Cathlamet

Cathlamet was historically one of the largest native American villages of the Columbia River area west of the Cascade Mountains. This village of cedar houses included 300-400 inhabitants when visited by Lewis and Clark. In 1846, James Birnie became the first permanent white settler at Cathlamet, moving there after a career with the Hudson's Bay Company. He set up a trading post, remnants of which were reported still standing in 1906. Cathlamet was officially incorporated on February 18, 1907. In 1938, the Julia Butler Hansen Bridge was built to carry what is now State Route 409 across the Columbia River's Cathlamet Channel to Puget Island.