Whitstran, Washington

Last updated
Whitstran, Washington
Whitstran Spur
Unincorporated community

Whitstran Washington - looking east - July 2013.JPG

Looking east in Whitstran.
Benton County Washington Incorporated and Unincorporated areas.svg
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Whitstran, Washington
Location of Whitstran, Washington
Coordinates: 46°14′07″N119°42′20″W / 46.2354111°N 119.7055870°W / 46.2354111; -119.7055870 Coordinates: 46°14′07″N119°42′20″W / 46.2354111°N 119.7055870°W / 46.2354111; -119.7055870 [1]
Country United States
State Washington
County Benton
Elevation 679 ft (207 m)
Time zone Pacific (PST) (UTC-8)
 • Summer (DST) PDT (UTC-7)
ZIP code 99350
Area code(s) 509
FIPS code 53-78540
GNIS feature ID 1512805 [2]
1915 topographical map depicting previous place name of Valley Heights 1915 USGS Topo Prosser.jpg
1915 topographical map depicting previous place name of Valley Heights
1926 Road map 1926 Automobile Roads-Horse Heaven Quadrangle.jpg
1926 Road map

Whitstran is a small, unincorporated community in Benton County, Washington, located approximately four miles Northeast of Prosser and approximately ten miles west of Benton City. The focal point of the community is at the intersection of North Rothrock Road and Foisy Road, where there is a small grocery store, and nearby Whitstran Elementary School.

Unincorporated area Region of land not governed by own local government

In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not governed by a local municipal corporation; similarly an unincorporated community is a settlement that is not governed by its own local municipal corporation, but rather is administered as part of larger administrative divisions, such as a township, parish, borough, county, city, canton, state, province or country. Occasionally, municipalities dissolve or disincorporate, which may happen if they become fiscally insolvent, and services become the responsibility of a higher administration. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. In most other countries of the world, there are either no unincorporated areas at all, or these are very rare; typically remote, outlying, sparsely populated or uninhabited areas.

Benton County, Washington County in the United States

Benton County is a county in the south-central portion of the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2010 census, its population was 175,177. The county seat is Prosser, and its largest city is Kennewick. The Columbia River demarcates the county's north, south, and east boundaries.

Prosser, Washington City in Washington, United States

Prosser is a city in and the county seat of Benton County, Washington, United States, along the Yakima River with only one zip code 99350. The population was 5,714 at the 2010 census.

Contents

History

The settlement of Valley Heights originated in 1907 when Seattle developer Charles Jorgen Smith, purchased property in present-day Whitstran, which became known as Valley Heights Orchard Tracts. [3] It was also called Swede Settlement for a time because of a number of Scandinavians who purchased property in the area. A rail line was built in 1911 and a town site was platted by Mary Biggam. By 1919 the community began to be known as Whitstran and the name Valley Heights eventually faded from use. [4]

The community's name was changed to Whitstran by the Northern Pacific Railway in honor of two retired railroad nurses, Laura Whitaker and May A. Strangeways, who were cousins who developed a small acreage nearby. [5]

Northern Pacific Railway transport company

The Northern Pacific Railway was a transcontinental railroad that operated across the northern tier of the western United States, from Minnesota to the Pacific Northwest. It was approved by Congress in 1864 and given nearly forty million acres of land grants, which it used to raise money in Europe for construction.

Another source indicates that the town was named by the North Yakima and Valley Railway Company in honor of a landowner from whom a right-of-way had been acquired. The railway station was previously known as Whitstran Spur. [6]

E.W. Fry built the first store in Whitstran in 1916. Jim McCorkle has owned the store, now known as McCorkle's, since 1993. Previously it was known as Blake's Corner Market and Whitstran Trading Company. [7]

In the 1950s, a new school replaced the previous one room school. [7] The school is now Whitstran Elementary School.

Schools

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References

  1. ↑ "Whitstran". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey . Retrieved 2012-10-29.
  2. ↑ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  3. ↑ Bagley, Clarence (1916). History of Seattle from the earliest settlement to the present time (Volume 3). Chicago, IL: S.J. Clarke Publishing Company.
  4. ↑ Davis; Bergum. "Washington Place Names database". p. 73. Retrieved 13 July 2011.
  5. ↑ Davis; Bergum. "Washington Place Names database". pp. 80–81. Retrieved 13 July 2011.
  6. ↑ "Station Roster Master List: Whitstran". Northern Pacific Railway Historic Association. Retrieved 13 July 2011.
  7. 1 2 Courtney, Ross (March 28, 2004). "Not Much Left for Whitstran but the Stores". Yakima-Herald Republic. Retrieved 13 July 2011.
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