‘Port of Everett: The First Hundred Years’ is for sale at The Daily Herald, 1800 41st St. Suite S-300, Everett for $39.95.
Over the century of the Port of Everett’s existence, a waterfront once dominated by the world’s largest shingle mill has evolved to become the home of the West Coast’s largest public marina.
On Nov. 5, 1916, a confrontation at City Dock between the Industrial Workers of the World and deputized citizens during a shingle weavers’ strike left at least five union members and two deputies dead. It was the bloodiest labor confrontation in Pacific Northwest history.
The event soon came to be called the Everett Massacre. It took a century for a historic plaque describing the incident to be installed at the junction of Bond Street, Federal Avenue and Hewitt Avenue. The port history includes two pages of photos and text describing the massacre.
The International Longshoremen’s and Warehousemen’s Union was formed in 1937, with three of its locals now serving the port.
“I interviewed a longshoreman who was fourth generation who had worked at the port,” said Karalynn Ott, primary researcher and writer of a new book, “Port of Everett: The First 100 Years.”
Today, an average of 62 ships and 48 barges come to the port annually, transporting inbound and outbound aerospace cargoes.
“I’ve become so fond of the Port of Everett,” Ott said. “I think it’s really a gem that probably a lot of people drive by on I-5 and don’t even know what’s down there.”