EVERETT — A small bluff next to American Legion Memorial Park will now bear the name “Hibulb Lookout,” after the Snohomish tribal village that once was located below it at the mouth of the Snohomish River.
The City Council approved the name change at its Wednesday meeting after receiving approval from the Everett Historical Commission and the blessing of the Tulalip Tribes.
The change was initially prompted by a group of local residents who wanted the bluff to respect the history of the area, and had proposed “Hibulb Overlook.”
The Tribes suggested “lookout” as being more consistent with the bluff’s historical use: as a place where villagers would keep a lookout for warring tribes coming from as far away as Canada, and to warn other area villages of the attack.
The bluff had been known informally as Legion Bluff, but had never borne an official name.
Councilmember Paul Roberts suggested that the city hold a dedication ceremony in the near future and invite members of the Tulalip Tribes.
The City Council also approved the name of “Mill Town Trail” given to a bicycle pedestrian trail that will ring the north end of the city from Riverside Park to Depot Park. The trail is still incomplete.
An earlier proposed name, “Sawdust Trail,” was rejected by the Historical Commission out of concern that it might be misunderstood to mean “a trail made of sawdust,” and therefore not appropriate for bicycles or baby strollers and such.
The name also derives from Everett’s history as a city once full of not just sawmills but other industrial operations. The city plans interpretive signs along the trail’s length, pointing to important historical sites
It also references the widely read book about the city’s history, “Mill Town: A Social History of Everett, Washington,” by Norman H. Clark.
Chris Winters: 425-374-4165; cwinters@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @Chris_At_Herald.
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