The Interstate Bridge Ghost

When I was down in Vancouver, Washington yesterday I took the opportunity to pay a visit to the  gravesite of former Vancouver Mayor G.R. Percival, thought by many to be the identity of the frequently seen Interstate Bridge Ghost.

The details of Mayor Percival's mysterious demise can be found on a post in Between the Lines.

Percival's headstone was nearly entirely covered with matted grass. After I cleared some of it off I was surprised to see his name was given as "Grove R. Percival." Most of the other sources give his first name as "Grover," the cemetery manager even wrote "Grover" on the location map he gave me. In fact, somewhere I found his full name as "Grover Reed Percival."

Yet another mystery to add to the list about this individual.

Postcard - Bellevue, Washington

"Bellevue, Washington. Located on the east side of Lake Washington, the state's fourth largest city. This photo shows a portion of the main business district with Mt. Rainier in the background."

This card is dated 1976. Known as "Blah-vue" by my Seattle friends, Bellevue is no longer the 4th largest city in Washington. It got bumped to number five when Vancouver annexed huge chunks of land several years ago.

If you can make out Mt. Rainier through the smog horizon, it looks really weird, more like a rounded dome than it does in real life.

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Tree debarked by lightning

Vancouver, Washington

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Tree blown to smithereens by lightning

Vancouver, Washington

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Trees hit by lightning

Vancouver, Washington

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Trees hit by lightning

Vancouver, Washington

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Trees hit by lightning

Vancouver, Washington

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Monument to the Three Kichis
Fort Vancouver, Washington

The first recorded Japanese visitors to what is now Washington State were three castaways who ran aground in 1834 after having been adrift in the Pacific for over a year.

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Fort Vancouver National Historic Site
Vancouver, Washington

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Fort Vancouver National Historic Site
Vancouver, Washington

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Fort Vancouver palisades from the inside out.

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Replicas of Fort Vancouver outhouses

It is rather unfortunate this was very close to their well, less than 100 feet in fact.
But I guess they didn't think about total maximum daily load watershed issues in those days.

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A replica of the Chief Factor's residence (Hudson's Bay Co.), Fort Vancouver, Washington.

John McLoughlin, a British subject who later became an American citizen and served as one of the most important figures in aiding U.S. settlement in the disputed Pacific Northwest (an area claimed by Russia, Spain, Britain, and the United States), was the first resident.

I agree with the idea of renaming Thurston County, Washington after Dr. McLoughlin.

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The Grant House, Fort Vancouver National Site, Washington

Built in 1849, this structure was around when Capt. Ulysses S. Grant arrived at Fort Vancouver in 1852, but he never lived here. Later, as President he probably did visit this place.

The spot where Grant actually lived 1852-1854 is now under a nearby freeway.