My husband, Arlen, and I moved to Holly in the fall of 1996. We bought a little mobile home with some forested land from Frank Stever, a Holly native. We had fallen in love with this beautiful little community pretty much at first sight. One day, soon after moving in, our nearest neighbors visited. Jim and Mona Elsey greeted us warmly and invited us to meet more neighbors at the Holly Community Club.
Mona was Club President then and Jim was an active member. A couple of years later when I was serving as Club secretary Jim approached me with an idea. Many long-time Holly residents and descendants of pioneers still lived in the area. He believed these people (he called them “walking history books”) could provide detailed information about Holly’s origins, history and maybe pictures, too. I had, by then, made a friend in a nearby neighbor. Frieda Wyatt was a lovely, kind, and sharp Holly-ite who was both a Holly native (her mother was married to Albert Pfundt) and was married to Steve Wyatt who was descended from a pioneer family. I shared Jim’s idea with her and she became my partner and liaison in the project.
Frieda knew EVERYONE. We visited Holly neighbors and nearby neighbors, i.e. Dewatto, Belfair, and Bremerton. They talked about old friends, family members, old times, traditions and opened up family photo albums. I copied and enlarged photos and made an album with descriptive captions underneath. What a rich, heartwarming experience! Getting to meet and hear from such people as Hattie Madsen who was raised in Holly and was, when I met her, well over a hundred years old was a complete pleasure. Sheila Wyatt, Marcie Roscoe, Lauralee and Palmer Hanson, different members of the Hole family and many more. I was and am grateful for Jim’s suggestion and Frieda’s partnership.
Preface By Linda Johnson
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A Holly Winter, c.1900’s
This is a wintertime photo of Holly in the early 1900’s. In the center of the picture is a combination Shingle Mill & Can Opener/Scissors Factory that was built between 1902 & 1905. To the right & behind this building is the Robert Wyatt Sr. home which was built in 1890. The white house with…
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4th of July, c.1913
A Holly community 4th of July picnic is gathered here in front of the Bourke’s Point Post Office & Store. This store, Holly’s second (Robert Wyatt Sr. previously had one on the main floor of his home), was started by John Youngblood and his wife Minehaha in 1900. The Youngblood’s sold it to Fred Wyatt…
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High School Students, c.1932
In 1931, students attending high school commuted on school buses like this one between Holly & Silverdale. Many other students rode the bus along the route but pictured here are mostly Holly residents (See notation beside each student’s name). Photograph donated by Frieda Wyatt
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The Wyatt Family, c.1889
Robert & Ellen Wyatt & 7 of their children are photographed here in 1892. In the back row, from left, are Ralph, Cyprian, & Nellie. In the middle are Robert Jr., Robert Sr., Gertrude, & Ellen. Arthur rests his arm on his father’s knee & Gracie is on her mother’s lap. Photograph donated by Cyprian…
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Riverside Timber Company, c.1902
Between 1902 & 1905, the Riverside Timber Company bought 21,000 acres of timberland around the Holly area. In this photo you can see the railroad tracks running in front of the Bourke’s Point post office & store. Behind the store is the dance hall / community center. Fred Wyatt’s home is seen in the far…
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Holly’s First Family, c.1890
The first family to settle in Holly, Robert Sr. & Ellen Wyatt & their children, built this house in 1890. Wyatt established the first post office & store on the home’s main floor & he was Holly’s first Postmaster. He & his elder sons also supported the family by fishing & logging. Wyatt gave the…
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The Kitsap, c.1952
Pictured here is the Kitsap, purchased in 1947 by Stephen “Steve” Wyatt. This photo was taken in 1952. Wyatt originally caught dogfish (Sand sharks) which were sold for their livers (High vitamin A content). Beginning in 1949, he took the Kitsap shrimping & he sold her in 1953. Photograph donated by Frieda Wyatt.
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Bowman’s Boat, c.1920’s
Orville Bowman is pictured here aboard his boat in Holly Bay. He bought the boat in 1927 & this picture was taken, most likely, a few years after that. Bowman came to Holly in 1925 to log in the area with his father. He later finished with Albert Pfundt on the Rambler. In 1927, Bowman…
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The Seabeck Holly Road, c.1950
At the official opening of the new Seabeck Holly Road in July 1950, Monte Heustis assists Katie Pfundt, known as “Grandma Pfundt”, with her ribbon-cutting duties. Pictured in foreground, from left to right, is Emily Schlatter, “Rob” Wyatt, Monte Heustis, Katie Pfundt, “Polly” Wyatt, Albert Pfundt, & Ira Stever. Behind them stands County Commissioner Klinefelder…
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The Venture Ship
Information that I have gathered about the ship pictured here, The Venture, is conflicting. Steve Wyatt says that he recalls that Louie Pfundt owned The Venture, a purse seiner, & that Louie fished for salmon in the San Juan Islands in the summer & in Hood Canal in the fall. However, Florence “Flossie” Clark remembers…
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Pfundt Family, c.1920’s
Pictured here, probably in the 1920’s, are the Pfundts. Fred & Kate Pfundt homesteaded on land about 7 miles south of Holly, near Dewatto, in 1889. Their 8 children were raised around the Holly area & when grown, most of them made their homes & raised their children in the community. Photograph donated by Frieda…
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Hattie Madson’s Cow, c.1911
Hattie Madson (Age 17) is pictured here in the summer of 1911. She & a family cow are posing on what has been called “Madrona Point”, after a huge madrona tree on the family’s land on Holly Bay.
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Indigenous Artifacts, c.1923
American Indian Artifacts were found under these charred tree stumps in 1923. While clearing his Holly beachfront property, Albert Pfundt discovered beads, arrowheads, axeheads, & other items & donated these findings to the University of Washington. The dock in front of Pfundt’s store can be seen in the background. One of the sheds on the…
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Old Holly Hill Road
This is an early photo of the summit of Old Holly Hill Road, originally called “Hole Hill”, after the Hole family. Source of photograph unknown.
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The Rambler, c.1922
The Rambler is pictured here in dry dock on Holly Bay in 1922. The boat’s owner, Albert Pfundt, is seen here on the beach with a bucket in hand. His daughter, Florence (“Flossie”), about 14 years old is standing at the boat’s center. Pfundt fished for salmon in Hood Canal, the San Juan Islands, &…
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The Rambler, c.1920’s
Pictured here is the Rambler, returning to Holly after a fishing trip, sometime in the early 1920s. Albert Pfundt, owner of the Rambler, fished for salmon in Hood Canal, the San Juan Islands, & Alaska & he also shrimped with this boat. Photograph donated by Leroy Bowman.
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Indigenous Artifacts, c.1923
In 1923, American Indian Artifacts were found under the charred tree stumps you see here. While clearing his Holly beachfront property, Albert Pfundt discovered beads, arrowheads, axeheads, & other items. He later donated his discoveries to the University of Washington. This photo is taken with the photographers back to the canal. Pfundt’s home, built in…
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Bourke’s Point, c.1900’s
This is a photograph of Bourke’s point taken in the early 1900s. The picture is taken from the south part of Holly Bay looking north. Atop the Point is a home built by Fred Pfundt in 1910. The property was sold to the Bourke family &, still standing & in good repair, has been used…