Episode Details

Most people know Lynnwood as a shopping destination or a place to pass through on the way to somewhere else. But beneath today's busy streets lies one of the Pacific Northwest's most fascinating stories of innovation, agriculture, transportation, and community.

In our Season 7 premiere episode of Invisible Histories, we visit Heritage Park in Lynnwood with special guest Devon from the Ouija Broads podcast and discover how a chance stop turned into an unforgettable history lesson. Guided by local historian Cheri Ryan, we explore the remarkable history of Alderwood Manor—a planned farming community created after the forests were logged, where city families were encouraged to settle on five-acre parcels, raise chickens, and commute to Seattle aboard the Interurban Railway.

Along the way we learn how the Puget Mill Company transformed thousands of logged acres into one of the nation's largest egg-producing communities, shipping eggs across the country while pioneering an early version of suburban living. We also explore the role of the Interurban trolley, the restoration of Heritage Park's historic buildings, and why preserving these stories matters for future generations.

From candy memories at Wicker's Mercantile to restored trolley cars and demonstration farms, this episode reminds us that extraordinary history often hides in places we drive past every day.

Show Notes:

• Tickets for Lost Potter's Field Tour
• Ouija Broads podcast
• Devon's book, Cryptids of the Pacific Northwest, comes out September, 2026.
• Lynnwood-Alderwood Manor Heritage Association
• In Days Gone By: The Hatching of Alderwood Manor
• Betty Lou Gaeng
• Looking Back: South Snohomish locations
• Keeler's Corner history
• Lynnwood: Thumbnail History
• Duncan Hunter files a homestead claim in the future Lynnwood 1889
• Racial Restrictive Covenants Project - Washington State
• Redlining and Racial Restrictive Covenants
• Racial Covenants and Segregation, Yesterday and Today

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Credits:

Episode recorded in Edmonds, WA

Edited by Elke Hautala

Music: Uppbeat.io music Airstream - "Me You"

Sound FX - Freesound.org Craig Smith

Cover art design by Cari Simson

Cari Simson and Elke Hautala formed Invisible Histories to visually and visce