When a King County Assessor photographer snapped this picture of the Black Diamond Bakery on March 7, 1940, the coal mining town where it’s located was a shadow of its former self. There were no longer any coal mines in Black Diamond. The nearby town of Franklin was empty, though coal was still mined in the surrounding hills. Coal production had dwindled to a third of the 367,000 tons mined in 1902 when Willard Hadley opened the bakery with financing from Joe Favro. When John Plano, a stone man working for Hadley, built the brick oven, over 600 miners worked in Black Diamond and another 350 in nearby Franklin.
By 1940, the area supported only 150 coal miners. Two tiny mines, Black Beauty and Hi Heat produced less than 2,000 tons annually with a few miners. Only William Strain’s mine on the north slope of Franklin Hill produced significant quantities – 132,000 tons employing 150 miners most of whom lived in Black Diamond.
Though iron tracks are still visible on the unpaved street called Railroad Ave., Pacific Coast trains didn’t go further than the depot, 500 feet to the south. Another 70 coal miners most of whom lived nearby, worked at the New Black Diamond Mine, 12 miles north on Hwy. 169 about halfway between Renton and Maple Valley and for several years passenger service was offered. The New Black Diamond, colloquially called the Indian Mine closed in August 1941, just three months before the outbreak of World War II. As coal mining faded so did the town’s population which dwindled to 1,018 in the 1940 census.
But throughout the slow decline and eventual rebound, the Black Diamond Bakery kept the lights. It’s not only the town’s oldest business, but also its most famous. When traveling almost anywhere if you mention Black Diamond, chances are your acquaintance will have heard of the famous bakery.
Over the past 123 years, the business has seen a succession of owners and bakers, including Hadley, John and Eldon Lapham, George Eipper, James and Marguerite Leroy, Frank Dawson, and Wallace Smith. But the most consequential was Doug Weiding who purchased the business in 1985 and later quadrupled the building’s square footage by constructing wings on each side.
After 22 years of ownership, in 2007, Doug and his wife Shari (Sawyer-Kuzaro) sold the building and business to Seoung and Moon Bang. Weiding died in 2010. Eunjeong Kim and Insung Kang became the latest owners in the bakery’s storied history in July 2018. Today, the restaurant with its legendary breakfasts occupies the south wing with a coffee shop and meeting area to the north. The original bakery building is not much changed and still sells fresh baked bread, donuts, and pastries. If you’ve never visited, you’re in for a treat – literally!
This photo comes courtesy of the Puget Regional Archives located on the Bellevue College campus in Eastgate. Photo enhancements were undertaken by Doug “Boomer” Burnham, a Tahoma High School instructor doing business as https://www.BoomersPhotography.com/
