On June 12, 1855, the Native American daughter of Seattle pioneer Henry Yesler (1810-1892) is born. Julia (Benson) Intermela (1855-1907) is the child of Susan, the daughter of Curly (Su-quardle) and Henry Yesler. Curly (Su-quardle) was a hereditary chief of the Duwamish tribe. The evidence that the mixed race infant Julia was the offspring of Curly's daughter Susan and Henry Yesler is here laid out by Kathie M. Zetterberg, of Renton, Washington, aided by HistoryLink Staff Historian David Wilma. Zetterberg traces her ancestry to Julia (Benson) Intermela (1855-1907).
Kathie Zetterberg states, "Over the years my dad's family has passed on the story of being descended from Henry L. Yesler and the daughter of Chief Curly (Su-quardle), hereditary chief of the Duwamish tribe. Their daughter was Julia, my great grandmother."
Julia (Benson) Intermela died on February 11, 1907. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer and The Seattle Times described her as "Henry Yesler's eldest daughter." The P-I ran a photograph captioned "Julia Yesler Intermela." The official record of Julia's death has room for the name and birthplace of her father. The name is left blank, but the father's birthplace is Ohio. (Yesler moved to Seattle from Ohio, though his actual birthplace was Maryland.)
Henry had left his wife Sarah Yesler (1822-1887) in Ohio with their son Henry George Yesler. She came to Seattle in mid-July 1858, having left their son with relatives (he died there the next year). Kathie Zetterberg states, "According to our family tradition, when Sarah came, the Indian wife had to go. Yesler asked a person named Benson to foster Julia for him."
There was no registration of births in the 1850s.
Julia had a half sister Hannah (Benson) Behrens (1866-1917) who was born to Jeremiah S. Benson and to Susan Curlay [sic] (Hannah Behrens death certificate) in 1866.
The first mention of Julia appears in the 1870 Washington Territorial Census. Jeremiah S. Benson, age 34, lumberman and cook, born in Michigan, is listed with Julia age 15 and Hannah age 5 in the household.
Julia's 1907 obituary states that her mother died when she was 17 (1872) and that she went to California with Charles B. Pierce, a business associate of Yesler's. Yesler's papers at the University of Washington document a land transaction with Pierce.
The Yeslers were spiritualists who refused to join any church. They hosted spiritualist-astrologer W. E. Cheney's sessions at their house. The spiritualists believed in free love and Henry's wife Sarah Yesler formed a passionate attachment to at least one other woman, while remaining a loyal wife to Henry. In 1900, the census began to collect information on migration patterns and residents were asked where their parents were born. Julia's father's place of birth is Ohio. Henry Yesler was born in Maryland, but Ohio was his home before Seattle. Her mother's place of birth is listed as Washington. This tends to show that her mother was an Indian because a woman giving birth in 1855 would have to have been born prior to 1840, when, as far as we know, no non-Indian women lived in Washington.
Kathie Zetterberg states, "Over the years my dad's family has passed on the story of being descended from Henry L. Yesler and the daughter of Chief Curly (Su-quardle), hereditary chief of the Duwamish tribe. Their daughter was Julia, my great grandmother."
Julia (Benson) Intermela died on February 11, 1907. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer and The Seattle Times described her as "Henry Yesler's eldest daughter." The P-I ran a photograph captioned "Julia Yesler Intermela." The official record of Julia's death has room for the name and birthplace of her father. The name is left blank, but the father's birthplace is Ohio. (Yesler moved to Seattle from Ohio, though his actual birthplace was Maryland.)
Henry had left his wife Sarah Yesler (1822-1887) in Ohio with their son Henry George Yesler. She came to Seattle in mid-July 1858, having left their son with relatives (he died there the next year). Kathie Zetterberg states, "According to our family tradition, when Sarah came, the Indian wife had to go. Yesler asked a person named Benson to foster Julia for him."
There was no registration of births in the 1850s.
Julia had a half sister Hannah (Benson) Behrens (1866-1917) who was born to Jeremiah S. Benson and to Susan Curlay [sic] (Hannah Behrens death certificate) in 1866.
The first mention of Julia appears in the 1870 Washington Territorial Census. Jeremiah S. Benson, age 34, lumberman and cook, born in Michigan, is listed with Julia age 15 and Hannah age 5 in the household.
Julia's 1907 obituary states that her mother died when she was 17 (1872) and that she went to California with Charles B. Pierce, a business associate of Yesler's. Yesler's papers at the University of Washington document a land transaction with Pierce.
The Yeslers were spiritualists who refused to join any church. They hosted spiritualist-astrologer W. E. Cheney's sessions at their house. The spiritualists believed in free love and Henry's wife Sarah Yesler formed a passionate attachment to at least one other woman, while remaining a loyal wife to Henry. In 1900, the census began to collect information on migration patterns and residents were asked where their parents were born. Julia's father's place of birth is Ohio. Henry Yesler was born in Maryland, but Ohio was his home before Seattle. Her mother's place of birth is listed as Washington. This tends to show that her mother was an Indian because a woman giving birth in 1855 would have to have been born prior to 1840, when, as far as we know, no non-Indian women lived in Washington.
On June 12, 1855, the Native American daughter of Seattle pioneer Henry Yesler (1810-1892) is born. Julia (Benson) Intermela (1855-1907) is the child of Susan, the daughter of Curly (Su-quardle) and Henry Yesler. Curly (Su-quardle) was a hereditary chief of the Duwamish tribe. The evidence that the mixed race infant Julia was the offspring of Curly's daughter Susan and Henry Yesler is here laid out by Kathie M. Zetterberg, of Renton, Washington, aided by HistoryLink Staff Historian David Wilma. Zetterberg traces her ancestry to Julia (Benson) Intermela (1855-1907).
Kathie Zetterberg states, "Over the years my dad's family has passed on the story of being descended from Henry L. Yesler and the daughter of Chief Curly (Su-quardle), hereditary chief of the Duwamish tribe. Their daughter was Julia, my great grandmother."
Julia (Benson) Intermela died on February 11, 1907. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer and The Seattle Times described her as "Henry Yesler's eldest daughter." The P-I ran a photograph captioned "Julia Yesler Intermela." The official record of Julia's death has room for the name and birthplace of her father. The name is left blank, but the father's birthplace is Ohio. (Yesler moved to Seattle from Ohio, though his actual birthplace was Maryland.)
Henry had left his wife Sarah Yesler (1822-1887) in Ohio with their son Henry George Yesler. She came to Seattle in mid-July 1858, having left their son with relatives (he died there the next year). Kathie Zetterberg states, "According to our family tradition, when Sarah came, the Indian wife had to go. Yesler asked a person named Benson to foster Julia for him."
There was no registration of births in the 1850s.
Julia had a half sister Hannah (Benson) Behrens (1866-1917) who was born to Jeremiah S. Benson and to Susan Curlay [sic] (Hannah Behrens death certificate) in 1866.
The first mention of Julia appears in the 1870 Washington Territorial Census. Jeremiah S. Benson, age 34, lumberman and cook, born in Michigan, is listed with Julia age 15 and Hannah age 5 in the household.
Julia's 1907 obituary states that her mother died when she was 17 (1872) and that she went to California with Charles B. Pierce, a business associate of Yesler's. Yesler's papers at the University of Washington document a land transaction with Pierce.
The Yeslers were spiritualists who refused to join any church. They hosted spiritualist-astrologer W. E. Cheney's sessions at their house. The spiritualists believed in free love and Henry's wife Sarah Yesler formed a passionate attachment to at least one other woman, while remaining a loyal wife to Henry. In 1900, the census began to collect information on migration patterns and residents were asked where their parents were born. Julia's father's place of birth is Ohio. Henry Yesler was born in Maryland, but Ohio was his home before Seattle. Her mother's place of birth is listed as Washington. This tends to show that her mother was an Indian because a woman giving birth in 1855 would have to have been born prior to 1840, when, as far as we know, no non-Indian women lived in Washington.
Kathie Zetterberg states, "Over the years my dad's family has passed on the story of being descended from Henry L. Yesler and the daughter of Chief Curly (Su-quardle), hereditary chief of the Duwamish tribe. Their daughter was Julia, my great grandmother."
Julia (Benson) Intermela died on February 11, 1907. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer and The Seattle Times described her as "Henry Yesler's eldest daughter." The P-I ran a photograph captioned "Julia Yesler Intermela." The official record of Julia's death has room for the name and birthplace of her father. The name is left blank, but the father's birthplace is Ohio. (Yesler moved to Seattle from Ohio, though his actual birthplace was Maryland.)
Henry had left his wife Sarah Yesler (1822-1887) in Ohio with their son Henry George Yesler. She came to Seattle in mid-July 1858, having left their son with relatives (he died there the next year). Kathie Zetterberg states, "According to our family tradition, when Sarah came, the Indian wife had to go. Yesler asked a person named Benson to foster Julia for him."
There was no registration of births in the 1850s.
Julia had a half sister Hannah (Benson) Behrens (1866-1917) who was born to Jeremiah S. Benson and to Susan Curlay [sic] (Hannah Behrens death certificate) in 1866.
The first mention of Julia appears in the 1870 Washington Territorial Census. Jeremiah S. Benson, age 34, lumberman and cook, born in Michigan, is listed with Julia age 15 and Hannah age 5 in the household.
Julia's 1907 obituary states that her mother died when she was 17 (1872) and that she went to California with Charles B. Pierce, a business associate of Yesler's. Yesler's papers at the University of Washington document a land transaction with Pierce.
The Yeslers were spiritualists who refused to join any church. They hosted spiritualist-astrologer W. E. Cheney's sessions at their house. The spiritualists believed in free love and Henry's wife Sarah Yesler formed a passionate attachment to at least one other woman, while remaining a loyal wife to Henry. In 1900, the census began to collect information on migration patterns and residents were asked where their parents were born. Julia's father's place of birth is Ohio. Henry Yesler was born in Maryland, but Ohio was his home before Seattle. Her mother's place of birth is listed as Washington. This tends to show that her mother was an Indian because a woman giving birth in 1855 would have to have been born prior to 1840, when, as far as we know, no non-Indian women lived in Washington.
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