The Mercer Girls
By C. B. BAGLEY
ON PUGET SOUND the scarcity of women in pioneer days was a serious matter. From time to time the newspapers mentioned the continued scarcity of women, but nothing practical was done to improve conditions in this respect until early in 1861, when a young gentleman, Asa S. Mercer, arrived in Seattle fresh from college. His elder brother, Judge Mercer, was one of the oldest and most influential pioneers in the territory. Judge Mercer often made it a semi-jocose comment that there was a dearth of young women. He often suggested an effort to secure territorial aid for bringing out from New England a party of young women who were needed as school teachers and for other positions, far removed from that of household servants. This set young Mercer to thinking on the subject. He talked the matter over with the governor of the territory and with members of the legislature, and while everybody favored the proposition, the public treasury was empty, so he failed to get territorial aid. Nothing daunted, he obtained generous private contributions sufficient to enable him to go to Boston. There the proposition was placed before the public for such of the young women as chose who had been made fatherless by the civil war to accompany Mr. Mercer to Washington Territory. Quite a large number evinced a willingness to go, but eleven only found courage to leave their friends and make a journey of 7000 miles into a wilderness. Most of the eleven paid their own way. The party arrived Seattle May 16, 1864.
Encouraged by his success, Mr. Mercer again went East in 1865 on a similar errand. Upon his arrival in the East he went to work and met with encouragement wherever he went. July 20, 1865, he writes: "I sail from New York August 19 with upward of 300 war orphans, daughters of those whose lives were given on plain and field in our recent war. I appeal to every true warm-hearted family to open wide your door and share your home comforts with these whose lot is about to be cast in your midst. I can cheerfully vouch for the intelligence and moral character of all these persons accompanying me," etc.
Acting upon this information, a large meeting was held in Seattle to devise ways and means for the reception and care of the young ladies mentioned. The response of the people was so generous that had the large number thus expected really appeared they would have received a royal welcome and have been cared for most tenderly. However, Mr. Mercer was doomed to many disasters in this undertaking, among which was a scurrilous article which appeared in the New York Herald, slandering him and appealing to the girls to stay at home. Everywhere the article was copied, and
