If E. C. Ferguson were considered the founder of a religion instead of Snohomish, this cottage would be a shrine rather than privately owned rental property.

As a boy, Emery Canda Ferguson apprenticed as a carpenter in New York State, then working the trade until he was 21 years old; consequently, he was very capable of building this small house with his own hands. Following in his older brother’s footsteps, Emery sailed for California, and with some twists and turns, he ended up in the south sound frontier town of Steilacoom. This is where he had the lumber for this small house milled, cut and fitted, then sent by steamship to his claim on the Snohomish River in 1859. It’s the first house built in Snohomish -- close to where it still stands today -- east of the Avenue A Gazebo.

Ferguson lived in it for some 20 years; around 1880 he, his wife Lucetia and their three children moved to a veritable mansion, which sadly, is no longer standing. In 1902, around the time of our historic photo, Ferguson told a reporter from the Everett Herald about living in the cottage, “It wasn’t a palace, but it was home sweet home to me for many a year, and I never have been happier than while I lived there.” Standing on the left is M. J. McGuiness, owner of the property at the time, and he moved the house to its current location in order to build on this prime site overlooking the river. Seated on the porch is James Burton, as reported in the October 1911 edition of the Tribune covering Ferguson’s death. However, names listed on the back of the actual photograph differ – except for the Hon. E. C. Ferguson, of course, who is in the center.

Rebecca Loveless, shown standing in today’s image, had no idea that she was buying the oldest building in the county when she purchased the property in 1997. She was interested in the larger house behind the cottage that faces on Cedar Street for herself and her two boys. The cottage was near tear down condition, reports Loveless, but she was determined to save the building. Support for her decision arrived in the person of Sheryl Maultsby, seated, who signed up to rent the house upon first sight, even in it’s run-down condition, and had to wait six months before moving in some 10 years ago.

On a historic walking tour this past summer, I followed historian and guide, David Dilgard, as he led our rather large group around back, through the neighbor’s property, in order to get a closer look at the historic structure – a clear sign that the Ferguson Cottage is a shrine for local history buffs.