Big Foot Valley is bigger than we thought. Here is Part 2.
This is an historic look back at a very historic corner of Stevens County. Only one family resides in the Valley that lived there in the 1940s when the photo below was taken. That would be the Jenkins who bought the Lambier place. The picture was taken by Mr. Harry Ness and labeled by Pete Coffin.
The only known picture of the Big Foot Valley School. This picture was taken in the early 1940's before Harry Ness enlisted in the Army Air Force in 1942. The picture was taken looking west across the northern portion of Big Foot Valley.
An April 2009 picture of the old Big Foot Valley School House. Jack Lewis directed the photographer to this building and Harry Ness confirmed its identity. According to Harry his father skidded the abandoned school house to this location using a chain come-along a few feet a day. He then coverted the school to a chicken coop.
This house still stands and is known as the Trullinger house. In the very earley 50s following the death of Walter Carmean followed shortly by Amy, Paul and Alice Peak along with Virgie and Marie moved onto the premises. Thus life was was made a bit easier as their oldest son Walter joined the Service not long after graduation in 1947.
Kelso and Klawunder families taken in 1913 in front of the original Kelso house in Big Foot Valley when Ed's eldest sister Sarah Kelso Harloe and daughter Eva visited from Winchester, WA. Front row- Walter Klawunder, Harold Klawunder, Grace Kelso, Mildred Klawunder, Kenneth Kelso, Melvin Kelso, Earl Kelso, Middle row- George Klawunder, Elizibeth Kelso (age 83) Sarah Kelso Harloe, Ed Kelso (age 44). Top row- Olive Kelso Klawunder, Eva Harloe, Harriet Kelso (holding infant Weldon). Thank you, Chuck Stewart for sharing this one of a kind photo.
This is the Norman & Mildred Klawunder Warren family. Back Row. Mildred, Norm & oldest child Harold. Front Row. Baby Betty, Oldest Daughter Evelyn, K (Olive), Norma & Marie.
Here is the genealogy of Klawunder-Stewart-Kelso families. Ed Kelso married Harriet Brill. Ed and Harriet had Linda Kelso who married Burton Stewart, son of H.B. and Emma Stewart. Ed’s sister Olive married George Klawunder. Olive and George had three sons, Walter, Harold and Clifford, and one daughter Mildred.
Here as the Bill Sebright picture depicts, carved out of the wilderness overlooking not only Big Foot Valley but the entire landscape of the foot hills of Mt. Spokane.
Bill Sebright, our Society President, visits with Mr. John Reiner, the owner of one of the parcels of land in this remote area. John took time out of his busy schedule to escort 3 Society members through a locked gate on a guided tour that had eluded us for decades. Here we see the view from the old Carmean place.
The remains of the barn is all that is left as evidence of the life they lived, but the beauty of the the little green valley below tells you why they eked out a living in this little piece of Heaven.
Amazingly the Walter and Alice Peak house still stands, vacant for at least 50 years. This is the location where Paul and Alice (Carmean) Peak built their farm, raised three children, Marie, Vergie and the oldest Walter. On May 11, 2009, these apple trees were sending out buds and new signs of life.
The backside of the Peak house appears to be quite sturdy. It doesn't seem impossible to raise this old house from the dead.
Even though it partially collapsed, the well house remains.
From the rear of the building you can count 15 logs. From the front there seems to 10 logs missing
Peter Coffin, being agile enough to peer under some of the ruins to observe very little rot in the timbers. This tends to make one wonder if a crew could manage to work a good heavy metal I beam through, put a front end loader on each end of the beam and gently start raising? Why couldn't it be propped up until the sway was no longer a sway, but perfectly level, reinforced, reroofed and restored. A determined person could have a weekend getaway.
While gazing out from the outhouse, everything always looks a little rosier. An outhouse is also conducive to deep thinking. Such as, If it were in my hands, I do believe this grand mountain should be named, "Carmean Peak."
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A 2009 photograph of Harry Ness son of Emil Ness who purchased the N/2 of the SE/4 of Section 27 TWP29N-RGE41EWM in 1934. Harry graduated in the last Clayton High School class in 1936. Harry provided the only known picture of the location of the Big Foot Valley School. Photo by Pete Coffin.
A photograph of Guy Davis's clay hauling dump truck probably taken in the early 1950's. This may be the Federal truck described in the narrative posted in the Clayton Burger restaurant. The child is most likely one of Guy's daughters. The car is perhaps a Nash in that in the 1950's Guy owned several cars of that brand.
Eddie Kingrey took this winning photo with The the old Sid Loomis, Clarence Nord barn in the foreground, the Eastern range of Big Foot Valley and the far Western range furthest in the distance.
This is a current picture taken by Mr. Chuck Stewart looking west from the old Ness property on Redman Road towards Jones Road. There is another taken by Peter Coffin to follow.
An unblemished view of Big Foot Valley and hidden from view of the mountain side lived two families. The Carmean's and the Peaks.
Here lies the Klawunder/Warren farm of today. George Klawunder willed it to his only daughter Mildred when his wife Olive Kelso Klawunder passed away in 1937. Mildred & her husband Norm Warren then raised their family on this ranch located on the very eastern part of Big Foot Valley at the intersection of Williams Valley Road and Price Road, the only road leading into the remote Big Foot Valley.
Harold, Walt & Mildred Klawunder. Circa very early 30s judging from the Auto.
At the very end of civilization as we know it sits this long ago vacated homestead. A tangle of old fruit trees, once the home of a very close knit family. The Lindh, Nord, Scriven clan. The next photo below of this family is directly below circa 1950 at this very location.
Front row- L to R Carl Lindh, Ray Scriven, ?, Warren Nord. Standing- ?, Clarence Nord, Elva Bender, Con, Lindh, Norma Lindh, ?, ?, Don Lindh, ?, ?, Mr. and Mrs. Scriven, ?, ?.
Parked for more than a little while this 1949 Buick Roadmaster owned by the Peaks and shoved off to the side with a dozer when they blew the engine is the only manmade object that has stood the test of time. Photographed by Peter Coffin.
Surprisingly the road is still in very passable condition although an occasional washout makes a 4 wheel drive essential. Distance on a winding road is difficult to judge but an estimate from the locked steel gate to the Carmeans is about a mile. From there about another mile through rugged terrain to the Peak place, which is snuggled in a low lying gultch in the hills. Protection from the wind and blizzards was a priority over a view of the valley far below. The Carmeans being the parents of Mrs. Paul peak who tagged along much later.
Mr Peter Coffin furnished factual Government statistics regarding the registration dates of the Carmeans. Here is a life story of the Carmean family in a nutshell. In 1900 they lived in Sappe, Nebraska, 1910 Rangley, Colorado, 1920 Laws, California, 1930 in Clayton, WA, & 1933 Big Foot Valley. Paul Peak arrived sometime between 1933 and 1940 when he was registered on the ownership map. The Carmeans lived here until Walter passed away circa 1953 and Amy died soon after.
From down in the valley near Clayton, this range of mountains looms in the distance. Known in the earlier years as Peaks Peak, ask ten people, recieve ten different answers. For this Website it will remain Peaks Peak until further notice.
Peter Coffin, unable to resist one more shot.
The stairs appears solid, it seems there is still a picture or mirror hanging on the wall and isn't that a stool or chair still standing?
This is Walter Peak, who graduated in 1947 from Deer Park High. Walter met and later married Susan.They were introduced by none other than the Webmaster, Robert A. Clouse. She was an absolute adorable, statuesque young lady. They lived their lives relying on and loving each other until Susan passed away a few years back.
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