Sammamish Valley Grange History

Chapter 5 - Other Granges in the Area

In 2005, most of the active members of Sammamish Valley Grange did not even live in King County; they lived in Snohomish County (some deep into that county). And almost none of the active members lived south of this Grange. While this shows the distances that most people travel to get there, it does not indicate the “neighborhood” of the Sammamish Valley Grange.
If there is to be a neighborhood in which Sammamish Valley Grange is to correspond in contemporary times it would include the towns of Bothell, Woodinville, Kenmore (King County Side of these towns), Cottage Lake, Kingsgate, Totem Lake, Juanita, Finn Hill, and the Sammamish Valley to somewhere between 124th and the Kirkland-Redmond Road. However, there was a time when several Granges occupied the area of Sammamish Valley’s area. They include not only Woodinville Grange, as mentioned above, but also Derby Grange, Twin Valley Grange, Juanita Grange, and Novelty Hill Grange.
Yet, Sammamish Valley Grange was a club in Bothell, and was not in Woodinville as yet. There were at least three other Granges in the northern half of the Sammamish Valley Grange. The Grange located in the neighborhood that Sammamish Valley Grange was located was known as Derby Grange, as this community was known as Derby (the name was changed to Hollywood because the leading resident, Fred Stimson, had holly trees lining his driveway and demanded it be so changed). I have yet to find out what happened to it.
There was a Twin Valley Grange. For a while, we have tried to guess where this was at. The minutes appear to show that t dissolved and was reorganized at the community of York. Apparently York was located about 1½ miles from Totem Lake, around 116thand 124th, and it was a planned community, around the Physio-Control office park, that never got off the ground. However, at the top of the letterhead of a piece of correspondence of that Grange, which are in our records, it notes that it was part of Snohomish County.
One final Grange in the Sammamish Valley area, in the middle-lower Sammamish Valley, that I discovered in the minutes is Novelty -Vincent Grange. This appeared sometime in the late 1920’s – early 1930’s. We did several activities with this subordinate unit. Since Novelty Hill is in the vicinity of 124th, by this time, it would have been the Grange closest to us. Eventually, this Grange disappeared. I asked some members of Happy Valley Grange if it went into their Grange, but no one could confirm if this was the case.
There was a Juanita Grange, too, in our area. (misspelled as Wanita) I thought that the community hall on 100th in Juanita may have housed it, but that may also have been the first Juanita school (the oldest Eastside institution). As noted above, we helped to organize this one.
At least four other extinct Eastside Granges survived into current times. Up until the 1980’s, there was a Grange in Duvall, Cherry Valley Grange. It had it’s own hall, in downtown Duvall, which is now an antique store – and in fact is still marked as Cherry Valley Grange. When it dissolved, most of the members went to Tualco, but the Myers family demitted to Sammamish Valley.
Snoqualmie Valley Grange was in Carnation. It lasted until this decade. It was well known for it’s hall, which was a model for other halls. Those members went to Happy Valley. Both Cherry Valley and Snoqualmie Valley Granges sold their halls – a death wish, as there was not much activity for them once they did so.
In the Northrup region of Bellevue, there was a Midway Grange. This lasted until the 1970’s. Today, the location is a towing company.
There was a Lake Washington Grange in Kirkland, toward the bottom of Rose Hill. It too dissolved in the 1970’s. I was told that these members went to Happy Valley. I was also told it had a bad floor.
Before Woodinville became identified exclusively as an Eastside city, the area around it was more fluid. Hence, someone in southern Snohomish county could identify with it. As evidence of it’s fluidity, March 1932, we asked to start a new Grange. The next month, a committee recommended a new Grange get started in Maltby – a Snohomish address. This had it’s own hall, and lasted until some time ago.
Finally, we must not forget North Creek Grange. It was organized around the time Sammamish Valley was organized, and it lasted until 2002. Although of a different Pomona, it was for most of it’s life our closest subordinate neighbor. But we did occasionally aid it – such as when it reorganized, master Frank Baker was one of those who helped to do so (as he related to me). Like almost all Granges by the 21st century, it has struggles with membership, but that is not the reason why it dissolved – it could have lasted. It was on the spot of the Brightwater plant. This was one case where a Grange went extinct not to it’s own actions, but that of another entity. So it went to Horseshoe Grange.
One Grange still in existence is Happy Valley. We have long cooperated with this Grange, even in the days when we were still in Bothell.
Another Grange which we apparently helped to organize was Bear Creek Grange.
There was also mention of an “Elanors” Grange, though no clue as to location.
Not mentioned are those Granges which still survive, in both Snohomish County and the Eastside. Despite the fact that Woodinville is in between two cultural zones, as mentioned above, in earlier times there was more fluidity and less distinctness between people of the various small towns. From south Snohomish County northward, and Bellevue southward, there were many, many more Granges dotting the landscape – to mention them all would be beyond the scope of this history.
What is important is that it was hard to run into a community without a Grange, and an active one at that. Having all these Granges blanketing the entire state, in a continuous belt, gave it the membership to perform it’s legislative triumphs – the direct democracy reforms at the beginning of the century, the triumphs of the PUD’s, the blanket primary, and other legislative victories. These also led to a richer cultural life of the small towns, something for the citizens to do. It also gave the small communities a voice to fight the dominant influence that Seattle tried to infect the state up until the suburbs could produce leadership to do this.
While the above Granges dissolved, the importance is that we have given a hand to help each other, even outside the Pomona level. For example, two members of Happy Valley became affiliates, in the 1990’s, when we were struggling with members.

posted by EricMatthew @ 10:40 PM