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Babich

Related to two pioneer fishing families, the Jerisiches and the Lovroviches, Spiro Babich immigrated to the United States from Croatia in 1910. Like many immigrants, when he arrived to Gig Harbor he had little money and spoke not a word of English. But he was eager to learn and follow in the footsteps of his fishermen kin. He mastered the rigors of chasing salmon and hauling tarred cotton nets with his bare hands. Before long, Spiro purchased his first purse seiner, the “Ranger.” He would go on to buy 18 more fising vessels throughout his 40 year career as one of the most highly regarded fishermen in the Harbor. Spiro married Julia Skansie and together they had two sons, Paul and Peter. In 1934, he built his family a craftsman-style home; by 1938, he built a dock and a net shed and a purchased his second seiner. During the 1930s, Spiro expanded the business, fishing Wahington salmon in the summer and California sardines during the winter. The family moved between the two locations. In 1941, he added a second net shed to his Gig Harbor property. When Paul and Peter were in their teens, they joined their father on the boat, fishing mostly in the San Juan Islands. Spiro fished until his very last days. When he died in 1957 he left the family home, the northerly net shed and the seiner “Invincible” to his son Paul. Son Peter inherited the southerly net shed and the seiner “Julia B.” When Alaska gained statehood in 1959, Peter went to False Pass to fish the Aleutians Islands. He continued to fish there for the remainder of his career. He left his Gig Harbor net shed to son Randy, himself a fishermen since the age of 15. Randy purchased the purse seiner “Paragon” in 1982. Today, Babich family ties to the fishing community remain quite strong. Brothers Nick, Andy and Mike Babich are Randy’s cousins, and Joe and Bob Puratich are his second cousins. All of these men currently run commercial purse seiners. (see also, L.A. Times, 24 September 1989) GHNSS

Berntsen

Anton Berntsen was born in Snoknadal, Norway. He settled in Cromwell in 1897 and purchased 40 acres of land for $466 in 1899. He met and married Anne Jansen. Anne had immigrated from Norway along with her parents, Henry and Antunette, and several brothers: William, Thomas, Jack & Andrew. Anton kept a flock of sheep and horned rams. He grew berries and tomatoes that were shipped to market in Tacoma. Anton and Anne had “six and one-half dozen” children: Inga, Alfred, Hannah, Arthur, Emma (Daniels), Oscar, Tilda, Henry, Fridtijof (Fritz), Valdemar (Val), Olaf & Olga. The family had a string orchestra consisting of Anton (guitar with double string neck), Fritz (Hawaiian guitar), Val and Henry (mandolin and banjo). They played for the church Christmas program and on many other occasions throughout the year. (source: Cromwell Memories, Fritz Berntsen) GHPHS

Berntson

Julius and Lisa emigrated from Norway and settled in Wanona, Minnesota where their sons, Bert and Ingvald, were born. The family moved to Peninsula in 1905 and later settled in Cromwell, Gig Harbor where Julius’ brother, Anton Berntsen, lived. “Berntsen” is the original spelling of the family name, but Julius’ son Bert thought the spelling “Berntson” seemed more American. The Berntsons had an orchard that grew out-of-season vegetables in several large greenhouses on their property. Son Bert married Hannah Hansen in 1915. Hannah’s family (parents, Ole and Anne, brother Oswald and grandmother Ellen) also emigrated from Norway. Bert worked as a purser on the steamboat Bay Island – a vessel purchased by the local farmer’s organization (the Hales Pass and Wollochet Navigation Cooperative) to ensure that their produce was delivered fresh to market. As a condition of employment, Bert had to buy-in to the co-op, at $100 per share. Eventually, competition from eastern Washington farms undermined the demand for local produce and the Berntsons moved to Tacoma, where Bert worked at the Municipal Dock as a checker. He purchased a gas-powered boat, the Leah M., so he could deliver freight to Henderson Bay on the weekends. Captain Ed Lorenz, who operated seamboats between the Key Peninsula and Tacoma, contacted Bert and asked him to partner in the operation of Lorenz’s boat, the Thurow. No salary, but Bert would receive a share in the profits. He took the deal and moved the family, including daughters Annabell and Virginia, to Lakebay, the site of Lorenz’s home base. Bert’s wife Hanna participated in the Ladies Club and Bert became a member of the Modern Woodmen. They helped build the Lakebay Hall, where families enjoyed plays and community dances. After the move, Bert made $3 for his first month’s work – not even enough to pay the rent – but things got better. Bert and Capt. Lorenz sold the Thurow and purchased a larger steamer, the Sentinel, which they used until 1928. Later, they ordered a new boat, the Arcadia, which made both men a good living for years to come. In 1941, Bert and Capt. Lorenz fell ill and were hospitalized. Lorenz died and his brother Oscar, assuming that Bert wouldn’t make it either, decided to sell the Arcadia. But Bert did recover and gradually regained his strength. He purchased the steamer “Burro” from Lloyd Hunt and used it to service the Gig Harbor and Lakebay farmers’ co-ops with freight service. His business thrived until the construction of the second Narrows Bridge, when the farmers’ co-ops merged and began trucking their produce to market. Bert sold the Burro in 1956. (source: Virgina Seavy) GHPHS

Bloom

Ole Bloom was born in Norway. He came to the United States and lived briefly in Minnesota before moving to North Dakota, where he established a homestead with his first wife, Kari Hasledalen. They had five children: Adolph, Bernard, Mathilde, William, and Severin. After Kari passed away, Ole married Louisa in 1898. Louisa was 19 years his junior. She was born in a log cabin in the Dakota Territory. Louisa and Ole had eight children together: Mabel, Amanda, Clarence, Olivia, Lawrence, Clifford, Lillian & Walter. After hearing about the beauty of the south Puget Sound from Ole’s brother Thomas (who had settled in Arletta, Gig Harbor), Ole and Louisa came west to the area in 1904. They first settled on Fox Island. But Ole tired of rowing across Hales Pass to go to church so, in 1907, they moved to Cromwell. They purchased property that is still owned by the Bloom family. Ole and his sons farmed berries, vegetables, and other fruit and flowers they transported to Tacoma for sale. Louisa worked as postmistress for a few years. The post office was located in her father’s (Nils Stien) house, next door to the family home. Nils had joined the family in Cromwell in 1907 after his wife’s death. (source: Jason Graham) GHPHS

Bujacich

Jack and George Bujacich probably have saltwater in their veins. The brothers hail from one of the long-time fishing families who have called Gig Harbor home for generations. Their mother was a Ross. Their father Jack Sr., born in 1894, left his home in Croatia at the age of 13. After working a few years in the mines of Colorado, he migrated to Gig Harbor. Winters, he worked at a mill in Eatonville. In summertime, he fished out of the harbor. “Back then, Gig Harbor was a unique community,” Jack, the younger of the two sons – better known as Jake – recalled. “The Swedes lived in Arletta. The Norwegians were in Crescent Valley. And the Croatians lived in Gig Harbor. They all fished together in the summer.” In 1928, their father launched the Majestic, a boat built at the Skansie Shipyard. “I first went out with my dad on that boat when I was 8,” George said. “That would have been 1933.” In the 1950s, George inherited the Majestic and fished from it for many years. In 1966, he bought the Mustang, and Jake took over the Majestic. All in all, George fished for 47 years. Jake started fishing in 1942, first with his uncle, then, a year later with his father and older brother on the Majestic. He took a break from fishing in 1944 and joined the Merchant Marines. “Me and my buddies joined up together. We said we were going to go win the war,” Jake said. He spent 2 years in Korea before returning to Gig Harbor. As soon as the war was over, Jake came home and took over the Majestic from 1960 through 1966. George had partnered with Antone Katich to build the Mustang. Jake continued to fish every summer until 1978, including the years when he was Gig Harbor’s mayor (1967-1978). “Back then, everybody helped each other out. We’d get together and make a crew, if somebody needed help,” he said. He figures he’s fished on at least 17 boats. “In 1967, I fished with George Ancich. In ’69 I had my own boat. In the 1970s, I ran the Shenandoah.” The latter is now on display in the Harbor History Museum, currently being restored. In 1978, Jake ran for Pierce County Commissioner and “gave up my boats,” serving from 1978 to 1986. There were good seasons and bad, the brothers recalled, listing a few: “The first year I fished, in 1942, I didn’t even make enough to pay my union dues,” Jake said. “1946 was a big sockeye season. In ’47 it was a big humpy season.” “In the winter of 1949, the harbor froze completely over,” George added. In 1947, the fishermen went on strike. “We needed to get 14-cents a pound for fish in order to make it work,” he said. “When we finally found a buyer at 14-cents, off we went.” Jake was appointed cook on that crew. “I got recipes from my mom and my sister. Just about every man in this town who fished knows how to cook.” That’s because, until the 1950s, women weren’t allowed on the boats. “The old guys believed it was bad luck,” George said. George broke with tradition and hired a woman to cook on his boat in the early 1950s. “He was a new breed,” Jake said of his brother. “I can’t think of her name,” George said, “but she went with us to Alaska. She was a good cook, too.” Like all the boys in fishing families, the brothers got their start filling the needles used to sew the nets. “Our dad was an expert at making needles,” George said. “He made them out of needle wood, which is a real hard wood.” “We’d go down to the docks and fill needles all day long,” Jake added. “The faster and better you were the more they liked you. They had to be wrapped real tight.” It was a big day for a youngster when he no longer had to fill needles and got to go fishing. “It was the highlight of every kid’s life, when you finally got to go fishing,” Jake said. “We figured one of the reasons they put a kid on board was so they could have somebody to yell at,” George added. “Kids did everything. Just like the grown-ups.” (“The Bujacich Brothers – Elders of Gig Harbor’s Fishing Community.” The Kitsap Sun, 28 April 2010) George and Eileen had 3 children. George died in 2015 at the age of 90. Jake and Pat had 3 children and still live in Gig Harbor. At age 89, Jake continues to crew aboard the Memories as the cook during the fall fishing season and is still active in town politics.

Burnham

Dr. Alfred Burnham was a Civil War Veteran who came to Gig Harbor from Albert Lea, Minnesota with his wife Rachel and their children Albert Bismark (Biz), Clarence (Nick), Louise (Louella) and Franklin. In 1884, Alfred purchased 160 acres of land from fishermen Sam Jerisich, John Farragut and Peter Goldsmith (the earliest European settlers to the area), which he platted into the original townsite of “Gig Harbor” in 1888. In addition to being the town’s first physician, Burnham participated with Frank Hall in creating the first lumber mill and had the rights-of-way surveyed for roads connecting Gig Harbor to Purdy and Olalla. He opened the first general store (operated by his son Clarence) and published his own newspaper promoting elixirs and good health. He was so eager to promote this new community that he offered a free parcel of land to anyone who would settle in the townsite, build a house and paint it white. He persuaded many of his friends from Minnesota to join him in Gig Harbor. Later, he provided land for the Methodist Episcopal Church, chartered in 1892. Alfred’s wife Rachel served as the postmistress of Rosedale. (Harbor History Museum blog, 3/29/12) MA, GHPHS