Priest River, Idaho — Nobody Is Entirely Sure Which Priest

Priest River sits where the Priest River enters the Pend Oreille River, and the obvious question about the name has never received a completely satisfying answer.

One explanation connects it with Jesuit missionaries traveling through the region. Another associates the name with an Indigenous spiritual leader whom outsiders described as a priest.

The documentation does not settle the argument neatly.

The town's later history is clearer. Railroads reached northern Idaho in the late nineteenth century, timber became a major industry and Priest River developed as a gateway toward the forests and lake country upstream.

Sawmills processed logs while rail lines moved lumber to distant markets.

Modern Priest River still straddles two northern Idaho economies: working forests and mills on one side, recreation and Priest Lake traffic on the other.

The river connects both. The priest remains unidentified.