History Quest - The Dougherty Farmstead
The cache is located along the fence line behind the church. Please park in the church parking lot in the back corner nearest the cache N 47 44.947 W 121 58.968. We have the permission of the church to park there, as well we have the permission of the Duvall historical society and the church for the placement of the cache. Getting to the cache, folks seem to want to walk the fence line which was great in the past, but the black berry vines have really taken over there. If you walk to the 4 or 5th parking spot from the fence you should be able to walk in and behind the wall of black berry vines without an issue. The Dougherty house is located N 47 44.862 W 121 59.034, it's pretty likely that you will drive right past it as you go to get this cache, which is on the back side of the Farm.
The Dougherty House, was built in 1888, by logger and farmer James O’Leary. “James O'Leary built it as a home for his would-be bride in 1888, on a homestead closer to the Snoqualmie River. After she changed her mind about marrying, O'Leary never lived in the house. John and Kate Dougherty purchased the house and 160 acres and moved their than three children into it in 1889” Seattle Times, 2005.
The house first stood close to the Snoqualmie River, where other Cherry Valley buildings were located. (From the cache site those buildings would have been ruffly at the base of the hill across the valley) In 1909, the Chicago, Milwaukee & Puget Sound and Great Northern railroads needed the flat land that was near the river, so they moved several buildings “up the hill with horses and mules”. The Dougherty House was moved at that time and has been at its current location since 1909. There are many buildings that have been added to the farmstead in order for the Dougherty’s to develop their dairy operations, including a bunkhouse (1909), garage (1919), milk chiller (1918) and milk shed (1940). John and Kate had 8 children. The children had responsibility for the swing bridge across the snoqualmie river. When the whistle blew, the older kids would run down and swing the bridge so the riverboats could pass. The Dougherty House was also the post office for a while, and for a period of time Kate did the postmaster duties. John died in 1903 at age 50, leaving Kate to raise 8 children on her own. In 2002 for the Seattle Times Burhen describes Kate Dougherty: "She kept all her children and made a living for them. She had hundreds of apple and prune trees. She had cows and sold cream to the creamery up in Monroe. She boarded eight loggers in that little bunkhouse".
The Duvall Historical Society began working on preserving the house in 1985. For a decade, operating on a shoestring budget while investing many buckets of sweat, the Duvall Historical Society volunteers worked hard saving the Dougherty 1888 farmhouse from heavy surrounding development and the consequences of neglect. “In 1996, after more than a decade of work, historical society members, King County, Duvall and the archdiocese struck a deal. The city secured more than 20 acres for a park and an acre that contains the house and outbuildings. That site was designated a county landmark.” Seattle Times, 2005. In 1999 a grant was sought and a recommendation award given by the Heritage Cultural Facilities to restore the 320 sq/ft logging bunkhouse, restore the steps to the main house, and for sidewalks between the buildings. In 2007, the Dougherty Farmstead Milk Barn Restoration project was completed. The restoration was successful because of a grant from King County 4Culture, and the Eagle Scouts who committed to the project. Before and after restoration pictures are in the gallery.
Volunteers for the Duvall Historical Society host tours of the homestead every Sunday May through September from 1:00-4:00pm.
Congratulations for Pie Rats for FTF!