Prisoners
WHO WERE THE PEOPLE INCARCERATED THERE?
The portable structure of the Willows Stockade was designed to hold 93 prisoners, but the population varied over time.
It opened with 48 prisoners in 1916, and within two months the population was down to 20. However, by 1924 there were 100 prisoners and the facility was soon expanded to hold about 126.
When it closed in 1932, it was reported that 104 prisoners were transferred to the County Jail in Seattle.
We don't currently have a full listing of all the inmates who spent time at the Stockade, during its operation in Redmond.
However, the census gives us some insight into the population. In 1930, the census listed 113 prisoners. The youngest was 21 and the oldest was 69.
They spoke many different languages. The most common was English, but the prisoners also spoke primarily Spanish, Swedish, French, German, Japanese, Dutch, Norwegian and Russian.*
Among them, they shared 38 different trades, with the most common being laborer. There were also 8 seamen, 5 cooks, 4 loggers, 3 farmers, 3 waiters and 3 truck drivers. Other occupations included musician, salesman, mechanic, bookkeeper, "huckster" or salesman, sheep shearer, barber, fireman and rancher.
Look below for full pages from the 1930 census, showing King County Farm workers and prisoners at the Stockade, and individual stories about select prisoners.
*It's likely Stockade staff spoke English. Do you think prisoners that primarily spoke another language would have had access to materials in their native language, or be able to speak with a translator? How would this have changed their experience, compared to a prisoner that might have access to more information?
International Workers of the World
The International Workers of the World (I.W.W), also called "Wobblies", were a international labor union organized in Chicago in 1905. They were known for using divisive rhetoric and daring tactics to promote their ideology.
In 1917, federal and state governments began passing laws to suppress the organization. One such law made membership a crime; other methods were less direct.
Locally, army soldiers and deputy sheriffs would raid rail yards, charging many I.W.W. members with trespass for riding in non-passenger train cars. They would receive 90 days in jail or a $250 fine, and the Sheriff said he would send them to the County Stockade to work on the County Farm.
The Wobblies were also known for helping young men avoid the draft that had been instituted during the mobilization for WWI. The slang term for avoiding or "dodging" the draft was “slacker”.
One man arrested in a sweep of an I.W.W. camp told the sheriff that he had registered for the draft in Chicago. Upon his arrest, the draft board in Chicago confirmed that he was registered and authorized the Seattle exemption board to examine him. He was examined, while in the County Stockade, and certified for service.
John F. Dalton
Newspaper articles, from Dec. 4 and Dec. 5 of 1919, report that John F. Dalton had escaped from the County Stockade after serving one day of a one year sentence for stealing rabbits.
He fled to San Pedro, California where his wife Ellen had moved with their young son. John found out that Ellen had fallen in with people who convinced her to divorce him and were manipulating her, so they could capitalize on her youth and beauty.
Ellen learned that those people had lied to her about John wanting to get rid of her, and by the time he was recaptured in Los Angeles, he had convinced her to remarry him. The court forbade the marriage as she was only 19, and by California law could not marry without her parents permission, although
she and John had previously been married. Sheriff Stringer brought John back to Seattle to serve the rest of his sentence, and Ellen promised to follow as soon as possible.
Once Sheriff Stringer had returned John to Seattle, he investigated this story and found it to be creditable. Ellen was wanted to give John another chance, so the sheriff allowed it.
Ellen and the baby arrived in Seattle a day or so after the sheriff and John. Sheriff Stringer quickly arranged for a ceremony in the County-City building. While guarding John, the sheriff stood as a sponsor for the couple by signing his name on the application filled out in the County Auditor’s office. The two deputies did double duty as guards and witnesses as the judge performed the ceremony.
The newspaper noted that their 18 month old son "endured the ritual with a patient smile". The family was allowed a few minutes together before John was taken back to the County Stockade to finish the 364 days remaining on his sentence. As he was being led away, Ellen said to him “Go ahead John, and remember, I’m waiting for you.”
The sheriff did not charge John with the escape as he was satisfied that the motive was to save his wife, but John escaped again from the County Stockade. He was recaptured, in Los Angeles, though Ellen was working at the telephone exchange in Seattle.
A deputy was sent to California to bring John back. When he got there, the Deputy found that the authorities had a second prisoner for him to take to Seattle. He handcuffed them together, and the three of them left on the train. Just north of Sacramento, the deputy returned to the car where the two prisoners were, and saw the other prisoner jump leap from the train. Not wanting to leave John unguarded, he stayed on the train until John could be held at a the local jail, then organized a posse to search for the other man. They quickly found him and he was soon back in handcuffs.
Neither prisoner would explain how the guy had gotten out of the original cuffs, but when the train was leaving Portland, the deputy noticed that the prisoners' new manacles were loose and about to drop off. Under interrogation, the prisoner admitted to having a saw, and it was found under the carpet.
This time an escape charge was added to John's sentence...
Blaine Davis
The State of Washington's prohibition law that went into effect Jan. 1, 1916. At this time, it was illegal to manufacture or sell alcohol, but still legal to consume it. Alcohol could also be obtained at a pharmacy with a valid medical prescription. However, a permit was required to import alcohol from out of state, and there was a monthly limit.
Federal prohibition went into effect Jan. 17, 1920 . The law split the county into “drys”, in support of prohibition and “wets”, against it.
Blaine Davis was a wet. He is mentioned in a newspaper article, from Dec. 15, 1919, as having been convicted of violation of the liquor laws. It seems that he received a sentence of six months in the King County Stockade for ownership of a still.
In July of 1920 he applied to the U.S. attorney to be released so that he could file his name as a candidate for nomination for Sheriff of Snohomish County. The prosecutor responded “Mr. Davis should make an admirable leader for the wets. If the fight is to be made between the “wets” and the “drys”, I shall have to see what can be done. He is evidently a man well informed on prohibition in his county.” At the time he was still faced with paying a $2,600 fine and finishing the time not yet served.
Ultimately it was reported that President Woodrow Wilson granted his pardon based on the extenuating circumstances that Davis was making liquor solely for his own use and not for commercial disposition.
Davis was released from the County Stockade and declared “I’ll be the next sheriff of Snohomish County now.”
When he submitted his declaration as a candidate for Snohomish County Sheriff, he told the Deputy Auditor “I’m the bootlegger you’ve been hearing so much about.”
He was one of 11 Republicans and 1 Democrat running for the position. He did not win, and in February of 1926, Davis was charged with possessing a still four miles south of Everett.
He was sentenced to serve four months in the County Jail and pay a fine of $500 on conviction of manufacturing liquor with intent to sell.
In February of 1927, Davis was on trial again. He was charged with operating a still of 100 gallons capacity, four miles south of Everett. The defense said that Davis was searching for a hog that had gotten out of its pen and was attracted to the still by the fragrance of the mash. He just happened to be near the still when prohibition agents discovered it.
The jury decided decided in his favor, and returned a verdict exonerating Davis yet again.