Robert Emmett Hawley (1862-1946) was ten years old when his father, Enoch Hawley journeyed up the Nooksack River by canoe to settle near a site later named Lynden. Skqee Mus tells of those early days on the Nooksack as seen through the eyes of the author. The Hawleys were the second white family in Lynden. The account tells of the early settlers in the area, the Nooksack Indians, and the family's struggle to make a living in this wild place. He took an active part in building a thriving town, in laying sidewalks, cutting timber, milling lumber, and speculating in its businesses.

His account also relates of stories of the Hawley's neighbors: the Judsons, Kilcups, Bremners, Bertrands, Charlie Cline, Billy Waples and businesses and the Lynden Department Store, Ed Edson and the Clam Diggers' Club, as well as the founding of the Methodist Church and an Indian Mission, and of post offices and cemeteries.

Hawley, Robert Emmett, 1862-1945, History Nooksack River Valley (Wash.), History Washington (State) Nooksack River Valley