15 Things You May Not Know About North Central Washington – Part Two

15 Things You May Not Know About North Central Washington
Part Two

1. The city of Chelan is almost exactly in the geographic center of the state of Washington.

2. In 1956 Dr. Walter Brattain, a native of Tonasket, received the Nobel Prize for Physics in honor of his part in inventing the transistor. He shared the award with two others.

3. The town of Plain, near Lake Wenatchee, was originally named Beaver Valley.

4. Almost 90% of the land in Chelan County is government owned.

5. Wenatchee got its first electric lights courtesy of small hydroelectric projects on the Squilchuck river and Highline Canal.

6. The Okanogan River is fed from Lake Osooyos, a large lake that is halfway inside Canada and halfway inside the United States.

7. Chelan County was created out of Kittitas and Okanogan Counties in 1899.

8. Though there are 23 miles of roads in the Stehekin River Valley, none connect to the outside world. This area is only accessible by boat, float plane, or hiking trails.

9. Lake Chelan is 1541 feet deep at its deepest known point.

10. In 1914, the Wenatchee National Forest spent just $250 total on road construction and road improvements within its boundaries.

11. When Wenatchee Valley College opened in 1939 it was a private college. It did not become part of Washington State’s public education system until two years later.

12. Holden Village, a current religious retreat and another community not connected by roads to the outside world, was once home to the largest copper mine in Washington State.

13. Before the Okanogan county seat was located in the town of Okanogan, it was first located in Ruby and then Conconully.

14. Logs were once floated from Lake Wenatchee, down the Wenatchee river, through Tumwater Canyon to a saw mill in Leavenworth.

15. Okanogan County is the third largest county in the entire United States of America.

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