Bonners Ferry (

Kutenai language The Kutenai language ( ), also Kootenai, Kootenay, Ktunaxa, and Ksanka, is the native language of the Kutenai people of Montana and Idaho in the United States and British Columbia in Canada. It is typically considered a language isolate, unrel ...

: ʔaq̓anqmi) is the largest city in and the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

of Boundary County,

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...

, United States. The population was 2,543 at the 2010 census. The Porthill-Rykerts Border Crossing connects Bonners Ferry with

Creston, British Columbia Creston is a town in the Kootenays, Kootenay region of southeastern British Columbia, Canada. Time zones Settlements on the east shore of Kootenay Lake and along British Columbia Highway 3, BC Highway 3 from Creston to Yahk are among the few area ...

, Canada, on the

Kootenay River The Kootenay River or Kootenai River is a major river of the Northwest Plateau in southeastern British Columbia, Canada, and northern Montana and Idaho in the United States. It is one of the uppermost major tributaries of the Columbia River, ...

. The

Eastport–Kingsgate Border Crossing The Eastport–Kingsgate Border Crossing connects the town of Bonners Ferry, Idaho with Yahk, British Columbia on the Canada–US border. U.S. Route 95 on the American side joins British Columbia Highway 95 on the Canadian side. Canadian side Fr ...

connects Bonners Ferry with

Yahk, British Columbia Yahk is an unincorporated hamlet in southeastern British Columbia, Canada, just north of the Canada-U.S. border. Yahk Provincial Park borders the village to the south. Yahk is located on the Moyie River. CBC Television talk show '' The Hour ...

, Canada, on the

Moyie River The Moyie River is a long tributary of the Kootenai River (spelled Kootenay River in Canada) in the U.S. state of Idaho and the Canadian province of British Columbia. The Moyie River is part of the Columbia River basin, being a tributary of th ...

History

When

gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

was discovered in the East

Kootenays The Kootenays or Kootenay ( ) is a region of southeastern British Columbia. It takes its name from the Kootenay River, which in turn was named for the Kutenai First Nations people. Boundaries The Kootenays are more or less defined by the Koote ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

in 1863, thousands of prospectors from all over the West surged northward over a route that became known as the Wildhorse Trail. Edwin Bonner, a merchant from

Walla Walla, Washington Walla Walla ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Walla Walla County, Washington, United States. It had a population of 34,060 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, estimated to have decreased to 33,339 as of 2023. The combined populat ...

, established a ferry in 1864 where the trail crossed the broad

Kootenai River The Kootenay River or Kootenai River is a major river of the Northwest Plateau in southeastern British Columbia, Canada, and northern Montana and Idaho in the United States. It is one of the uppermost major tributaries of the Columbia River, ...

. In 1875, Richard Fry, and his

Sinixt The Sinixt"Sinixt Nation…" (; also known as the Sin-Aikst or Sin Aikst,Reyes 2002, ''passim.'' "Senijextee", "Arrow Lakes Band", or—less commonly in recent decades—simply as "The Lakes") are a First Nations People. The Sinixt are d ...

wife, Justine Su-steel Fry, leased the business, but the location retained the name of the original founder and later became the town of Bonners Ferry. Before the

gold rush A gold rush or gold fever is a discovery of gold—sometimes accompanied by other precious metals and rare-earth minerals—that brings an onrush of miners seeking their fortune. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, ...

, only a few visitors had come to the region; one of the first was explorer David Thompson, a

cartographer Cartography (; from , 'papyrus, sheet of paper, map'; and , 'write') is the study and practice of making and using maps. Combining science, aesthetics and technique, cartography builds on the premise that reality (or an imagined reality) can ...

for the

North West Company The North West Company was a Fur trade in Canada, Canadian fur trading business headquartered in Montreal from 1779 to 1821. It competed with increasing success against the Hudson's Bay Company in the regions that later became Western Canada a ...

. Thompson and four fellow

fur trader The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of a world fur market in the early modern period, furs of boreal ecosystem, boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals h ...

s arrived in 1808 to trade with the Lower Kootenais. The local natives gave Thompson's party dried fish and moss bread. Thompson returned the next year and established a trading post on

Lake Pend Oreille Lake Pend Oreille ( ) in the northern Idaho Panhandle is the largest lake in the U.S. state of Idaho and the 38th-largest lake by area in the United States, with a surface area of . It is long, and deep in some regions, making it the fifth-deep ...

. He was followed in 1846 by

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

Priest Father DeSmet, a missionary to the Kootenai Tribe. The

Oregon Question The Oregon boundary dispute or the Oregon Question was a 19th-century territorial dispute over the political division of the Pacific Northwest of North America between several nations that had competing territorial and commercial aspirations in ...

was settled by the

Oregon Treaty The Oregon Treaty was a treaty between the United Kingdom and the United States that was signed on June 15, 1846, in Washington, D.C. The treaty brought an end to the Oregon boundary dispute by settling competing American and British claims to ...

of 1846 which established the 49th Parallel north as the boundary between the US and

British North America British North America comprised the colonial territories of the British Empire in North America from 1783 onwards. English colonisation of North America began in the 16th century in Newfoundland, then further south at Roanoke and Jamestown, ...

. Government surveyors of the Boundary Commission came in 1858 to establish the border between the United States and

. Bonners Ferry in the 1880s flourished due to the mines in the north. Entering service in 1883 the Norwegian-built steamer ''Midge'' transported passengers and freight between Bonners Ferry and British Columbia for 25 years. In 1892 The Great Northern Railway was built, followed by the Spokane International and the Kootenai Valley lines. The

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

of Bonners Ferry was formally established in 1893, along the south bank of the Kootenai River. Scattered along the valley and benchland were a few ranches and homesteads. Numerous mines were developed in the nearby mountains, including the Continental Mine in the Selkirks. The lumber industry also grew rapidly. Bonners Ferry, perched on stilts to avoid the inevitable spring floods, appeared to be a boom town. Moving into the 20th century, the town became the center of a lumbering and farming community. The valley land was drained, levees were constructed and farms were cleared on the benches. The rich Kootenai Valley became known as the "Nile of the North," while the Bonners Ferry Lumber Company grew to be one of the world's largest

lumber mill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes (dimens ...

s. The downtown took shape as brick buildings were constructed, replacing those on stilts. Completion of the

Libby Dam Libby Dam is a concrete gravity dam in the northwestern United States, on the Kootenai River in northwestern Montana. Dedicated on it is west of the continental divide, upstream from the town of Libby. At in height and a length of , Libby D ...

in 1975 lessened the threat of serious flooding. Today, much of Main Street dates from this initial period of solid, permanent construction. On September 20, 1974, the Kootenai Tribe, headed by chairwoman Amy Trice, declared war on the United States government. Their first act was to post soldiers on each end of the highway that runs through the town who would ask people to pay a toll to drive through what had been the tribe's aboriginal land. The money would be used to house and care for elderly tribal members. Most tribes in the United States are forbidden to declare war on the U.S. government because of treaties, but the Kootenai Tribe never signed a treaty. The dispute resulted in the concession by the United States government and a land grant of that is now the Kootenai Reservation. Bonners Ferry is 8 miles (13 km) from the site of the

Ruby Ridge The Ruby Ridge standoff was the siege of a cabin occupied by the Weaver family in Boundary County, Idaho, in August 1992. On August 21, deputies of the United States Marshals Service (USMS) came to arrest Randy Weaver under a bench warrant fo ...

confrontation and siege in 1992, which occurred just outside Naples, Idaho.

Geography and climate

Bonners Ferry is located south of the Canada-United States border. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water. Bonners Ferry has a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers, and cold ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

''Dfb''/''Dsb'') with cold, snowy winters and dry summers with hot days and cool nights. It is almost warm enough to be classed as a

Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate ( ), also called a dry summer climate, described by Köppen and Trewartha as ''Cs'', is a temperate climate type that occurs in the lower mid-latitudes (normally 30 to 44 north and south latitude). Such climates typic ...

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate or maritime climate, is the temperate climate sub-type in Köppen climate classification, Köppen classification represented as ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of co ...

, although snow depths above occur on 23.6 days on average.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2010, there were 2,543 people, 1,117 households, and 631 families residing in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 1,254 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 94.3 percent

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.2 percent

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 2.0 percent Native American, 0.6 percent Asian, 0.2 percent

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.5 percent from other races, and 2.2 percent from 2 or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 4.7 percent of the population. There were 1,117 households, of which 27.6 percent had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.1 percent were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 12.5 percent had a female householder with no husband present, 4.8 percent had a male householder with no wife present, and 43.5 percent were non-families. 38.6 percent of all households were made up of individuals, and 20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.22 and the average family size was 2.91. The median age in the city was 41.9 years. 23.7 percent of residents were under the age of 18; 7.5 percent were between the ages of 18 and 24; 21.9 percent were from 25 to 44; 27.4 percent were from 45 to 64; and 19.5 percent were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.0 percent male and 52.0 percent female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 2,515 people, 1,027 households, and 650 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 1,120 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 95.67 percent

, 0.04 percent

, 1.59 percent Native American, 0.52 percent Asian, 1.31 percent from other races, and 0.87 percent from 2 or more races.

or Latino of any race were 4.29 percent of the population. There were 1,027 households, out of which 31.7 percent had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.0 percent were

living together, 11.2 percent had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.7 percent were non-families. 32.9 percent of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.5 percent had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 3.00. In the city, the population was spread out, with 26.9 percent under the age of 18, 8.2 percent from 18 to 24, 24.5 percent from 25 to 44, 21.3 percent from 45 to 64, and 19.1 percent who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.8 males. The median income for a household in the city was $24,509, and the median income for a family was $35,237. Males had a median income of $28,558 versus $16,776 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $13,343. About 17.3 percent of families and 20.0 percent of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 28.6 percent of those under age 18 and 10.9 percent of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Transportation

Boundary County Airport is a county-owned, public-use

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial Aviation, air transport. They usually consist of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surf ...

located 2 nautical miles (3.7 km) northeast of the

central business district A central business district (CBD) is the Commerce, commercial and business center of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides wit ...

of Bonners Ferry. The railroad reached town in 1892; the then Great Northern Railroad as part of its transcontinental line over Maria's Pass, now

BNSF BNSF Railway is the largest freight railroad in the United States. One of six North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 36,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and over 8,000 locomotives. It has three transcontinental routes that provide ...

. The Kootenai Valley Railway existed 1898-1915. In 1910 a second railroad was built through Bonners Ferry:

Spokane International Railroad The Spokane International Railroad was a short line railroad between Spokane, Washington, and the Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) at Kingsgate, British Columbia. The line became an important one for the CP with its connections to the Union Paci ...

connecting the US to Canada, now

Union Pacific The Union Pacific Railroad is a Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United States after BNSF, ...

. While Amtrak's Empire Builder runs through town, the nearest station is at Sandpoint (the only Amtrak station in Idaho).

Local media

Bonners Ferry has been home to

KBFI KBFI (1450 AM, "Talk Radio 1450") is a radio station broadcasting a News Talk Information format. Located in Bonners Ferry, Idaho, the station is currently owned by Radio Bonners Ferry, Inc. (Blue Sky Broadcasting, Inc.) While licensed to Bon ...

AM 1450 since 1983. It is owned by local licensee Radio Bonners Ferry, Inc, owned by Blue Sky Broadcasting, Inc. While licensed to Bonners Ferry and having its transmitter site located there, KBFI shares studios and offices with its sister stations (

KSPT KSPT (1400 AM) is a radio station broadcasting a news talk information format, licensed to Sandpoint, Idaho, United States. The station is currently owned by Blue Sky Broadcasting Inc. and features programming from ABC News Radio, Bloomberg Radi ...

KIBR KIBR (102.5 FM) is a radio station broadcasting a country format. Licensed to Sandpoint, Idaho, United States, the station is currently owned by Benefield Broadcasting, Inc. History The station was assigned the call letters KJDE by the FCC on 1 ...

, and

KPND KPND (95.3 MHz) is a commercial FM radio station licensed to Deer Park, Washington, and serving the Spokane metropolitan area and the Inland Northwest. It is owned by Blue Sky Broadcasting and it airs an Adult Album Alternative radio format, w ...

), in nearby Sandpoint, Idaho. KSBF 88.9 FM began broadcasting in 2024. Owned and operated by Bonners Ferry Baptist Church, it is an affiliate of the

Fundamental Broadcasting Network The Fundamental Broadcasting Network (FBN) is a network of Conservative Christian radio stations in the United States, based out of the Grace Baptist Church in Newport, North Carolina. Programs heard on FBN include ''Family Altar'' with Lester ...

. A prominent newspaper in Bonners Ferry is the weekly '' Bonners Ferry Herald'', owned by Hagadone Publishing.

Sports

Bonners Ferry High School Bonners Ferry High School is a four-year public secondary school in Bonners Ferry, Idaho. The only traditional high school in the Boundary County School District #101, it serves all of Boundary County, the northernmost in the state. The approxima ...

has

physical education Physical education is an academic subject taught in schools worldwide, encompassing Primary education, primary, Secondary education, secondary, and sometimes tertiary education. It is often referred to as Phys. Ed. or PE, and in the United Stat ...

programs such as wrestling, football, baseball, soccer, cheer, dance, golf, and basketball. There are teams fielded for Little league baseball, in association with nearby

Sandpoint, Idaho Sandpoint is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Bonner County, Idaho, Bonner County, Idaho, United States. Its population was 9,777 as of the 2022 United States census, census. Sandpoint's major economic contributors include forest pr ...

Education

There is one school district in Boundary County: Boundary County School District 101. Boundary County is in the catchment area, but not the taxation zone, for

North Idaho College North Idaho College (NIC) is a public community college in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. It has an enrollment of approximately 3,900 undergraduate students. Its main campus is situated at the north end of Lake Coeur d'Alene near downtown Coeur d'Alene, ...

Other languages

Some of the

Kootenai Tribe of Idaho The Kootenai Tribe of Idaho ( Kutenai language: ʔaq̓anqmiFirst Voices—Ktunaxa Home Page: About Uwww.firstvoices.com/explore/FV/sections/Data/Ktunaxa/Ktunaxa/Ktunaxa/ref>) is a federally recognized tribe of Lower Kootenai people. They are an ...

speak the city name of their language as Bonners Ferry (

Ktunaxa The Kutenai ( ), also known as the Ktunaxa ( ; ), Ksanka ( ), Kootenay (in Canada) and Kootenai (in the United States), are an indigenous people of Canada and the United States. Kutenai bands live in southeastern British Columbia, norther ...

: ''k̓akanmituk ʔa·kaq̓ǂaʔhaǂ, ʔaq̓anqmi'').

Notable people

* Christopher John Boyce, American spy *

Claire Du Brey Claire Du Brey (born Clara Violet Dubreyvich, August 31, 1892 – August 1, 1993) was an American actress. She appeared in more than 200 films from 1916 to 1959. Her name is sometimes rendered as Claire Du Bray or as Claire Dubrey. Early y ...

, silent film actress * Johnny James, baseball player *

Denis Johnson Denis Hale Johnson (July 1, 1949 – May 24, 2017) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and poet. He is perhaps best known for his debut short story collection, ''Jesus' Son (short story collection), Jesus' Son'' (1992). His most succes ...

, author, journalist *

Rita La Roy Rita La Roy (born Ina La Roi Stuart; October 2, 1901 – February 18, 1993) was an American actress and dancer, beginning her career in 1929, and having her last significant role in 1940. Career La Roy appeared in over 50 films, the best k ...

, silent film actress

References

External links

* {{authority control Cities in Idaho Cities in Boundary County, Idaho County seats in Idaho Populated places established in 1864 1864 establishments in Idaho Territory Seats of government of American Indian reservations