Seattle shipbuilder's 2,700-acre gift created Moran State Park in 1921

In 1905, doctors told Seattle shipbuilder and former mayor Robert Moran that he had only six months to live because of severe exhaustion. The next year, he sold his shipbuilding company for a reported $3.5 million, moved to Orcas Island, and lived for another 37 years. That major change not only gave Moran a quieter life but also changed the landscape of Washington state. Fifteen years after moving to the San Juan Islands, Moran gave more than 2,700 acres of his private estate to the state government. The gift became what is now Moran State Park. Historical records from HistoryLink, the online encyclopedia of Washington state history, and the Washington State Parks Field Guide blog document Moran's role in creating the park.Rise of a Seattle industrialistBorn in New York City in 1857, Robert Moran arrived in Seattle in 1875 with just 10 cents in his pocket.