Really Fantastic
The next era was the 50's in which it was used for a couple of years before being completely abandoned. An owner is listed on the back of the photograph in the clinic and we will update you with his name later. The next era, was when logs were milled in the 70's after the Native Association sold rights to have hundreds of acres logged. Grandpa worked on the logships then and will probably have even more stories about that time. Today, in the tradition of the early turn of the century settlers of Seldovia, there are a handful of private personal use mills in operation. While none of them produce the large orders that the Seldovia mill must have had in its heyday, they do service locals and provide a way for folks here to use local wood if needed. Most people, however, drive on up to Home Depot in Kenai or Anchorage for their large wood orders because of time and cost factors. Join us again later as we attempt a project from our deck to test the power of the outgoing tide. It's a full moon week and that means the tides are really high this week, so we want to see how powerful the tide is. Signing off for now, even as a large log goes floating up-slough on the incoming tide.
MODERN ARCHEOLOGY IN SELDOVIA
Well, we asked Grandpa about the mysterious finds in the slough. It turns out that back in the twenties (maybe earlier) there was a large sawmill not far down the slough from where we live. This saw mill was the largest in the area and served all of the south peninsula as Seldovia was the prime port of the area at the time. The thing that we thought was a vehicle, was actually a type of fly wheel engine that must have been used to run equipment in the mill. The mill stood vacant and unused and was left to fall apart. Then when people started to purchase pieces of the property and build homes along the slough (in the 50's or 60's) they pushed things that were left up against the sides of the banks and covered them with fill to protect against erosion and high tides.
The Anna M. and Her Black Stallion
Grandpa also told us that when he first came to Seldovia in the early sixties, he bought some land along the slough. He also bought an old broken down barge named the Anna M. to live in. He stuffed the holes in her bottom with some old mattresses and waited until the Fall high tides to float her up the slough so he could moor her there and live in her.
Many, many years later, a man showed up at his door asking questions about the Anna M. It turns out that the Anna M. was used to carry horses down to a cattle ranch in the Aleutian Islands before World War II. He was writing a story about one of her trips that didn't end so well. According to what Grandpa says, on one particular trip, after running into foul weather and being delayed, the captain ran out of feed for the horses and didn't have any more money to feed them. He ran the barge aground (it was a self motored landing barge) and let the horses go. This was somewhere across Cook Inlet where there are lots and lots of Grizzly Bears. When the barge company and owners came back to get the horses in the spring, only one was left, a black stallion, who had learned to fend off the grizzlies and somehow, against all odds survived the winter.
Grandpa said that when he sold the property, the new owners had the Anna M. covered with fill so they could build a home on the property. We took a walk on up the slough to see if we could find some signs of her. This is what we found, but we'll have to look more when the snow is melted.
The more we walk along the slough, the more we find. The slough played an important part in the history of this town, but for years, as we understand, before there became a general awareness about environment, it was common to dump things into it, and leave things there. We also know, that much of what once existed along the slough has since been torn down, burned down, or fallen down, perhaps mostly because of the 1964 earthquake. Here are some of Sam and Zacks biggest finds. They are mysteries of the slough. We'll ask Grandma and Grandpa and some other old-timers about them and we'll update this blog when we find the answers!
What is it?
These pilings across from Hags Nook once held a building.
Was it a home, a warehouse, or a dock?
They were a mooring dock for some boats.
Who owned it?
Probably the Mars family. Not sure about that.
What is it?
These large planks are enforced with iron and are tied up on the bank.
What were they for?
Don't know their purpose but may have been part of the old mill.
Were they part of the old barge that was once anchored in the slough?
No.
What is it?These tall spruce poles are anchored to the ground above some old horizotal posts.
Did a home once stand here?
It was a docking spot for a boat.
Or was this a dock or mooring spot for a boat?
What is it?This engine is tied up to an long pole so it won't wash away.
Did it belong to the vehicle in the previous picture?
No.
Is it being used to cure the wood for some purpose or to keep the pole in place?
Not sure yet.
What is it?These remnants of some type of boiler are sitting under the posts in the picture above.
Was this a boiler from the tug or the vehicle or someones home?
Probably a boiler from the mill.
Does it cover the secret back entrance to another world?
Yes. It covers the secret entrance to a magic world called Clumsia. Only people with pure hearts who believe in magic can gain entry. As a result, very very few adults ever make it in. More about Clumsia later.
What is it?This cable lays between the engine and the vehicle on the beach.
What was it used for?
Probably a cable used in the mill.
Do you think it might come to life as a sea snake at night in the dark?
Yes, the Prince of Clumsia put a spell on this snake that turned it into a large rusty coil of cable. Unfortunately for the Prince, he hadn't eaten a full breakfast that morning and his spell only partially worked. So, sometimes, during the fullest of full moons and the darkest of dark nights, the rusty cable begins to twitch to life. It slithers along the slough beach, searching all the while for the entrance to Clumsia so that it can seek revenge against the Prince. So......SHHHHH.....don't tell him about the boiler!
It says: 
We are worried now, because we don't have any of these things (except for maybe the fingernail part).....and it looks like they won't be letting us go to this school. Just when we're about to leave, a walking light bulb with a big smile comes out and locks the front door. We think its the teacher and we ALSO think she is from another planet. She grabs us by the back of our coats and drags us to class. The classroom looks like the movie set of Frankenstein. Our new class mates look like monkeys and goats, and even like Frankenstein himself, and they are all staring at us.......as though we are the WEIRD ones! 
For math we count how many eyeballs each student has and we are shocked to find out that we are the only ones in the whole class with only two. We have never felt so normal in our whole lives!
