Throughout 2023 the Sunday Olympian’s Looking Back theme was origins of area place names. Henry Street in southeast Olympia is named for the Henry family. Anson Henry was a close friend of and physician to President Abraham Lincoln, who appointed him surveyor general for Washington Territory. Anson was visiting Richmond, Virginia, when Lincoln was assassinated, and helped Mary Todd Lincoln after the president’s death. The Henry heritage tree on the United Methodist Church grounds on Legion Way is named for Anson’s son Dudley.
public domain photo from 1860s
Text © Deborah Ross and The Olympian 2023