Page 48 - Family History

Family Stories

for a while. He became a U.S. Border Patrol Deputy Marshall while in New
Mexico. After living in Santa Fe, New Mexico for ten years, Frank moved to

Port Angeles, Washington in 1889, joining his parents and family.

During the 1890’s, Frank ran a pack train from Clallam Bay to East Beach.
Frank entered the Customs Service in 1895 under President Grover Cleveland,
serving in Port Angeles, inspecting imports coming in from Victoria, B.C. until
January 1936, when he retired as Deputy Collector in charge of the Port Angeles

office. He was a charter member of Naval Lodge of Elks and one of its most
faithful old time devotees. He was also a member of the Eagles.

He was known to mariners the world over, having dealt with thousands of ship

captains and other seafarers in his long years of duty. Frank possessed a rich
lore of maritime stories and color of the pioneer days in Port Angeles. Intimates
recall his fondness for tales of his earlier years in service, when the customs
men also enforced the immigration laws. He wove many an interesting account
of experiences with the smugglers of aliens and opium who operated in Puget
Sound waters at that time. Frank had to identify three white men found drown
in Clallam Bay for having robbed some Orientals of some rose colored gold they

were bringing into the U.S. via Victoria, B.C. The veteran customs man also
loved to tell of his youth in New Mexico.

Howard Elmer Fisher (Elmer Ellsworth’s son) and his son, Kermit Howard

Fisher became rum runners. They went out to drill under Blackball Dock in
Clallam Bay to retrieve their hidden rum. They would ride out in their boat, with
some buckets and hoses to retrieve the rum. It’s unclear as to whether the barrels
of rum were above or below water. Either way, they used the hoses to siphon the
rum into the buckets in the boat. At some point, Frank, Sr. caught them and
confiscated their stash. Seeing how Frank was the local Federal Customs Agent,
he had to do something, so he went to his brother, Elmer to prevail upon Howard

and Kermit to stop the shenanigans.

Frank married Grace Ellen Dick and Maurice married Grace’s sister – Jessie
Dick. The Dicks were from Dungeness (Sequim). Elmer E. married Mary

Augusta Corgan. Elmer was a pharmacist with stores in Clallam Bay and Port
Angeles. Elmer was elected and served in the State Legislature as

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