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Okanogan County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington along the Canada–U.S. border. As of the 2020 census, the population was 42,104. The county seat is Okanogan, while the largest city is Omak. Its area is the largest in the state.
Brewster is a city in Okanogan County, Washington, United States. The population was 2,370 at the 2010 census.
Okanogan is a city in Okanogan County, Washington, United States. The population was 2,552 at the 2010 census, within the Greater Omak Area. It is the seat of Okanogan County.
Omak is a city located in the foothills of the Okanogan Highlands in north-central Washington, United States. With an estimated 4,845 residents as of 2010, distributed over a land area of 3.43 square miles (8.9 km2), Omak is the largest municipality of Okanogan County and the largest municipality in Central Washington north of Wenatchee. The Greater Omak Area of around 8,229 inhabitants as of the 2010 census is the largest urban cluster in the Okanogan Country region, encompassing most of its twin city of Okanogan. The population has increased significantly since the 1910 census, reporting 520 residents just prior to incorporation in 1911.
Oroville is a city located in the northern bulk of the Okanogan Highlands in north-central Washington, United States. Oroville is a member municipality of Okanogan County, Washington, situated between Omak and Penticton. The population was 1,686 at the 2010 census.
Tonasket is a city in Okanogan County, Washington, United States. The population was 1,032 at the 2010 census.
The Okanogan National Forest is a U.S. National Forest located in Okanogan County in north-central Washington, United States.
The Okanogan River is a tributary of the Columbia River, approximately 115 mi (185 km) long, in southern British Columbia and north central Washington. It drains a scenic plateau region called the Okanagan Country east of the Cascade Range and north and west of the Columbia, and also the Okanagan region of British Columbia. The Canadian portion of the river has been channelized since the mid-1950s.
The Colville National Forest is a U.S. National Forest located in northeastern Washington state. It is bordered on the west by the Okanogan–Wenatchee National Forest and the Kaniksu National Forest to the east. The forest also borders Little Pend Oreille National Wildlife Refuge and the Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area.
Wenatchee National Forest is a U.S. National Forest located in Washington. With an area of 1,735,394 acres, it extends about 137 miles along the eastern slopes of the Cascade Range of Washington, USA from Okanogan National Forest to Gifford Pinchot National Forest. The forest is located in Chelan, Kittitas and Yakima counties.
Fort Okanogan was founded in 1811 on the confluence of the Okanogan and Columbia Rivers as a fur trade outpost. Originally built for John Jacob Astor’s Pacific Fur Company, it was the first American-owned settlement within Washington state, located in what is now Okanogan County. The North West Company, the PFC's primary competitor, purchased its assets and posts in 1813. In 1821 the North West Company was merged into Hudson's Bay Company, which took over operation of Fort Okanogan as part of its Columbia District. The fort was an important stop on the York Factory Express trade route to London via Hudson Bay.
The Okanagan Highland is an elevated hilly plateau area in British Columbia, Canada, and the U.S. state of Washington. Rounded mountains with elevations up to 8,000 ft (2,400 m) above sea level and deep, narrow valleys are characteristic of the region.
The Okanagan Country, also known as the Okanagan Valley, is a region located in the Canadian province of British Columbia and the U.S. state of Washington, defined by the basin of Okanagan Lake and the Okanagan River. With an estimated 400,000 residents, the Okanagan Country spans from the Thompson Plateau near Grindrod, British Columbia in the Okanagan to the Okanagan Highland near Douglas County, Washington in the Okanogan. The largest city in the Canadian portion is Kelowna, with a metropolitan population of 194,882 residents as of 2016, while the largest city in the American portion is Omak, with 4,881 residents as of 2011. The region took its current name in honor of the Okanagan term, ukʷnaqín. The mild climate and close proximity to lakes, rivers and mountainous regions make the Okanagan Country an outdoor recreational destination. The region's economy is dominated by the primary sector industries of agriculture and forestry, although economic diversification has also occurred with retirement communities and recreational tourism. The American portion is considered to be more remote than the Canadian division, with approximately 10 percent of the population.
State Route 215 (SR 215) is a 6.24-mile long (10.04 km) state highway serving Okanogan County in the U.S. state of Washington. The highway travels northeast parallel to the Okanogan River from SR 20 in Okanogan to SR 155 Spur in Downtown Omak. SR 215 turns east to end at an intersection with SR 20 and U.S. Route 97 (US 97) in North Omak. The highway was previously part of State Road 10 and Primary State Highway 10 (PSH 10), concurrent with US 97, until a bypass of Omak was built in the 1960s. SR 20 was routed onto the highway after the 1964 highway renumbering, but was moved to the bypass and replaced by SR 215 in 1973.
State Route 213 (SR 213) is the shortest state highway in the U.S. state of Washington. The 0.35-mile (0.56 km) long unsigned highway serves Malott, a community in Okanogan County. Extending from U.S. Route 97 (US 97) over the Okanogan River via a bridge to First Avenue in Malott, the roadway is semi-complete, as state law designates that the road should extend to SR 20 southwest of Okanogan. First appearing in a map in 1954, SR 213 originated as a branch of Primary State Highway 16 (PSH 16) in 1959 and later SR 20 Spur in 1964. SR 20 Spur became SR 213 in 1973 because another SR 20 Spur was recently established in Anacortes.
North Star was a sternwheel steamboat that operated in eastern Washington from 1902 to 1904. This vessel should not be confused with the other vessels, some of similar design, also named North Star.
The 2012 Washington wildfires were a series of 1,342 wildfires that burned 259,526 acres (1,050 km2) over the course of 2012. The fires primarily occurred in the Okanogan and Wenatchee National Forests during September and October 2012. A severe lightning storm on September 8 caused hundreds of fires across the east side of Cascade Range. Smoke caused hazardous air quality conditions in the cities of Ellensburg and Wenatchee, and was noticeable in Seattle. The cost of fighting the largest four fires was estimated to be $67.5 million.
North Valley Hospital is a hospital based in Tonasket, Washington, United States, which is a city that is part of the Okanogan region.
The 2015 wildfire season was the largest in Washington state history, with more than one million acres burning across the state from June to September. As many as 3,000 firefighters including 800 Washington National Guard members were deployed to fight the fires. The 17th Field Artillery Brigade of the United States Army also deployed 200 soldiers from Joint Base Lewis–McChord to help fight the fires.
The Okanogan Complex Fire was a wildfire affecting Okanogan County in north-central Washington state. It was composed of five fires that were caused by lightning strikes on August 15, 2015, with two of the fires near Conconully merging days later on August 19. At its peak, it burned over 304,782 acres (123,341 ha) of land and forced the evacuations of numerous towns, including Conconully, Twisp and Winthrop. Over 1,250 firefighters were deployed to the Okanogan Complex. Three United States Forest Service firefighters were killed in an accident near Twisp on August 19. Traditional methods of containing such wildfires, such as creating bulldozer lines, were not readily available due to the irregular terrain and because an inversion layer trapped smoke in the valley, making it difficult to fly in water by helicopter.
References
- ↑ "Three Rivers Hospital". Washington State Hospital Association. Retrieved December 22, 2012.
- ↑ "Deming named hospital employee of the month". Omak-Okanogan County Chronicle . December 19, 2012. Retrieved December 22, 2012.
