Clipper, Washington

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Clipper, Washington
Unincorporated community
USA Washington location map.svg
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Clipper, Washington
Coordinates: 48°45′36″N122°12′08″W / 48.76000°N 122.20222°W / 48.76000; -122.20222
Country United States
State Washington
County Whatcom
Established1901
Elevation
[1]
256 ft (78 m)
Time zone UTC-8 (Pacific (PST))
 • Summer (DST) UTC-7 (PDT)
Area code 360
GNIS feature ID1517866 [1]

Clipper is an unincorporated community in Whatcom County, in Washington. The community took its name from the Clipper Shingle Company.

Contents

History

Clipper was originally home to a large Polish population, many originally having come to the area to be a part of a colony designed specifically for Polish people to live together, called Rapperswyll. [2]

Potential Polish settlers were offered plots of land for $500 (equivalent to $19,000in 2024). They paid only one-third upfront, with the remainder to be repaid through work for the Rapperswyll Colony Company upon arrival. [3] Anthony Klawitor was the president of the company, and Peter Zobrist, who was Swiss, was the secretary. The colony was located south of Standard, and a town was planned, but after the colony failed to grow they moved north and to the place that became Clipper. [4] [2] According to Leo Sygitowicz, a Clipper resident, in a 1982 newspaper, "more than 75 percent of Clipper residents were of Polish descent at one time." [4]

Clipper was named in 1900 by two employees of the Clipper Shingle Company, James Peterson and James A. McDonald. Clipper was built around the logging industry, and Clipper Shingle Company was among the major employers in the town. [2]

A post office was established on March 5, 1901, with John Glineski as the first postmaster, and remained in operation until February 28, 1955. [5] Clipper established a school district in 1889, breaking off from the Saxon School District. The school served children from Van Zandt as well as children in Clipper. In 1937 it consolidated with Acme and then in 1941 it became part of the Mount Baker School District. [6]

See also

References

Citations

  1. 1 2 U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Clipper, Washington
  2. 1 2 3 Hellyer 2018, pp. 220–221.
  3. ↑ "ODEZWA DRUGA - Do braci naszych Polaków, Litwinów i Słowian" [Second Proclamation - To our brothers the Poles, Lithuanians and Slavs]. Ameryka Echo (in Polish). Vol. 9, no. 3. Chicago, Illinois. January 12, 1895. p. 4 – via newspapers.com.
  4. 1 2 Kirkpatrick, Don (July 28, 1982). "Clipper settled by Poles". The Westside Record-Journal. Annual Old Settlers Edition. Vol. 10, no. 39. p. 2.
  5. ↑ Mullen 1986, p. 87.
  6. ↑ Olmsted & Castles 1991, p. 5.

Sources

  • Hellyer, Margaret A. (2018). A Home on the South Fork: An Early History of Acme - A Northwest Washington Community (First ed.). Bellingham, Washington: South Fork Press. ISBN   9780692131718. OCLC   1061558784.
  • Meany, Edmond S. (1923). Origin of Washington geographic names. Seattle: University of Washington Press. pp. 50–51. hdl: 2027/mdp.39015027074981 . OCLC   1963675.
  • Mullen, Neill D. (1986). Whatcom County, Washington Post Offices and Postmasters 1857-1985. Bellingham, Washington: Mullen. OCLC   13818795.
  • Olmsted, M. C.; Castles, William Irwin (1991). A brief history of the Mount Baker School District. Deming, Washington: All-School Alumni Reunion Committee. OCLC   41783485.
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