Welsh historic reunion coming

On Sept 9-11, this fall, a small group of Welsh descendants will be visiting the Almira-Wilbur area. They are a part of the North American Welsh Association out of Seattle.

A while back, they followed up on a lead of an abandoned Welsh cemetery near the Grant/Lincoln County edge. (Approximately 4 miles NW of Almira in the middle of a wheat field owned/farmed by Brian Carstensen. 

Over time, this group’s interest grew until it bloomed into this full-blown “field trip” to our area!

While here, they hope to visit with Welsh descendants and discover the stories behind the “Welsh Reservation,” so named by locals because the Welsh collectively settled on the north ridge. The early homesteaders to this area had already claimed the “good” flat land around the communities of Wilbur and Almira, so the Welsh homesteaders ended up in the hilly, less desirable land, only to discover years later that the potential was opposite! 

This group of visitors will be providing some restorative landscaping at the cemetery and hoping to interview folks with knowledge of the Welsh.

Much history has been written (thank God) already, but this gathering will provide an opportunity to convert some of the old stories to print.

Research will be ongoing with Almira City Hall, Wilbur museum, Grant County museum, Lincoln County museum, etc.

Presently, I, Judy (Evans) Lindhag (originally from Almira, but presently living near Ford, Washington) is serving as local coordinator. Please contact me with connections, suggestions, and comments over the next few weeks as a schedule is being formulated and details nailed down.

My home number is 509-796-2129. Please leave a vm with contact information if I am not at home.

Judy Lindhag