Kittitas, Washington
Encyclopedia
Kittitas is a city in Kittitas County, Washington, United States
. The population was 1,381 at the 2010 census.
There are numerous interpretations of the name, which is from the language of the Kittitas American Indian
language. According to one source, it "has been said to mean everything from 'white chalk
' to 'shale
rock' to 'shoal
people' to 'land of plenty'. Most anthropologists and historian
s concede that each interpretation has some validity depending upon the particular dialect
spoken."
The History of Kittitas and the Milwaukee Road
Kittitas was constructed as part of the westward expansion of the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul, and Pacific Railroad, the Kittitas Yard and Depot Became the center of the community of Kittitas: one of the many small, agricultural towns that sprang up along the railroad lines. The railroad linked Kittitas to other small communities and the rest of the country, providing farmers and business people a way to sell their products in other towns and cities.
A post office, general merchandise and drug store, a Baptist Church, agricultural warehouses, and other small businesses were built around the small depot. Along with the depot, the Kittitas Yard included storage and maintenance buildings, a water tower, and other structures necessary for the maintenance of a major transcontinental railroad.
The depot is the only significant structure still intact at the Kittitas Yard. It is an excellent example of turn-of-the-century railroad architecture, and as such was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1992. The depot is owned and managed by the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission.
The Milwaukee Road, the popular name for the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul, and Pacific Railroad, was founded in 1847 to serve the area from Mississippi to Wisconsin. Within 50 years, it became one of the most prosperous railroads in the country.
In 1905, Milwaukee Road officials began expanding west, running lines from Chicago to Seattle. At the same time, they decided to electrify the lines through the western mountains, to increase operating efficiency.
Despite the increased efficiency, the financial stability of the railroad began to crumble, prompted by the high cost of the western expansion, electrical expenses, and competition with other railroads and ships using the newly-opened Panama Canal. In 1980, the last Milwaukee train traveled over the Cascades and thereafter the system served only the Midwest.
The Milwaukee Road once served as a vital link, providing economic and social connections between small, scattered communities in Washington. Today, it is once more a link between these many communities though rather than riding the rails, people now hike, bike, or ride horses along this route.
Stretching more than 250 miles from Cedar Falls near North Bend to Tekos at the Idaho Border, the John Wayne Pioneer Trail passes through tunnels, over mountains, along rivers and lakes, and through dry, sagebrush countryside.
info obtained from www.cityofkittitas.com/history
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the city has a total area of 0.6 square miles (1.6 km²), all of it land.
As of the census
of 2000, there were 1,105 people, 443 households, and 295 families residing in the city. The population density
was 1,813.7 people per square mile (699.4/km²). There were 510 housing units at an average density of 837.1 per square mile (322.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 92.13% White, 0.63% African American, 1.18% Native American, 0.09% Asian, 0.18% Pacific Islander, 4.62% from other races
, and 1.18% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 11.58% of the population.
There were 443 households out of which 34.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.4% were married couples
living together, 11.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.4% were non-families. 27.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.02.
In the city the population was spread out with 29.1% under the age of 18, 9.8% from 18 to 24, 30.3% from 25 to 44, 19.8% from 45 to 64, and 11.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 94.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.2 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $26,985, and the median income for a family was $31,382. Males had a median income of $29,803 versus $20,563 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $11,589. About 18.2% of families and 24.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 29.2% of those under age 18 and 11.4% of those age 65 or over.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 1,381 at the 2010 census.
There are numerous interpretations of the name, which is from the language of the Kittitas American Indian
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
language. According to one source, it "has been said to mean everything from 'white chalk
Chalk
Chalk is a soft, white, porous sedimentary rock, a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite. Calcite is calcium carbonate or CaCO3. It forms under reasonably deep marine conditions from the gradual accumulation of minute calcite plates shed from micro-organisms called coccolithophores....
' to 'shale
Shale
Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock composed of mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals and tiny fragments of other minerals, especially quartz and calcite. The ratio of clay to other minerals is variable. Shale is characterized by breaks along thin laminae or parallel layering...
rock' to 'shoal
Shoal
Shoal, shoals or shoaling may mean:* Shoal, a sandbank or reef creating shallow water, especially where it forms a hazard to shipping* Shoal draught , of a boat with shallow draught which can pass over some shoals: see Draft...
people' to 'land of plenty'. Most anthropologists and historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
s concede that each interpretation has some validity depending upon the particular dialect
Dialect
The term dialect is used in two distinct ways, even by linguists. One usage refers to a variety of a language that is a characteristic of a particular group of the language's speakers. The term is applied most often to regional speech patterns, but a dialect may also be defined by other factors,...
spoken."
History
Kittitas was established in 1889 it was officially incorporated on December 9, 1931.The History of Kittitas and the Milwaukee Road
Kittitas was constructed as part of the westward expansion of the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul, and Pacific Railroad, the Kittitas Yard and Depot Became the center of the community of Kittitas: one of the many small, agricultural towns that sprang up along the railroad lines. The railroad linked Kittitas to other small communities and the rest of the country, providing farmers and business people a way to sell their products in other towns and cities.
A post office, general merchandise and drug store, a Baptist Church, agricultural warehouses, and other small businesses were built around the small depot. Along with the depot, the Kittitas Yard included storage and maintenance buildings, a water tower, and other structures necessary for the maintenance of a major transcontinental railroad.
The depot is the only significant structure still intact at the Kittitas Yard. It is an excellent example of turn-of-the-century railroad architecture, and as such was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1992. The depot is owned and managed by the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission.
The Milwaukee Road, the popular name for the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul, and Pacific Railroad, was founded in 1847 to serve the area from Mississippi to Wisconsin. Within 50 years, it became one of the most prosperous railroads in the country.
In 1905, Milwaukee Road officials began expanding west, running lines from Chicago to Seattle. At the same time, they decided to electrify the lines through the western mountains, to increase operating efficiency.
Despite the increased efficiency, the financial stability of the railroad began to crumble, prompted by the high cost of the western expansion, electrical expenses, and competition with other railroads and ships using the newly-opened Panama Canal. In 1980, the last Milwaukee train traveled over the Cascades and thereafter the system served only the Midwest.
The Milwaukee Road once served as a vital link, providing economic and social connections between small, scattered communities in Washington. Today, it is once more a link between these many communities though rather than riding the rails, people now hike, bike, or ride horses along this route.
Stretching more than 250 miles from Cedar Falls near North Bend to Tekos at the Idaho Border, the John Wayne Pioneer Trail passes through tunnels, over mountains, along rivers and lakes, and through dry, sagebrush countryside.
info obtained from www.cityofkittitas.com/history
Geography
Kittitas is located at 46°59′2"N 120°25′6"W (46.983821, -120.418284).According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the city has a total area of 0.6 square miles (1.6 km²), all of it land.
Demographics
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 1,105 people, 443 households, and 295 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 1,813.7 people per square mile (699.4/km²). There were 510 housing units at an average density of 837.1 per square mile (322.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 92.13% White, 0.63% African American, 1.18% Native American, 0.09% Asian, 0.18% Pacific Islander, 4.62% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 1.18% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 11.58% of the population.
There were 443 households out of which 34.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.4% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 11.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.4% were non-families. 27.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.02.
In the city the population was spread out with 29.1% under the age of 18, 9.8% from 18 to 24, 30.3% from 25 to 44, 19.8% from 45 to 64, and 11.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 94.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.2 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $26,985, and the median income for a family was $31,382. Males had a median income of $29,803 versus $20,563 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $11,589. About 18.2% of families and 24.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 29.2% of those under age 18 and 11.4% of those age 65 or over.