Chewelah, Washington — Mining Town That Helped Make Airplanes Lighter

Chewelah has been a farm town, mining town, timber town and ski town. During World War II, it also became part of the aircraft supply chain.

The reason was magnesium.

A magnesite deposit near Chewelah became strategically important when wartime aircraft production created enormous demand for lightweight metal. The Northwest Magnesite Company mined and processed ore for magnesium production, tying a small Colville Valley community to factories building airplanes far away.

When the war ended, demand collapsed and the boom could not last.

Chewelah adapted, as it had before. Agriculture continued on the valley floor, timber remained important in the surrounding forests, and skiing eventually became another mountain industry through 49 Degrees North.

The geography keeps offering different raw materials: farm ground below, trees and minerals above, snow higher still.

For a few extraordinary years, one of those mountains was useful because airplanes needed to weigh less.