SARYELEN PRIEST AND JOHN DEYOUNG

My paternal grandmother’s name was Saryelen Priest. She must have hated the name Sary or Sarah, so she went by Ellen. In fact, it wasn’t until after she died and I started my research that any of us knew her real first name was Saryelen. My Aunt Anna Frances thought her first name was Sarah because her tombstone says S. Ellen DeYoung.

Saryelen “Ellen” Priest was born in 1893 in Golden, Missouri which is right across the Missouri-Arkansas border from where she grew up in Green Forest, Arkansas which is in the Ozarks. After she left home she went by Ellen. Both sides of Ellen’s family fought in the Revolutionary War. After the Civil Way her Father Monteville Priest moved from Kentucky to Missouri where his brother and many neighbors had moved to and was a farmer and occasionally worked for the railroad. At eighteen she asked her father if she could go to Washington and work in the logging camps. Apparently he had been to Spokane (probably through working for the railroad) and agreed to let her go. In addition she had Priest cousins (Abner and Charles) working in the logging camps in Lebam, Washington and her other cousins Keenis also lived close by in Morton and Chehalis Washington. So she had family out here to watch over her. About 1911 she got on the train either by herself or with her cousin Sherman and came west. She got a job working in the logging camps as a cook. Here is a picture of an early logging camp in Washington. This must have been very similar to what she encountered upon reaching Washington. When asked about how it was working in the logging camps she said it really wasn’t a big deal and “they were all nice boys.” How nice all the “boys” were is questionable – she was a very gutsy lady who always stood up for herself. Here is a picture of a logging camp’s workers much like she worked in. I wonder if she also wore a white dree among all that dirt!

She went to work in Lebam, WA which is half way between Centralia/Chehalis and Raymond. This is a map of the logging camps in the area in 1915 startinga at Raymond and ending at Chehalis. LaBam is half way down the list down the list with a populatiohn of 250.  She worked there for the Quinault Logging Company. Apparently the logging camps weren’t as desirable as she let on because after living in Lebam for about a year, the Painter Family (her cousin Abner Priest wife’s family) who lived in Auburn (an area next to Kent and a suburb of Seattle) needed help. She moved north and lived with them as a domestic for awhile and then went to live with the Alban family in Kent also as a domestic. The Alban’s lived next door to Menno (Harry) and Ytje (Ida) de Jong>DeYoung and their son Hans (John). It wasn’t too long before she married John DeYoung August 15, 1913. To learn more about their family please go to their DeYoung Family page.

Saryelen “Ellen” Priest DeYoung in 1912. She loved hats.

My grandmother was a wonderful woman and had a very interesting life. She was born in 1893 and died in 1982. She married Hans John DeYoung in 1913 and they had 6 children: John Milford “Milford” (1914), Anna Frances “Frances” (1916), William Lowell “Lowell” (1920), Robert Taylor (1924), James Henry (1928), and my Father Frederick Allison “Al” (1929). As you might notice almost everyone is called by their middle name. It has been quite confusing.

On the right is a picture of John and Ellen taken at their 50th wedding anniversary in 1963. All of their children have lived to celebrate their 50 year wedding anniversary. I think that is quite an accomplishment. The grandchildren have not been so fortunate. Like most families today, we have had several divorces.

Below their anniversary picture is a picture of John and Ellen taken in the 1950’s and the group picture below that is of the DeYoung children and their spouses at my Uncle Milford and Aunt Frances’ fifth wedding anniversary party.

From Left to right are Robert Taylor (Bob) and my aunt Barbara Mae Koontz, William Lowell “Lowell” and my aunt Stella Pascoe, John Milford “Milford” and my aunt Frances Pemberton, my Father Frederick Allison “Al” and my Mother Donna June Pemberton, Anna Frances “Frances” DeYoung Gasslander and my uncle Richard “Dick” Gasslander, and James Henry “Jim” and my aunt Dorothy Jean Pemberton. (As a side note three DeYoung boys married three Pemberton girls. Plus my Mother and Aunt Dorothy are identical twins. So, six of us are double cousins. It is very confusing to everyone, including the family sometimes!)

The following Community Profile was written about my Grandmother in 1969 for the local newspaper. She died in 1892.

“If the late John DeYoung hadn’t scanned his Sunday paper one day in 1925, the Northshore community would have been poorer in many ways.

“We lived in Kent and my husband had a good job,” recalls his widow, Ellen DeYoung. “But he always wanted his own business.”

When John DeYoung discovered a general store for sale in the classified ads, “We climbed right in the car and drove to Woodinville that Sunday,” Mrs. DeYoung said.

What the DeYoungs saw of Woodinville and Clara Teagarden’s general store that day convinced them the community had a future. [Note: looking at the picture I think they had an incredible amount of pioneer spirit to buy that store – ld]

Borrowing $700 and investing every cent of his own, John DeYoung bought the store, where the Woodinville Texaco station is located today.

“I had misgivings about moving to a jumping-off place where logging was the only support of the town,” Mrs. DeYoung remembers. “But I decided to help make the community better.” [My aunt Anna Frances says that after about a year my Grandfather wanted to move because he didn’t think Woodinville was the type of community he wanted to raise his family. My grandmother was the one who said it was up to them to make it the kind of community they wanted to live in. She was true to her commitment.]

In the 44 years since that afternoon Ellen DeYoung has been true to her word. Setting the pace with her tireless efforts on behalf of civic, business, and religious activities, she imbued her six children with the same dedication to public stewardship.

Yet she will say modestly, “No mother could be as lucky as I. All my six children are around me. Besides, I have 15 grandchildren and one great-grandchild.”

Her husband, who died several years ago, began his contribution to Woodinville when he built his own general store and post office beside the old one.

In another building across the road, he operated a lettuce-packing shed. When that era ended, John DeYoung converted it to a feed and fuel operation.

That same location today houses the Lowell DeYoung Co., a large feed-milling concern and fuel distributorship.

Although Mrs. DeYoung pooh-poohs any notion that her family has evolved a business dynasty, she is proud of their varied talents.

Ellen DeYoung knows the strengths and weaknesses of her youngsters, and her pride shines through any recitation.

“Milford, the eldest, has an excellent aptitude for math.” she says. “He graduated from the UW at the age of 20.”

Milford, who lives at Edmonds, teamed with his father to open Woodinville Hardware and later assumed the business himself. Today, he operates a tax service in Bothell.

Frances Gasslander, the only daughter, attended Cornish School of Arts and the UW. “She would have been a fine teacher,” her mother says. Mrs. Gasslander is a church organist, teaches organ and piano and is active in the community. She and her brother Lowell live at Woodinville.

The second son Lowell, “inherited his father’s business head,” according to Mrs. DeYoung. He purchased his father’s business during World War II and added a feed milling operation.

My youngest sons, Jim and Al, were in high school then,” recalls their mother. Lowell gave them after-school jobs so they would have money to jingle in their jeans.”

In recent years, Lowell has been serving as fire district commissioner and board member of a local bank. He constantly works through the chamber of commerce for the business future of his community.

Bob, recently named to the Bothell City Council, served many years as a Northshore School Board member and is president of the Bothell Library Board. He is a mail carrier for the Woodinville Post Office.

“He could have been a lawyer,” His mother proudly declares. “He is outgoing and convincing, no matter what he tackles.”

The remaining sons, Al and Jim, live a block apart on a Kenmore hillside. Al has remained with his brother, Lowell, in the Woodinville business enterprises. He presently serves on the Northshore School Board and works in allied school activities.

“He has a lot of warmth and sympathy with people,” his mother nods.

Jim, the only son to work outside the Northshore community is a Lynwood banker. “He was born with banking in his blood,” Mrs. DeYoung insists with a smile.

Pursuit of education is something Ellen DeYoung values highly. While her children were at Woodinville grade school and Bothell High School, she worked beside the school administrators to provide extras that school funds didn’t cover.

During the Depression, she walked miles of dusty Woodinville roads to solicit money for a school lunchroom. “I collected $85 one day,” she recalls with a pleased look.

Mrs. DeYoung waited until the lunchroom opened and then tackled the county school superintendent for reimbursement. The surprised administrator caved in quickly and refunded the lunchroom costs to her. She promptly used the money for other school needs. “before he changed his mind,” she added impishly.

Although she was a charter Woodinville PTA member, she consistently refused the presidency. “I could always accomplish more as a worker and voice my opinions when I wanted,” she says.

In recognition of her numerous contributions to education, the Woodinville PTA gave her its first Golden Acorn award 15 years ago.

Another area which received full attention from Ellen DeYoung was her church membership. “The Woodinville Methodist Church had about seven members when we first moved here,” she recalls. Today, she is still an active member of the large church and its original women’s society.

From the trim, imposing New England colonial her husband built for her 37 years ago on the main road of Woodinville, she watched the community grow. “I’ve seen many changes from my front window on Main Street.”

Last fall, she reluctantly left the house and moved to a compact Bothell apartment at her family’s insistence. There, she is close to stores and shops. “And Lowell comes each Sunday to take me to church at Woodinville.” she adds. “I enjoy it here, and I’m never lonely.”

It would be difficult to be lonely, for Ellen DeYoung’s children and grandchildren are constant callers. Friends drop in frequently, including her in community activities as always.

Besides, she enjoys traveling. “I love to fly,” she says saucily. “I didn’t even clutch an arm on my first flight.”

Her one unfulfilled wish is to visit the Holy Land. “I may do it yet,” she adds with the familiar family determination. No one who knows Ellen DeYoung will dispute her.”

Grandmother had a quick smile and looked for the positive side of a situation. Although Grandfather was not a disciplinarian and the discipline was left to Grandmother. She was not super strict. My aunts and uncles all fondly remember that whenever one of the boys got in trouble, “Grammy” as we called her would just chuckle and say “well, boys will be boys.”

Woodinville is wonderful community and a great place to live and raise your family. Many of the DeYoung’s still live here today, including me. The DeYoung family had a member attending the Northshore School system continuously from 1925 when they moved to Woodinville to 1994, when 69 years later Wendy Cooper Al DeYoung’s granddaughter graduated from Woodinville High School. My family has participated in the building of Woodinville in the tradition that my Grandmother instilled in us. My uncle Lowell and his son John have been involved with the Fire Department, my uncle Bob was a school board member, councilmember and the mayor of Bothell (a adjoining town), my Father Al was on the school board and has been a member of Public Hospital #2 -Evergreen Medical Center’s Board of Directors for 24 years and is currently running for another six year term unopposed. Woodinville incorporated from being an area in the county to a city in 1993. I was fortunate enough to be elected to the first City Council and to be chosen the first mayor of Woodinville. I know Grandmother would be proud. I also think my Grandparents would be proud of the community they helped to start. I often tell people that if my Grandmother was still alive in 1994 when Woodinville incorporated she would have been the first mayor and she would have loved every minute of it.