L.D. Hack, Shelton booster

In a feature titled "Interesting People of the Peninsula," the September 1935 issue of a publication called Olympic Peninsula Magazine announced that "Native sons of the great Olympic Peninsula had better look to their laurels, for a comparative "Chechako" (Chinook word meaning newcomer) threatens to become the No. 1 booster for this nature's paradise.

He is L. D. Hack, a native Iowan who just "happened" into Shelton in 1926, and stayed. It didn't take Mr. Hack long to get into the swing of things. He purchased the Shelton Pharmacy the year of his arrival in that fine city and has been in almost every "pie" since then, including member of the Kiwanis and Commercial Clubs; past president of Northwest Rexall Clubs; state representative from the 24th District, 1931; chairman of the Mason County Red Cross; life member of the Masonic Lodge; and current mayor of Shelton, having received all but 14 votes cast in the city election."

Leon Dashiell Hack was born into a farming family in Owatonna, Minnesota, in 1868. As a young man he worked as a bottle washer, wick trimmer and clerk in a drugstore in Humboldt, Iowa. In 1895, he left to attend pharmacy college in Des Moines, then returned to Humboldt and became manager and registered pharmacist of the drugstore. (His favorite pun was that he was "a farmer's son who grew up to be a farmacist.) He married his wife, Minnie, that same year. In 1926, the couple moved to Shelton and purchased the Shelton Pharmacy. According to a 1941 article in the Journal, "That was the moment Shelton gained one of its strongest boosters, for since the day he set foot in this community, L. D. Hack has never ceased being a one man 'chamber of commerce' in extolling the advantages of Shelton, Hood Canal and the Olympic Peninsula."

Hack would often meet the stage coming from Port Angeles when it parked by the Shelton Hotel. As passengers disembarked, Hack would enthrall them with poetry about the beauties and virtues of Shelton. In September 1941, a special Olympic loop tour with 36 passengers from Philadelphia arrived in Shelton in two big buses. According to the Journal, "Having been informed of their visit in advance, L. D. Hack, Shelton's unofficial greeter and 'praise agent,' arranged to distribute favors representative of Shelton and Mason County to the passengers to give them something to remember Shelton by, as he has with all other tours of the Olympic Peninsula the past three summers."

L. D. and Minnie worked side-by-side in their pharmacy, sometimes up to 16 hours a day. After taking over the Rexall line of goods in 1928, the Shelton Pharmacy held first place for three years in sales of Rexall products in Washington cities comparable to Shelton. In 1929, it took second place in the nation for cities of Shelton's size. In July 1936, the Hacks sold the pharmacy to an employee, and "turned to shorter hours as found in the jewelry business, which they purchased from the estate of I. N. Wood, that they might enjoy the many more years of health and happiness which they feel are in store for them in this great Pacific Northwest." (Journal 7/9/1936) In 1941, the Hacks sold the jewelry store to Fred Beckwith, a watchmaker and jeweler from Tacoma. Again, the Journal had a comment: "Now that the cares of business life will not burden him longer, L. D. will have even more time to devote to his crusade to increase the population of the Northwest. (If you note the census figures for 1940 as compared to 1930, you'll see he's done pretty well.)"

Both L. D. and Minnie were avid hunters. A 1944 Christmas postcard they sent to a friend showed a photo of the two of them standing on either side of the bucks each had gotten on the same day of a hunting trip in the Olympics. On the back of the card, Hack had written, "I remember your outdoor sport runs more to fishing, even so a good hunting trip like we had is sure exciting and furnished both ourselves and over 30 of our friends with venison steaks, besides a cold storage locker well filled. Would enjoy furnishing you with some venison were it possible. Yours in the Rexall faith, L. D. Hack."

In later years, L. D. and Minnie became known as "Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus of Christmastown U.S.A." The January 1951 Simpson Lookout includes a photo of "Dad" Hack dressed as Santa Claus at a party for the children of Simpson employees. In 1956, the Hacks were the honored guests of the Forest Festival, riding in the lead car of the Paul Bunyan parade.

L. D. Hack's final mention in the Journal was his obituary in September 1957. "The 89-year-old retired druggist leaves behind him a record of community service to Shelton and Mason County that is hard to equal. He served as president of both the Mason County Red Cross Chapter and the Hood Canal Sportsman's Council, and chairman of the Shelton Police Commission. In 1931, he was elected to the Washington Legislature and served with distinction. In 1934, he was elected mayor of Shelton from a field of four candidates and served two two-year terms in the days when the mayor served without pay. As a member of Mount Moriah Masonic Lodge, he devoted much time and energy to the service of the local DeMolay Chapter as Dad Adviser (and was thereafter known as Dad Hack) and gave unstintingly of his time to assist his wife in the Order of Rainbow for girls."

Minnie Hack died in March 1968 at the age of 92.