![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.cascadedistrict.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/PXL_20240517_220000728-1024x249.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\nAnonymous pioneer<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
It was difficult to find a definitive link between Mr. Bonney and the toponym in Pierce County that holds his family’s name.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The following books do NOT contain any reference to William Bonney and his connection to Bonney Lake<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- Postmarked Washington : Pierce County by Guy Reed Ramsey (WSHS, 1981) – NO METION OF BONNEY LAKE TOPONYM<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Place Names of Washington by Robert Hitchman – NO MENTION OF BONNEY LAKE TOPONYM<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Washington State Place Names from Alki to Yelm by Doug Brokenshire, Caxton Printers 1993 – NO MENTION OF BONNEY LAKE TOPONYM<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Origin of Washington Geographic Names by Edmond S. Meany, 1923 – NO MENTION OF BONNEY LAKE TOPONYM<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
Two books had entries for Bonney Lake<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Number one is: Washington State Place Names by James W. Phillips, Fourth Printing with corrections and addtions 1976<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.cascadedistrict.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Untitled-1001-sm.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.cascadedistrict.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/bonny_lake.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nWhat is frustrating with this entry is that the “early homesteader” is not mentioned. Presumably with a family name of “Bonney”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The winning entry and definitive source<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Finally, Origin of Geographic Names of Tacoma\/Pierce County Washington by Gary Fuller Reece, Tacoma Public Library 1974 <\/strong>gives us definitive information on the true origin of the place name Bonney Lake:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.cascadedistrict.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/image00024.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nAnd now we know that Bonney Lake is a town named to honor William Bonney, who was:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- Secretary of the Washington State Historical Society<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Author of “History of Pierce County, Washington vol I, II and III, Pioneer Historical Pub Co. Chicago, 1927<\/a>“<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Advisory Committee Member for “Told by The Pioneers, Reminiscences of Pioneer Life in Washington, Washington Pioneer Project, 1938<\/a>“<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Curator of the Ferry Museum<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Pioneer<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Namesake of Bonney Lake, Washington<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
It has been mentioned in online forums that his body is buried in the Sumner Cemetery.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Author of ‘The History of Pierce County, Washington’ in 1926 and Advisor to The Washington Pioneer Project which produced three volumes in 1938 where William Bonney served on the advisory committee as well as writing the forward to Volume II, where his own family’s pioneer history is documented.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":110,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18,6],"tags":[12],"class_list":["post-77","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-toponyms","category-wa","tag-12"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":false,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.encyclopediacascadia.com\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/wp_bonney.medium.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.encyclopediacascadia.com\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.encyclopediacascadia.com\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.encyclopediacascadia.com\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.encyclopediacascadia.com\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.encyclopediacascadia.com\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=77"}],"version-history":[{"count":25,"href":"https:\/\/www.encyclopediacascadia.com\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":139,"href":"https:\/\/www.encyclopediacascadia.com\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77\/revisions\/139"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.encyclopediacascadia.com\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/110"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.encyclopediacascadia.com\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=77"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.encyclopediacascadia.com\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=77"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.encyclopediacascadia.com\/journal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=77"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
- Author of “History of Pierce County, Washington vol I, II and III, Pioneer Historical Pub Co. Chicago, 1927<\/a>“<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Secretary of the Washington State Historical Society<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n