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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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…
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Holly Post Office & Store
Pictured here is the Holly Post Office & Store. This photo was taken from the dock that extended out into Holly Bay where goods were received by boat. Pfundt expanded his facility to include resort cabins & a bath house. He sold the property in 1949. Photograph donated by Marcie Roscoe.
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Zip & the School Bus, c.1932
Cyprian “Zip” Wyatt is pictured here at age 15 in 1932. He stands alongside the school bus that he & other upperclassmen used to transport 9-12 graders to the High School in Silverdale. Photograph donated by Frieda Wyatt.
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The Shingle Mill, c.1900’s
Just to the left of center in this photo is the water-powered Shingle Mill built in the early 1900’s during logging’s heyday in the area. The Shingle Mill owners, Franz Anderson & John Youngblood, later gathered discarded saws from logging camps & started a can opener factory powered by the same equipment. Even later, they…
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Holly Bay Beachfront
This is an early photo of Holly Bay beachfront. Sometime after this, fill dirt was sluiced in from the hill up behind this area. Photograph donated by Leroy Bowman.
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City of Victoria Steamship, c.1930
Pictured here is the City of Victoria, an ocean-going steamship, docked at the Holly pier. Her captain, Cyprian “Zip” Wyatt, made two separate trips to Holly around 1930. Each time, the passengers disembarked & enjoyed food & beverages prepared by Holly residents. Photograph donated by Frieda Wyatt.
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Holly Bay Pier
Pictured here are swimmers at play near the pier in Holly Bay. Photograph donated by Frieda Wyatt.
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Holly Bay Beach, c.1950
This photograph is of Holly Bay beach, facing south, taken between 1949 & 1950. The 2nd building to the right of the pole on the hillside is Katie Pfundt’s house. (She was also known as “Grandma Pfundt”.) The homes along the beach, from left to right, belonged to: the Moores, the Cramers, Monte Heustis, “Rob”…
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Holly Beach Cabins, c.1940
These beachfront cabins, part of a resort owned & operated by Albert Pfundt & his family, are pictured here around 1940. To the left of this photo is the store, dock, & bath house. Vacationers could also rent parking space & use the facilities for the day. Pfundt sold the resort in 1949 & the…
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Holly Store & Pier, c.1920
Albert Pfundt established this store around 1920. He purchased the business from Fred Wyatt and moved part of the structure (by horse power) & barge( from its location on Bourke’s Point to Holly Bay. He then expanded the store & built a 400-foot pier with two sheds to store chicken feed, kerosene, & oil. Mail,…
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Holly’s 2nd Schoolhouse Teacher, Miss Gantke
Miss Emma Gantke, pictured here, was the 2nd teacher in the newly completed Holly School in 1922. Originally from Wisconsin, she taught across the Canal in Eldon before beginning her work in Holly. Miss Gantke, who never married, lived in the little cottage beside the school built for the teacher’s use. By all accounts, she…
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Holly’s Second School, c.1905
The first schoolhouse in Holly was established about 1893. William Rust taught in a building on his land that had originally been his home. Pictured here is Holly’s second school, built in 1905 on land donated by Robert Wyatt Sr. The school was located on the north side of holly, above Bourke’s Point. The dock…
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The Holly Schoolhouse, c.1922
Pictured here is the Holly School, nor the Holly Community Club. It was built in 1922 on land donated by Albert Pfundt (this photo was taken that same year). An exact duplicate of schools built in Crosby and Seabeck, students attended grades 1-8 here. They were bussed to Silverdale for 9-12. This school was closed…
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Class of 1897 | Dewatto Area School
Dewatto Area School Class of 1897 – Miss Gibbs the teacher is standing beside her class, farthest right. Along with her class of 14 students.
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Class of 1926 | Holly School
Holly School Class of 1926 – The teacher standing behind her class, farthest back, is Miss Gantke. Her class of 19 students stands ready for photo day. Photograph donated by Hattie Madson & Ruth Hawkins.