Salkum is a rural

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

in Lewis County,

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

. The town is located on U.S. Route 12 and is west of Silver Creek.

History

The area was a village of the

Cowlitz Indian Tribe The Cowlitz Indian Tribe is a federally recognized tribe of Cowlitz people. They are a tribe of Southwestern Coast Salish and Sahaptan indigenous people of the Pacific Northwest located in Washington. Other Cowlitz people are enrolled in the C ...

. Salkum is a

Cowlitz Cowlitz may refer to: People * Cowlitz people, an indigenous people of the Pacific Northwest ** Cowlitz language, member of the Tsamosan branch of the Coast Salish family of Salishan languages * Cowlitz Indian Tribe, a federally recognized tribe of ...

Indian word meaning "boiling water" or "boiling up", a reference to a nearby series of waterfalls on Mill Creek. The first non-Native settlers built a

grist mill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the Mill (grinding), grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist i ...

at Mill Creek in 1881, beginning the town's future. A post office was established in 1882 and moved in 1890, shifting the town's center two miles north. Salkum would become a timber community, producing lumber until the 1930s when the sawmills shut down. Salkum opened its first library, as part of the

Timberland Regional Library Timberland Regional Library (TRL) is a public library system serving the residents of western Washington state, United States including Grays Harbor, Lewis, Mason, Pacific, and Thurston counties. Timberland Regional Library has 27 community lib ...

system, in 1986 as a test to expand library services to rural communities. Proving successful, the community refurbished an unoccupied gas station and the library was moved into the larger building in 1993.

Government and politics

Politics

Salkum is recognized as being majority

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

and

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

. Third parties receiving votes in the 2020 election were the

Libertarian Party Active parties by country Defunct parties by country Organizations associated with Libertarian parties See also * Liberal parties by country * List of libertarian organizations * Lists of political parties Lists of political part ...

and

Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence. Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundation f ...

, and there were 3 votes for

Write-in candidates A write-in candidate is a candidate whose name does not appear on the ballot but seeks election by asking voters to cast a vote for the candidate by physically writing in the person's name on the ballot. Depending on electoral law it may be poss ...

Infrastructure

Salkum is among 8 locations that are part of an EV installation project on the

White Pass Scenic Byway White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

. The program will stretch from the White Pass Ski Area to Chehalis and is run in partnership with Lewis County PUD, Twin Transit, state government agencies, and local community efforts. The venture began in 2023 from two grants totaling over $1.8 million.

References

Populated places in Lewis County, Washington Unincorporated communities in Lewis County, Washington Unincorporated communities in Washington (state) {{LewisCountyWA-geo-stub