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History · La Conner

La Conner dates to 1867, and 28% of its homes were built before 1940

1 place in town is on the National Register, among them a historic district with 29 buildings. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1890.

1867founded
1on the National Register
28%homes built before 1940
6old photos & papers
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From La Conner’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How La Conner began

When was La Conner founded?

1867

La Conner dates its founding to 1867 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1890.

First census: 398 in 18902020 census: 965159 years
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1870.The full story ↓

What stands out about La Conner’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

Mapped building by building7 fire insurance maps, 1885 to 1929, drew every building in La Conner.A historic districtThe La Conner Historic District takes in 29 historic buildings.
★ What stands out · Every building

La Conner, building by building, 1885–1929

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

La Conner fire insurance map, 1885, sheet 11885Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

On the National Register

1 listing protects 29 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
29
each building in a district counts
first listed
1974
La Conner Historic District
La Conner Historic District
Districts

Architectural styles listings

False Front1
Saltbox1
Late Victorian1
All 1 listings
La Conner Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1974

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

The story

How La Conner came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of La Conner.

Read it all →

La Conner was first settled in May 1867 by Alonzo Low and was then known by its post office name, Swinomish. Its location on the Swinomish channel was an ideal safe harbor for ships. In 1869, J.S. Conner bought the settlement's trading post and in 1870 had the name changed to honor his wife, Louisa Ann Conner. The French-appearing "La" represented her first and middle initials. When Skagit County was created out of Whatcom County in 1883, La Conner was chosen as the county seat, but would only hold that designation until November 1884 when the seat was moved to Mount Vernon.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

La Conner, 1867 to 1940

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1867
    FoundingLa Conner is established
  3. 1870Post officeThe Laconner post office opens
  4. 1889In the archiveLa Conner, Washington, 1889
  5. 1890In the archiveBaptism, La Conner, Washington, ca. 1890
  6. 1893Born hereAnnie May Hurd Karrer is born here
  7. 20th century
  8. 1902In the archiveSilver Cornet Band, La Conner, Washington, ca. 1902
  9. 1918Born hereJoe Shell is born here
  10. 1940On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

La Conner, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1880s to the 1900s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1880s–1900s6 items
La Conner, Washington, 18891889La Conner, Washington, 1889La Conner, Washington, circa 1889c. 1889La Conner, Washington, circa 1889Baptism, La Conner, Washington, ca. 1890c. 1890Baptism, La Conner, Washington, ca. 1890La Conner viewed from the Swinomish Channel, Washington, 18901890La Conner viewed from the Swinomish Channel, Washingt…Silver Cornet Band, La Conner, Washington, ca. 1902c. 1902Silver Cornet Band, La Conner, Washington, ca. 1902Gillnetters in boats waiting at the side of Swinomish Channel, La Connerc. 1903Gillnetters in boats waiting at the side of Swinomish…
1910s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
On the map

La Conner on the map, 1940 to 1998

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of La Conner. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

La Conner on the 1940 USGS mapLa Conner on the 1973 USGS mapLa Conner on the 1998 USGS map1940Mt Vernon sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of La Conner.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

La Conner, Washington, 1889
Retake this viewLa Conner, Washington, 1889, 1889

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on La Conner’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

La Conner, census by census

02004006008001,0001900192019401960198020002020965

Grew from 398 people in 1890 to 965 in 2020.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on La Conner’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

2 famous people were born in La Conner

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Annie May Hurd KarrerAmerican botanist · b. 1893
J
Joe ShellAmerican politician · b. 1918
Help out

Finish La Conner’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewLa Conner, Washington, 1889: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about La Conner’s history

What year was La Conner founded?

In 1867, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. La Conner’s post office opened in 1870, and the census of 1890 counted 398 people here.

What is on the National Register in La Conner?

One place: the La Conner Historic District (listed 1974).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (6), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.