Ilwaco, Washington is located on the very southwest corner of the Evergreen State. Surrounded by Baker Bay, the Columbia River and the Pacific Ocean, Ilwaco forms the base of the Long Beach Peninsula. Ilwaco is rich both in history and in contemporary offerings.

The beginnings of Ilwaco's rich history can be traced to the Native Americans who lived here long before the white man came west. The Ilwaco Indians were a peaceful tribe who spoke the language of the nearby Chinook Indians. Ilwaco was named for Elowahka Jim, a local Native American resident and son-in-law of Chinook Chief Concomoly.

The Holman family, whom you will meet later in this story, was influential in Christianizing the Elowahka family and instructing them in many of the "niceties of living," including the making of bread. All the whites spoke well of Elowahka. One of the early family members wrote in a letter, "I imagine he (Elowahka) was about 50 years old when I first saw him. He was a jovial man, always laughing and playing harmless jokes. The Chinooks are not a silent, suspicious, taciturn people. They are friendly, kind folks, and I have never heard white people indulge in such hearty laughter as they. They are strictly honest."

But, jolly or not, some of Elowahka's ways were difficult for the settlers to go along with. When Elowahka fathered a child by his 15-year-old slave, a settler said, "I took Jim to task over the affair, but it seems nothing can be done about the situation as according to an old tribal custom, it is entirely proper."

Another "old tribal custom" that many took exception to was the flattening of the infant's head. In old tribal organization, the children in the Chinook chief's family had their heads flattened. Whether it was the importuning of the locals or the fact that Elowahka Jim was not a chief and the mother of the child was a mere slave, the "baby grew up with a head that was all round as nature had fashioned it."

In other early references to Elowahka, he is described as a "kind old man and a famous sturgeon fisherman." He always referred to the community as his Elowahka Ranch. Elowahka Jim, like many Chinook Indians, had Indian slaves and early white settlers hired them to work for him.

The first white people to come to the area were probably the Spanish or Portugese. English and French explorers soon followed. The main attraction of these first voyagers was the thought of gold and other treasures. The English, French and Spanish came later with the idea of finding the "River of the West" which they hoped would connect the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean.

The first settlers in this area came primarily from the mid-west and the east coast. These people were drawn from their homes by the rich furs, free land, rich soil, vast forests and plentiful sea life. Among the first Americans to visit in our area were Lewis & Clark along with their Corps of Discovery, and the John Jacob Astor party, both in the early 1800's. Later, foreign people from the "old country" (Scandinavia) started for the west, drawn by the prospect of free land, good fishing, hunting and lumber. Other famous persons venturing through Ilwaco during its early years include Captain Robert Gray, Captain Cook, John Meares and Captain John Vancouver.

Ilwaco's recorded history begins in the late 1840's. In 1849 Dr. Elijah White decided a place near Cape Disappointment could be built into a future metropolis. Pacific City, as the original settlement was called, at that time gave promise of being the principal city for the Pacific Northwest, if not the coast. Early settler John Holman bought a "Large hotel...fully equipped" and had it transported from San Francisco, California to Pacific City. It cost him $28,000; $8,000 of which was for shipping.

Unfortunately, in 1852, President Millard Fillmore, "Under an act of Congress authorizing the President to make reservations for military purposes, of 640 acres", ordered to be made what is now the Fort Canby Reservation. This took all the town site, bringing an end to Pacific City.

Soon after the Fort Canby military reservation was made, Mr. Holman moved to his donation land claim, east of Pacific City, and completed the necessary years of residence and cultivation under the Oregon Donation Law. He built his new home on a stretch of open prairie land. The site is about one-half block east of what is now First Avenue, between Main and Spruce Streets in Ilwaco. Soldiers from Fort Canby later burned down the hotel. Circumstances were not explained.

At one time, Ilwaco had a tough reputation because of the gillnet wars fought from 1884 to 1910. Gillnet and trap fishermen fought with a vengeance over fishing ground rights...sometimes to the death.

During World War II, the area was heavily stationed with military personnel guarding the coast in case of an enemy invasion. U.S. Coast Guard Station Cape Disappointment, which is still in operation, conducts a very active Motor LifeBoat School.

The town was founded around 1848 and incorporated in 1890. On July 13, 1987, Ilwaco officially left behind its days as a town and became a city.