East Wenatchee, Washington
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East Wenatchee is a city in Douglas County,
Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...
, United States. The population at the 2010 census was 13,190, a 129.1% increase on the 2000 census, having annexed much of the East Wenatchee Bench CDP. As of the 2020 census, the population increased to 14,158. East Wenatchee lies on the east shore of the
Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook language, Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin language, Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river headwater ...
, opposite
Wenatchee Wenatchee ( ) is the county seat and most populous city of Chelan County, Washington, United States. The population within the city limits in 2010 was 31,925, and has increased to 35,508 as of 2020. Located in the north-central part of the stat ...
on the west shore. On November 10, 2002, East Wenatchee was designated a principal city of the Wenatchee – East Wenatchee Metropolitan Statistical Area by the
Office of Management and Budget The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is the largest office within the Executive Office of the President of the United States (EOP). The office's most prominent function is to produce the president's budget, while it also examines agency pro ...
.


History


Founding and early years

At the turn of the 20th century irrigation projects, including the Columbia Basin Project east of the region, fostered the development of intensive agriculture in the shrub-steppe native to the region. Fruit orchards become one of the area's leading industries. In 1908, the first highway bridge to span the
Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook language, Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin language, Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river headwater ...
opened. The privately owned bridge carried people, horses, wagons, and automobiles; it also supported two large water pipelines along its sides. It connected Chelan County on the west (Wenatchee) shore with Douglas County on the East Wenatchee shore. The bridge opened East Wenatchee and the rest of Douglas County to apple orchard development. Still standing today, the bridge is a pin-connected steel cantilever bridge and cost $177,000 to build. It once carried the Sunset Highway (State Highway 2) across the river. The bridge was the brainchild of W. T. Clark, one of the builders of the Highline Canal, a major irrigation project to water the apple orchards in the valley. It was financed in part by James J. Hill (1838–1916), of the Great Northern Railway (which arrived in Wenatchee in 1892). In its second year of operation the canal firm that owned it decided to start charging tolls. This prompted local leaders to hasten to the state legislature to persuade the state to purchase the bridge as part of the state highway system. The state purchased the bridge despite the state-employed consultant's opinion "that the ugliness of the structure is very apparent" (Dorpat), despite defects in the timber floor and concrete piers, and despite leaks in the waterpipes. The structure remained in full use until 1950 when the Senator George Sellar Bridge was built. Today, it remains as a footbridge on the
Apple Capital Recreation Loop Trail The Apple Capital Recreation Loop Trail is an urban bicycle and pedestrian trail in Wenatchee, Washington, United States. It follows the west and east shores of the Columbia River for and was completed in 1995. Route The trail runs clockwise ...
and still has the old pipeline running across it.


Incorporation and growth

On February 28, 1935, citizens voted, 48 in favor and 46 against, to incorporate the town of East Wenatchee. When the town was incorporated on March 11, 1935, the original town site was . Through subsequent annexations, the town has grown into a city. Today, East Wenatchee's boundaries encompass . From its foundation in agriculture, the region's economy has diversified to include year-round tourism and a variety of other industries.


Landing of first trans-pacific airplane flight

On October 5, 1931, East Wenatchee became part of aviation history. Having taken off from Misawa, Japan, pilots
Clyde Pangborn Clyde Edward Pangborn ( ''c''. October 28, 1895 – March 29, 1958), nicknamed "Upside-Down Pangborn", was an American aviator and barnstormer who performed aerial stunts in the 1920s for the Gates Flying Circus. He was its half-owner, chief pil ...
and Hugh Herndon Jr. safely belly-landed their Bellanca airplane, ''
Miss Veedol ''Miss Veedol'' was the first airplane to fly non-stop across the Pacific Ocean. On October 5, 1931, Clyde Pangborn and co-pilot Hugh Herndon landed in the hills of East Wenatchee, Washington, following a 41-hour flight from Sabishiro Beach, ...
'', on a nearby airstrip known then as Fancher Field. After take off, the pilots intentionally jettisoned the landing gear to conserve fuel. This flight was the first nonstop flight across the Pacific Ocean. In honor of this pioneering flight, East Wenatchee's airport is called Pangborn Memorial Airport, the Pangborn-Herndon Memorial Site, listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
, is nearby, and ''Miss Veedol''s propeller is displayed in the Wenatchee Valley Museum & Cultural Center.


Clovis points discovery

On May 27, 1987, East Wenatchee became part of archaeological history. On that date, while digging in an orchard just east of the city, farmworkers accidentally discovered a cache of 11,000-year-old
Clovis point Clovis points are the characteristically fluted projectile points associated with the New World Clovis culture, a prehistoric Paleo-American culture. They are present in dense concentrations across much of North America and they are largely restr ...
s and other artifacts, left there by
Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( ; referred to colloquially as the ''ice age, Ice Age'') is the geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fin ...
hunters. The East Wenatchee Clovis Site, near Pangborn Airport, was explored in two subsequent archaeological digs in 1988 and 1990, was closed to science by the landowner after protests by local Native American tribes. The legal moratorium on new archaeological work at the site ended on June 1, 2007.


Geography

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.


Climate


Economy

There are many orchards surrounding East Wenatchee. Commercial crops primarily include apples, sweet cherries and pears. Apricots, peaches, nectarines, and plums are also grown. Wheat and other grain are also grown on farms in the outlying areas near East Wenatchee. The area's major shopping centers are Wenatchee Valley Mall and Valley North Mall.


Recreational activities

Activities in East Wenatchee include: * Alpine skiing ( Mission Ridge,
Stevens Pass Stevens Pass (elevation ) is a mountain pass through the Cascade Mountains located at the border of King County and Chelan County in Washington, United States. U.S. Route 2 travels over the pass, reaching a maximum elevation of . The Pacific ...
) * Boating, water skiing, and wake boarding (
Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook language, Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin language, Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river headwater ...
) * Hiking (trails and area parks, including the
Apple Capital Recreation Loop Trail The Apple Capital Recreation Loop Trail is an urban bicycle and pedestrian trail in Wenatchee, Washington, United States. It follows the west and east shores of the Columbia River for and was completed in 1995. Route The trail runs clockwise ...
) * Kayaking and rafting ( Columbia or
Wenatchee Wenatchee ( ) is the county seat and most populous city of Chelan County, Washington, United States. The population within the city limits in 2010 was 31,925, and has increased to 35,508 as of 2020. Located in the north-central part of the stat ...
rivers) * Fishing * Parks (Confluence, Hydro, Walla Walla, Lincoln, all parks by the water)


Demographics


2020 census

The 2020 U.S. census counted 14,158 people, 5,295 households, and 3,631 families in East Wenatchee. The population density was 3,736.6 per square mile (1,442.7/km). There were 5,479 housing units at an average density of 1,446.0 per square mile (558.3/km). The racial makeup was 67.33% (9,533)
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 ...
or
European American European Americans are Americans of European ancestry. This term includes both people who descend from the first European settlers in the area of the present-day United States and people who descend from more recent European arrivals. Since th ...
(61.25%
non-Hispanic white Non-Hispanic Whites, also referred to as White Anglo Americans or Non-Latino Whites, are White Americans who are classified by the United States census as "White" and not of Hispanic or Latino origin. According to annual estimates from the Unit ...
), 0.52% (73)
black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...
or
African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...
, 1.46% (206) Native American or
Alaska Native Alaska Natives (also known as Native Alaskans, Alaskan Indians, or Indigenous Alaskans) are the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples of Alaska that encompass a diverse arena of cultural and linguistic groups, including the I ...
, 1.2% (170) Asian, 0.2% (29)
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 ...
or
Native Hawaiian Native Hawaiians (also known as Indigenous Hawaiians, Kānaka Maoli, Aboriginal Hawaiians, or simply Hawaiians; , , , and ) are the Indigenous peoples of Oceania, Indigenous Polynesians, Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands. Hawaiʻi was set ...
, 15.76% (2,232) from other races, and 13.53% (1,915) from two 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 was 31.33% (4,435) of the population. Of the 5,295 households, 35.2% had children under the age of 18; 47.5% were married couples living together; 26.4% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. 23.9% of households consisted of individuals and 10.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.8 and the average family size was 3.2. The percent of those with a bachelor's degree or higher was estimated to be 12.6% of the population. 25.4% of the population was under the age of 18, 8.7% from 18 to 24, 26.4% from 25 to 44, 22.1% from 45 to 64, and 17.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36.4 years. For every 100 females, there were 103.9 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older, there were 106.8 males.


2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 13,190 people, 4,997 households, and 3,517 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 5,275 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 80.1%
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 ...
, 0.3%
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 ...
, 1.2% Native American, 0.9% Asian, 0.1%
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 ...
, 14.0% from other races, and 3.4% from two 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 23.4% of the population. There were 4,997 households, of which 36.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.4% 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, 14.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.6% had a male householder with no wife present, and 29.6% were non-families. 22.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.08. The median age in the city was 35.2 years. 26.4% of residents were under the age of 18; 9.9% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 24.9% were from 25 to 44; 24.5% were from 45 to 64; and 14.2% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.4% male and 51.6% female.


Government and politics

East Wenatchee has a
mayor–council government A mayor–council government is a system of local government in which a mayor who is directly elected by the voters acts as chief executive, while a separately elected city council constitutes the legislative body. It is one of the two most comm ...
. The city council consists of seven members; the mayor presides at city council meetings and acts as the city's executive officer.


Education

Public K-12 education is provided by the Eastmont School District #206. The district has several schools in the city: * Cascade Elementary * Grant Elementary * Kenroy Elementary * Lee Elementary * Rock Island Elementary * Clovis Intermediate School * Sterling Junior High School * Eastmont Junior High School * Eastmont High School East Wenatchee was home to the only public school in Washington named after Confederate general
Robert E. Lee Robert Edward Lee (January 19, 1807 – October 12, 1870) was a general officers in the Confederate States Army, Confederate general during the American Civil War, who was appointed the General in Chief of the Armies of the Confederate ...
. It was constructed in 1955 and the school district rejected a name change in 2015 and again in August 2017. The school district voted to change the name from Robert E. Lee Elementary School to Lee Elementary School in 2018.


Transportation


Bus

Link Transit provides public transportation throughout the Wenatchee valley including routes that connect the cities of Wenatchee and East Wenatchee with Leavenworth, Chelan, and Waterville.


Air

The city is served by Pangborn Memorial Airport with daily flights to Seattle–Tacoma International Airport provided by
Alaska Airlines Alaska Airlines is a major American airline headquartered in SeaTac, Washington, within the Seattle metropolitan area. It is the fifth-largest airline in North America when measured by scheduled passengers carried, as of 2024. Alaska, togethe ...
.


Roads and highways

East Wenatchee is serviced by State Route 28, State Route 285, U.S. Route 97, and
U.S. Route 2 U.S. Route 2 or U.S. Highway 2 (US 2) is an east–west United States Numbered Highway System, United States Numbered Highway spanning across the northern continental United States. US 2 consists of two segments connected ...
.


Notable people

* Clyde Ballard, politician and former state representative * Cary Condotta, politician and former state representative * Brad Hawkins, politician * Jack Owen Spillman, serial killer * Karla Wilson, politician and former state representative


Sister cities

East Wenatchee has one
sister city A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inte ...
: * Misawa,
Aomori Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan in the Tōhoku region. The prefecture's capital, largest city, and namesake is the city of Aomori (city), Aomori. Aomori is the northernmost prefecture on Japan's main island, Honshu, and is border ...
, Japan


References


External links


Apple Capital Loop Trail


{{Authority control Cities in Washington (state) Cities in Douglas County, Washington Wenatchee–East Wenatchee metropolitan area Washington (state) populated places on the Columbia River