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Washington Counties

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Washington Counties

There are 39 counties in the state of Washington. Washington was carved out of the western part of Washington Territory and admitted to the Union as the 42nd state in 1889. The first counties were created from unorganized territory in 1845.

Chelan County, Washington

Chelan County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education

County Seat: Wenatchee
Year Organized: 1899
Square Miles: 2,922

Court House:

350 Orondo Street
County Courthouse
Wenatchee, WA 98801-2885

Etymology - Origin of County Name

A Native American word meaning deep water, probably a reference to Lake Chelan.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

County History

"Chelan" derives from a Chelan Indian word meaning "deep water,"

14 Dec 1872, a very powerful earthquake centered near Lake Chelan was felt over 300,000 square miles, extending from Victoria, British Columbia south past Baker City, Oregon, southwest past Portland, Oregon. There are many small accounts of the quake in historical books and historical newspapers. It triggered additional quakes at the Yellowstone National Park. Aftershocks were observed for next 2 years

Chelan County embraces the drainages of the Wenatchee River, the Entiat River, and Lake Chelan, and the Chelan River for a total of 2,920 square miles. Irrigation has transformed the arid valleys into agricultural treasure houses and the home to Washington apples and the ubiquitous Aplet and Cotlet confections. Hydroelectric development has lived up to the Wenatchee Daily World's claim as the "Power Belt of the State of Washington." Almost 90 percent of the county is owned by the state and federal governments.
File 7624: Full Text >

Economic

Located in central Washington State, Chelan County is home to the Confluence Technology Center which through a partnership with Wenatchee Valley College, offers businesses customized workforce training, broadband connection, redundant power and a state-of-the-art videoconferencing center.

Wenatchee, the county seat and business hub, sits at the intersection of cross-state highways 2 and 97, and serves as an intersection of the state’s fiber optic highway.

The regional hospital and clinic are recognized for quality health care services; and Pangborn Memorial Airport puts Sea-Tac just a 35 minute flight away.

Four distinct seasons and development of irrigation transformed Chelan County from a semi-arid landscape into one of the most productive agricultural regions in the state. This region boasts the lowest power rates in the country - generated by Columbia River hydroelectric dams.
Bounded by National Forest, the county attracts recreational enthusiasts and world-class adventurers from across the state and around the world

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 2,994 square miles (7,753 km²), of which, 2,921 square miles (7,566 km²) of it is land and 72 square miles (187 km²) of it (2.41%) is water.

Neighboring Counties:

Okanogan County, Washington northeast
Douglas County, Washington east
Kittitas County, Washington south
King County, Washington southwest
Snohomish County, Washington west
Skagit County, Washington northwest

Cities and Towns:

- Cashmere	city	Incorporated Area
- Chelan	city	Incorporated Area
- Entiat	city	Incorporated Area
- Leavenworth	city	Incorporated Area
- Wenatchee (County Seat)	city	Incorporated Area

County Resources:

Enter County Resources and Information Here

County Resources

The history of our nation was a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names given the counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic features of this country!"

But age, size and colorful names of our counties isn't the only reason to explore counties' role in American history, or the history of county government itself. In fact, the story of county government reflects the larger meanings of American history.

Today's counties are the most flexible, locally responsive and creative governments in the US. They are the most diverse, varying in size, population, geography, and governmental structure. In their politics and policies, they express a 1990's political slogan "Think globally, act locally."