In the summer of 1958, Bill Hewitt, owner of Hewitt's Catering Service in Seattle, catered a party for a sorority on the shores of Lake Washington. This was an outdoor event, and Milo Moore provided the main course for the meal. Moore worked for the Washington State Department of Fisheries and, as a hobby, baked salmon in the traditional method of the Northwest Coast Indians. The salmon, with the head and backbone removed, were cooked whole, held vertically on five-foot cedar stakes around a blazing alder wood fire. Hewitt was fascinated by the process. There was a great deal of showmanship in the method of preparing and cooking the fish, but the most impressive thing was the product itself; it was delicious, the best he had ever eaten.

A short time later, Hewitt received a call from Boeing. They wanted to know if he could suggest a theme for a party that would be different from what they had been doing. His suggestion of an Indian potlatch salmon dinner prepared in the traditional style was accepted immediately.

Milo Moore had offered to barbecue salmon for Hewitt anytime. As it turned out, the Boeing party was scheduled for the same day the Department of Fisheries' picnic and Moore was not available. Moore did, however, offer to show Hewitt how to put the salmon on the sticks and to loan him some sticks. Bill Hewitt accepted the challenge, and with the assistance of Bill Holm's dance team and Dudley Carter, who demonstrated carving on the 35-foot totem pole, Hewitt created his first "potlatch style" salmon bake, cooking the fish in the Indian method himself. Although there were no Indians involved, the potlatch was a huge success. Hewitt started using the Indian method of baking salmon at various locations, and by 1959 it was so popular he had begun searching for a site to build an Indian longhouse restaurant. A local newspaper article regarding Blake Island's recent transformation into a state part caught Hewitt's attention. He approached the State Park Commission on the possibility of building his longhouse on the island. (read more)

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