Fred's Corner - Then and Now
Fred’s Corner was a ‘T’ intersection where the Tiger Mountain Trail (TMT) rose to intersect the West Tiger Railroad Grade Trail. I say “was” because a reroute of the TMT in 2018 eliminated the intersection at that particular point. The TMT intersection was moved a bit eastward. Fred’s Corner is still marked with a diminutive sign on a maple tree, a useful waypoint on the TMT.
The location is the namesake of Fred Zeitler, a stalwart of the club during the construction of the TMT and for decades that followed as a trail builder, hike leader and board member.
The signage looks a bit odd today with the trail sign facing downhill toward the now-defunct trail, but still, it provides useful guidance. Here is a view of the signage looking eastward with the West Tiger RR Grade/TMT in the background.
If you could turn back the hands of time to 100 years ago, you would see a bustling logging operation of the High Point Mill Company. This particular spot marks the convergence of three key elements of the operation: a steam-driven railroad to convey logs to this point; a tram to lower the logs to the mill in the valley below; and a logging camp to house the workers. The following photo captures all that, and more:
High Point Mill Logging Camp, circa 1926 (University of Washington Libraries, Special Collections, C.Kinsey-1495)
If you would like to learn more, and you are reading this before June 13, you might enjoy the logging history hike we have on the schedule for Sunday, June 13, in which we will visit this site (and others) to discuss the logging operations of the High Point Mill Company. Here is a link to the event: