Des Moines History Timeline 1890

1700-1849 | 1850-1869 | 1870 | 1880 | 1890 | 1900 | 1910 | 1920 | 1930 | 1940 | 1950 | 1960 | 1970 | 1980 | 1990 | 2000 | 2010 | 2020

February 15 - The first Des Moines School opened on Grand Avenue (now 6th Avenue South)
March 31 - The Buenna Post Office was established on Puget Sound between present-day Redondo and Adelaide. Henry Bucey (some records report Joseph P. Burcey), one of the area's early settlers and developers, was appointed the first postmaster. as postmaster.
Buenna School built on SW 296th Street (c. 1890 - 1982/1893)
Buenna established, platted by Henry Bucey and Lafayette Rogers.
December 17 - Mary Des Moines Williams is generally recognized as the first child of European descent born in the Des Moines community. She is the daughter of Reverend Thomas J. Massey and his wife. Despite her surname being Williams later in life, she was born Mary Des Moines Massey and was named after the newly established town of Des Moines. She later married into the Williams family and became known as Mary Des Moines Williams.

Buenna School was constructed on land donated by Henry Bucey in the Buenna community on Southwest 296th Street n the historic Buenna community between Redondo and Adelaide (now part of Federal Way). Operated by School District No. 55, the one-room school served families living between Adelaide, Redondo, and Star Lake and became the educational center of the Buenna district.
October 12 - The Angle Lake School District was organized as King County School District No. 56.

June 25 - The Star Lake Post Office was established near Military Road, providing mail service to settlers living around Star Lake and Five Mile Lake. The post office helped establish Star Lake as a recognized community in southern King County. It closed Feb. 28, 1898.

May 5 - The Panic of 1893, lasting four years, triggered a nationwide economic depression. Bank failures, railroad bankruptcies, and collapsing real-estate markets slowed growth throughout Washington State, including the young community of Des Moines, where land sales and development declined sharply.

A new four room Des Moines School was built immediately west of the current location of the Des Moines Field House.
Lou Y. Gilbert homestead established at 3280 Star Lake Road.
The McDowell Transportation Company was the steamboat enterprise created by Captain Matthew McDowell, one of the most important operators of the Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet. McDowell built and launched his first vessel, Defiance (I), at his Tacoma-area yard and began assembling what later became known as the "D Fleet." he company's "D Fleet" later provided regular Mosquito Fleet service to Des Moines, Stone's Landing (now Redondo), Adelaide, Lakota, Dumas Bay, Tacoma, and Seattle.

February 12 - The Buenna Post Office was renamed Stones (Stone's Landing), with Joseph P. Bucey continuing as postmaster. On Sept. 14, 1963 it became part of the Auburn post office.