Theodore Roosevelt’s Parrots President Theodore Roosevelt and his family were avid animal lovers. In their lifetimes they owned or were gifted many animals, from the exotic to the mundane. Falling somewhere in the middle of that scale are 2 parrots. (AKA Winged Demons) One parrot was named Loretta, and was praised by Roosevelt for being […]

Labor Two-Pence Per Day, and Labor Two Dollars Know all whom it may concern, that we, Norton I., Emperor, desire and do hereby command, having possession of lands on this continent both in North and South America, belonging to and owned by Joshua Norton of the Cape of Good Hope, or Norton I., Emperor, that they […]

Biker Saves Miner A Kittitas County miner lay in an Ellensburg, WA hospital with blood poisoning, and foul weather grounded aircraft that could bring a serum that might heal the man. Instead, it was a Seattle motorcycle courier who made the run across Snoqualmie Pass in what was then record time to deliver the serum. […]

Worst coal-mine disaster in Washington history kills 45 miners at Roslyn on May 10, 1892. At 1:45 p.m. on Tuesday, May 10, 1892, an explosion and fire killed 45 miners in the Northern Pacific Coal Company’s No. 1 mine at Roslyn, located in the eastern foothills of the Cascade Mountains in Central Washington. It will prove […]

  Flight of the Unmanned Aircraft An exceptional event took place in 1949 when an unmanned aircraft took off from the Grays Army Airfield and landed near Ellensburg. On February 14, 1949, Lieutenant Herbert A. Winters (1928-1995), a supply officer who needed time in the air to maintain his certification, checked out a light observation aircraft, […]

Race for a Cause     The inaugural Race for a Cause was held on 4/2/6027 at The Red Pickle     Music and Entertainment was provided by Black Grenade Entertainment     The Dead Parrot Historical Society was able to raise and donate $450.00 to our local foodbank FISH   Watch the The Championship […]

on April 5, 1894, An innocent “H” was struck from this earth. ON WHAT is to be assumed As a BEAUTIFUL and windy Spring DAY, A DUEL WAS CONDUCTED WITH INK-POTS AND BALL PENS, AT A DISTANCE OF .002345 PACES. Though valiant in heR efforts to defend her given name, ellensburgh fell that day. the […]

Ellensburg’s Well Hung Tree      You might call it a whale of a mystery, and it has plenty of folks in this central Washington town stumped. How did the jawbone of a titanic whale become embedded in an elm tree in the arid Kittitas Valley, 100 miles from the ocean? The bone forms a […]

Ellensburg’s Bottomless Pit      The legend of the bottomless hole began in February of 1997, when a man identifying himself as Mel Waters appeared as a guest on Coast to Coast AM with Art Bell. Waters claimed that he owned rural property nine miles west of Ellensburg, Washington that contained a mysterious hole. According […]

We are members of an Ancient and Honorable Order, WHOSE NAME WE CAN’T USE A Fraternal Organization, which, although ancient in origin, reached its peak during the Tumultuous Days of the Great California Gold Rush. The latter-day members of this organization attempt to uphold these traditions of fellowship, good spirits, and fun.  Like their fore-bearers, […]

The Dead Parrot Historical Society was formed on 8/19/6026 DEATH TO PARROTS

Whereas, it is necessary to the honor of the American name that an end should be put to bribery and fraud; now, therefore, we, Norton I, Dei gratia Emperor of the United States and Protector of Mexico, do hereby decree disfranchisement and loss of office to any Member of Congress and United State Senate, who […]

Emperor Norton I Joshua Abraham Norton, known as Emperor Norton, was a resident of San Francisco, California, who in 1859 proclaimed himself “Norton I., Emperor of the United States”. Have We an Emperor among us? The world is full of queer people. This forenoon, a well-dressed and serious-looking man entered our office and quietly left […]

The Governor’s Castle A Fine Governor’s Mansion By April 1889 Brittain A. Craig (co-owner of the Capital Hill Water Works) and his brother Samuel Craig were building a prospective governor’s mansion in the recently designated Capital Hill neighborhood at the corner of Third Avenue and Chestnut Street. Northwest Magazine reported that “Mr. Craig is putting up the […]

Whereas, we observe that certain newspapers are agitating the project of bridging the Bay; and whereas we are desirons of connecting the cities of San Francisco and Oakland by such means; now, therefore, we Norton I, Dei gratia Emperor, do hereby prohibit the Ravenswood scheme being carried into effect, and order that the bridge be […]

The Webster Hotel From the CWU Archives: Built in 1909 for the Ellensburg Brewing and Malting Co., the original two story brick building was valued at $16,000. Located on the southwest corner of Third and Pearl Streets, it opened in November 1909 as the Majestic Hotel. The structure was renamed the St. Regis in 1913 […]

Norton I., Dei Gratia, Emperor of the United States and Protector of Mexico, being desirous of allaying the dissensions of party strife now existing within our realm, do hereby dissolve and abolish the Democratic and Republican parties, and also do hereby decree disfranchisement and imprisonment, for not more than ten nor less than five years, to […]

AJ Splawn, Robbers Roost, and Wicked Parrots Andrew Jackson (A.J) Splawn – 7/30/1845 – 3/2/1917      Splawn, known both as A.J. and Jack, was born in Missouri on July 30, 1845. With his widowed mother, Nancy, and several siblings, he came west at age 6 on the Oregon Trail to the Willamette Valley.   […]