Entiat, Washington — Town That Moved Twice

Entiat has occupied three townsites.

The first move followed fire and transportation. Repeated fires damaged the original settlement near the Entiat River, while the Great Northern Railway planned tracks closer to the Columbia. The commercial center shifted toward the railroad.

Four decades later, Rocky Reach Dam forced another move.

Its reservoir would inundate much of the second townsite. Properties were purchased, buildings moved or demolished and a third Entiat planned on higher ground.

Residents argued over valuations and where the new business district should go. Some businesses never reopened.

For a community of only a few hundred people, relocation meant deciding which pieces of town were worth carrying uphill.

Western towns sometimes moved to follow railroads. Entiat did that—and then moved again when the river rose to meet it.