Roland Greene Gamwell
Community Patron
Fairhaven promoter and investor, railroad tycoon Nelson Bennett, was building an investment team to develop the burgeoning new town on the shores of Bellingham Bay. He enticed a promising young engineer, Roland Gamwell, to join him and the Fairhaven Land Company to guide the growth and prosperity of this new settlement. Gamwell arrived from Tacoma in 1889.
Born July 25, 1863, Gamwell was descended from a distinguished New England family who founded Rhode Island and championed the cause of American independence. His forebears arrived in this country in the 17th century, and both sides of his family, the Greenes and the Gamwells, were soldiers in the Revolutionary War.
Roland Gamwell and his younger brother, Arthur, were not only well-educated, but also quite adventurous. In 1884, they toured Europe on high-wheeled bicycles, crossing the Alps and traversing Spain and the island of the Azores. Upon his return, he attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and graduated in electrical engineering in 1886.
Gamwell entered the employ of the Prudential Life Insurance Company in New York for a brief period but sought further adventure in lands beyond the East Coast. He was undecided between the Pacific Northwest and Buenos Aires.
Roland Gamwell, T.W. Gillette, and Charles F. Warner in front of the Great Northern Express Co. on the 12th Street side of the Mason Block
He landed in Tacoma where he was tasked with extending their interurban line into newly developed territory. This accomplishment drew the attention of entrepreneur Nelson Bennett, who was embarking on the development and promotion of the town of Fairhaven. Bennett, who also maintained a home in Tacoma, realized he could use a young man of Gamwell’s financial abilities and pioneering foresight.
Arriving in Fairhaven in late spring of 1889, Gamwell opened a real estate office, selling property and insurance with another young man from the East Coast named Charles F. Warner. They also were partners in the Pacific Coast Trading Company, agents for the Great Northern Express Co.
The town was booming, and the population was rapidly expanding with many other adventurers seeking opportunities and enrichment. According to the Fairhaven Herald of December 29, 1890, the population jumped from 150 in 1889 to 8,000 in 1890. This phenomenon created a rich tapestry for an active real estate environment, with land lots selling for a relatively modest sum in the morning and then doubling or tripling by afternoon. Much of this activity was fueled by the anticipation that Fairhaven would become the western terminus of the Great Northern Railroad.
Construction of the grand Fairhaven Hotel in 1890, on the corner of 12th Street and Harris Avenue, had begun, financed by C.X. Larrabee and Nelson Bennett. Gamwell encouraged the participation of architect, Frank Longstaff, who arrived in Fairhaven in August, 1889. Realizing the extent of architectural job opportunities, Longstaff invited a former colleague, H.N. Black, to join him in Fairhaven. Read More
In addition to their work on the hotel and other projects, Gamwell commissioned Longstaff and Black to design and construct an elegant home of his own on the corner of 16th Street and Douglas Avenue.
Meanwhile, Gamwell returned to Boston to wed Helen Thacher on October 9, 1890. While their home was still under construction, the Gamwells resided in the new Fairhaven Hotel until their home was completed in 1892.
An economic depression of global proportions struck the country in 1893, impacting the Fairhaven boom and bringing to a halt the fortunes of investors and entrepreneurs. The dream of the Great Northern terminus was dashed when a more modest reach was chosen with the Seattle area.
As banks failed and property values plummeted, the opportunity seekers fled for lands that still might provide some financial gain. However, Roland Gamwell remained on Bellingham Bay and embarked on endeavors that would be both personally satisfying and those that would also contribute to the enhancement of the community that he had adopted.
His interest in floriculture, especially roses, not only adorned the property surrounding his home but was expanded to the establishment of a nursery near Everson. His associate created a rose propagation garden in Canada that was to become the Henry Eddy Rose Garden, according to the Bellingham Herald of July 10, 1955.
He not only was a breeder of roses, he also bred dogs—setters and cocker spaniels.
As a yachtsman, Gamwell helped organize the local Yacht Club. He was also instrumental in the establishment of the Bellingham Golf and Country Club, insisting on the retention of the stand of old growth trees that still front Meridian Street.
The first park in Bellingham, Elizabeth Park (honoring Elizabeth Roeder), was planned and named by Gamwell in his role as Park Commissioner.
May 10, 1959 Bellingham Herald
After Helen Gamwell passed away in 1944, her husband remained in their beautiful home for the remainder of his days, surrounded by his extensive library and continued to be involved in a number of civic organizations while also pursuing his floricultural passions.
Roland Greene Gamwell died on May 8, 1959, leaving a legacy that spanned from his involvement in the establishment of the town of Fairhaven through the years of his many later contributions that enriched Bellingham’s cultural development.