From 1926 to 1976, a lot happened in the world. From the great depression and World War II, to men landing on the moon, those 50 years could have been 500 years in terms of how different they were. So how did one of the worst economic events affect tiny Marysville? “We worked together,” was the answer of former mayor Art Dubarko back in the ‘90s.
As Mayor Dubarko put it in "Reflections of Marysville" (one of the many resources used for this project) “Everyone had huge gardens - we fished; we hunted - and, we shared with anyone else who needed it. We escaped some of the problems because church was very important, especially for the young people.” Through good times, and bad times, the people of Marysville have always cared for one another. We should strive to have this amount of care and community going forward, as times seem more uncertain by the minute.
Another way the town bounced back from the crash was the business actually came to set up shop in and around time! Such as Boeing, The Husky Bottling Company, Fred Saunders’ plant making “Bounce-in Balls.” Out of all those companies Boeing has stood the test of time turning into a multi billion dollar company, while the other two are but fuzzy memories in the childhood of this town. Husky bottles have a fun detail on them, if you find a bottle these days (or head to the Historical Society) you’ll be able to see on the back it says it’s made in “Marysville, WN,” Not WA! It was made before the state abbreviations became standardized in the ‘60s.
Another thing the depression brought us was the strawberry festival, back in 1932! During the first event there were 3,000 strawberry shortcakes made by the local bakery, with the farmers providing all the strawberries and whipped cream. Fun fact! Back then, they had some wild events which we sadly don’t have anymore such as: Rolling pin throwing, hog calling, and husband calling. After that first event the founders voted to do it again and they have held it every year since, except for a small handful of years.
Now once World War II arrived on the shores of America, Marysville was ready to help in any way they could. Doing drives nearly every week; scrap drives, paper drives, food drives, you name it. The motto of the town for then was “Fight or Work.” One main reason for that was the ammunition depot in the Tulalip Reservation. The town didn’t wind down till both the European and Pacific front were over, and during the war 18 men lost their lives in that war. By the end of the war 45% of the town was raised out of low income status.
Now once the war ended something strange happened in town: Flying saucers invaded! Now this isn’t a lost X-files episode, this really happened! In August of 1947 the Globe announced that saucers would drop by and cover the town. Phones and radio stations were inundated with questions wondering what in the world was going on, and some citizens even worried about being invaded. But as the month inched by, folks lined the streets waiting to see the saucers. Then Eddie Sierer and Phil Cope got in some planes and dropped hundreds of paper saucers having invitations to the “Tyee Days fundraiser.” People loved the event and adored the little UFOs. Funnily enough this wouldn’t be the last time UFOs have been spotted in the town, but that’ll be a story for the halloween addition, so look forward to tales of the fantastical then!
Till then you’ll just have to be content with just one more article talking about our town from 1976-2026! I wish I could have talked about everything that happened in that time, but sadly we have such a limited amount of space, if you want to learn more I urge you to go to your local library or the Historical Society and learn everything you can!