Seattle Shipbuilder Robert Moran's Land Donation Forms Moran State Park
In 1905, Seattle shipbuilder and former mayor Robert Moran was diagnosed with a cardiac condition and given only months to live. In response, he sold his business interests for $3.5 million (equivalent to $126 million in 2025) and relocated to Orcas Island. There, he acquired approximately 7,000 acres of forest. Defying medical predictions, Moran lived for another 38 years. Around 1910, he offered to donate a significant portion of his land to the State of Washington, intending for it to become the state's first state park. Despite initial bureaucratic hurdles and the state's lack of an agency to manage such a park, Moran persisted. He lobbied state legislators and invited officials to assess the land's potential. In 1913, legislation was passed to create a State Board of Park Commissioners. It took until 1921 for the state to accept Moran's donation, which included nearly 2,700 acres on Orcas Island, officially establishing Moran State Park. He continued to donate additional parcels in 1925 and 1926, and ... 
