities to adjudicate the case.[7]
In April 1978, the Scott camp at Lester, one of the last in King County, was closed; by March 1979, the population of the town had dropped to 22.[8] The mothballing of the Stampede Pass rail line byBurlington Northern in 1984 led to further abandonment of Lester, with the city of Tacoma andUnited States Forest Service restricting access to residents and their guests.[9] Lester residents and railroad buffs attempted to designate the town's railroad depot as a historic landmark in 1983, when it was threatened with possible demolition,[4] and was nearly moved toNorth Bend to preserve it.[10] The depot was eventually destroyed by anarson fire.[11]
In 1985, theWashington State Legislature passed a law that dissolvedschool districts with fewer than five students, leading to the disbandment of the Lester school district. A mock funeral was held for the town by residents in response to the closure of the school.[12]
Lester's last resident, Gertrude Murphy, died in September 2002 at the age of 99.[11][13]
Telephone numbers in the town began with the prefix 657. The switch that served the town, aNorth Electric CX-100, is preserved at theMuseum of Communications in Seattle. A small switching building, with (now defunct)US West painted on its door, still exists in Lester.
For public safety and watershed security, the remaining buildings in Lester (consisting of the guard house, gas and oil shack, and warehouse) were demolished by Tacoma Water in 2017. Some smaller traces of the town still exist. Tacoma water continues to block access to state trust lands within the Green river watershed.[14]
Lester is located, east ofEnumclaw,Washington along theGreen River andBNSF Railway line. Its elevation is 1,634 feet (498 m) above sea level.[15]
