 |
Tulalip Ollie Wilbur dies; her life spanned three centuries
Monday, January 10, 2000
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
With prayers and chants, hundreds of people turned out to bid farewell to Ollie Moses Wilbur, a Tulalip Indian who may have been as old as 110.
Services were attended by about 250 people Saturday on the Muckleshoot Reservation.
Wilbur, who died Wednesday, celebrated her 106th birthday last May 10. But grandson Manuel Purcell said there are documents from the Bureau of Indian Affairs showing she was 110.
In either case, her life spanned three centuries.
If she was born in 1889, as Purcell and others believe, her birth coincided with Washington's admission to the union as the 42nd state in 1889. Not to mention completion of the Great Northern Railroad's transcontinental route to Seattle in 1893 and creation of Mount Rainier National Park in 1899.
Her funeral ceremony was marked by the ringing of brass bells, a tradition of the Shaker religion practiced by many tribal members, said Gene Jones, a tribal minister. The bells "open the portals to Heaven," he explained.
Wilbur was hospitalized for two weeks before her death, after suffering a broken hip, Purcell said. But she watched the world ring in the new millennium.
"She'd seen the year 2000," Purcell said, noting that she watched the fireworks on TV.
Wilbur attributed her longevity to not smoking or drinking and to making her own meals from scratch, said Lena Chavez, Wilbur's caretaker for eight years.
Wilbur buried two husbands and had six children. She is survived by one son and scores of grandchildren. She was buried at White Lake Native American Cemetery in Auburn.
All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, broadcast,
rewritten or redistributed.
· Hundreds celebrate opening of Alki plaza
· Construction worker dies from burial injuries
more
101 Elliott Ave. W.
Seattle, WA 98119
(206) 448-8000
Home Delivery: (206) 464-2121 or (800) 542-0820
seattlepi.com serves about 1.7 million unique visitors
and 30 million page views each month.
Send comments to newmedia@seattlepi.com
Send investigative tips to iteam@seattlepi.com
©1996-2008 Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Terms of Use/Privacy Policy
