Leavenworth Washington HistoryHome of the Bavarian Village and Alpen Rose InnLeavenworth WA USA |
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Home Rooms Rates Packages Amenities Maps Leavenworth History |
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Leavenworth Washington HistoryHome of the Bavarian Village and Alpen Rose InnLeavenworth WA USA |
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Home Rooms Rates Packages Amenities Maps Leavenworth History |
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 Throughout the years Leavenworth
Washington had to change and adapt in order to survive. Long before white settlers
ventured into the American West, the Wenatchi Indians inhabited the Wenatchee Valley from
Steven's Pass to the Columbia River and present-day Wenatchee. But the great
Pacific Northwest beckoned explorers, trappers and a
few settlers who entered the area in the early 1800's. By the mid-1800's settlers were
flooding into the area, and by the end of the century the Wenatchi Indians were all but
gone. In the early 1880's homesteaders staked claims about 10 miles east of Leavenworth
near present-day Cashmere, then known as Mission. Leavenworth, originally known as Icicle,
started out in 1885 when a small group of homesteaders settled where the Wenatchee
and Icicle Rivers meet in the Leavenworth Valley. Known as Icicle Flats, it was the site
of a Wenatchi Indian salmon fishery. By the 1890's settlers were also moving up the
Chumstick Valley and around Lake Wenatchee and Plain, then called Beaver Valley. |
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 As in all parts of this fledgling country, the
railroads brought great change and growth. The Great Northern Railroad began laying
track up the Wenatchee Valley in 1892 along what is now Highway 2, and over Steven's Pass
in 1893, transiting the Cascade Mountains. They constructed a roundhouse, switchyard and division headquarters in Leavenworth, making it
an important rail head. But railroad history shows this was a tough and
dangerous endeavor, and the Pacific Northwest would not be tamed easily.
About 30 miles west of Leavenworth is Stevens Pass and the
8-mile Cascade
Train Tunnel, and nearby
the site of the
original tunnel and
the
March 1, 1910 Wellington Train Disaster,
one of the nation's worst train disasters |
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 The town was platted in 1893 by
the Okanogan Investment Company, and named for its president Captain Charles Leavenworth.
The population at this time was around 700. A dam was constructed in 1904 at the south
edge of town on the Wenatchee River to form a mill pond, and the Lamb-Davis Lumber Company
built a large sawmill. The town was incorporated in April 1906. In the early 1900's the
first fruit trees were planted, and miles of irrigation canals were
constructed developing Leavenworth's agricultural base. Logging and fruit agriculture
are still important industries today. |
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 These
hard times plagued Leavenworth through the 1940s and 1950s. With little hope of an
economic rebound, stores were closing and people were leaving as there were few job
opportunities. However, in 1962 community leaders approached the University of
Washington Bureau of Community Development looking for ways to save the town. Out of this
work came the idea to use the towns' beautiful natural surroundings and a Bavarian theme
to attract visitors to the area. Two of the leaders instrumental in this effort were
Pauline and Owen Watson, longtime residents of Leavenworth who owned and
operated Alpine Electric out of one of the buildings on Front Street. |
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 In
1965 the decision was made by key business owners to adopt the Bavarian theme and remodel
their buildings. Pauline created sketches of some of the storefronts and presented these
ideas to other business owners. An agreement was reached and Project Alpine was formed to
guide the Bavarianization of Leavenworth, with Pauline serving as chairperson for over ten years. In the summer of 1965, Alpine Electric was the first building to be
remodeled into Alpine Electric and the Alpen Haus Gift Shoppe, shown below. |
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 One of the most impressive facts
about this entire project is that it was financed with private money - no federal
assistance at all. Simply dedicated people mortgaging everything they had! The town
underwent an amazing transformation. The first six buildings were remodeled in 1965 and
1966, and the others soon followed. Autumn Leaf Festival and the Christmas Lighting were
introduced in the mid 1960's, and the Maifest in 1971. Art in the Park and Amberleaf
Theater began soon after, and Leavenworth was on its way to what you see today - a premier
destination for family vacations, holidays, recreation and getaways. |
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| P.S. It snowed a lot more in the old days, too! | |
Alpen
Rose Inn |
800-582-2474 |
The triple-industry economy was very prosperous, and Leavenworth
became a boom town with a questionable reputation. Its population rose to around 5,500
(today it's about 2,100) and it boasted numerous brothels, and even more saloons. However,
the good fortune crashed as fast as the stock market. In the 1920s the two biggest sources
of revenue disappeared almost overnight. In 1922 the Great Northern Railroad
moved its roundhouse and headquarters to Wenatchee, and rerouted the rail
line from the steep and dangerous Tumwater Canyon to the Chumstick Valley,
by-passing Leavenworth. With no easy access to the railroad, the sawmill closed
in 1926 and the lumber company headed
for more profitable areas. With the stock market crash of 1929 and the
Great Depression of the 1930's, followed by the war years, Leavenworth's economy spiraled
downward. 
