Biggarw

Transcribed from "History of North Washington, an illustrated history of Stevens, Ferry, Okanogan and Chelan counties", published by Western Historical Publishing Co., 1904.

     W. J. BIGGAR, an energetic mining man, who resides at Lakeside, Washington, has the distinction of being one of the earliest men to press into the Lake Chelan region as a prospector. Since that time he has been more or less prominently connected with the district and is now the overseer of some promising properties. He was born in Quebec, Canada, on December 10, 1858, being the son of T. J. and Elizabeth (Shields) Biggar, natives of County Tyrone, Ireland, and Sheffield, England, respectively. The parents both died in Quebec. The other members of the family besides our subject are R. H., in the Pillsbury flouring mills in Minneapolis, where he has been fourteen years; T. J., now in Alaska, mining, and Florence, wife of C. F. Lincoln, at Ways Mills, Canada. The early education of our subject was obtained in his native place, and on July 25, 1873, he journeyed to San Francisco. Later we find him in Nevada and other western states where he operated continuously aside from occasional trips to the east, until 1889, when he came to Seattle just in time to see the big fire that devastated that metropolis. Following that misfortune he turned his attention to mining and prospecting, operating west of the Cascades and also down through the Chelan country. In 1891 he was in this section and located near Stehekin. He continued prospecting until 1894, when, on account of the depression in silver, he worked in the Agnaw Creek gold camp until he entered the employ of the Morgan Nichols Mining Company as superintendent of their mines at Twisp. He continued thus seven years at Twisp and Murray, Idaho. Mr. Morgan is dead and the estate is now being settled. In addition to this Mr. Biggar is interested in properties on McKinney mountain and at Barron.
     At Bloomfield, California, in 1885 Mr. Biggar married Miss Maggie Harris, and to them one child has been born, Willie H., who is now in the Washington Agricultural College at Pullman, taking the mechanical engineering course.
     Politically Mr. Biggar is a Republican, but is not especially active in this realm. Like other pioneers, our subject has had many ups and downs, but has ever pursued the star of success with winning power.