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CHistory
History · Washougal

Washougal’s post office opened in 1852

More historic than 25% of U.S. towns · #153 of 285 in Washington. What drives it

Most of Washougal was built recently: 8% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1999. Below: maps from 1914 on and the census since 1910.

1852first post office
0on the National Register
8%homes built before 1940
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Jared Adams · CC BY 3.0
Quick answers

How Washougal began, and where its name came from

When was Washougal founded?

1852

The Washougal post office opened in 1852, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 456 in 19102020 census: 17,039174 years

How did Washougal get its name?

The name Washougal originated from a Chinookan term of disputed meaning that was recorded by fur trader Alexander Ross in 1811 as "Wasough-ally"; other variants included "Washougally", "Washougally Camp", "Wa-Shu-Go", and "Washookal".

How historic is Washougal?

C

More historic than 25% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Washougal post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Washougal’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Washougal is more historic than 25% of U.S. towns, #153 of 285 in Washington. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.

C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Washougal’s overall grade.
Founding era1852, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 19407.7% of homes (±2.2) · typical WA town 4.3% · U.S. 8.4%C+National RegisterNo listings counted · typical WA town 0.1 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 25%
NewerOlder
Washington towns of 2,500+ (285)Ahead of 46%

Few Washington towns list much on the Register (a typical Washington town has 0.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Washougal’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (27% of Washington towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to C. The pre-1940 share (±2.2 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.

Founding year: the first post office (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Washougal’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Washougal are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Mapped building by building3 fire insurance maps, 1914 to 1929, drew every building in Washougal.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Washougal’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Washougal’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Every building

Washougal, building by building, 1914–1929

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.

Washougal fire insurance map, 1914, sheet 11914Sheet 1 of 2
Edition
BrickWoodStone

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

The story

How Washougal came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Washougal.

Read it all →

The area around present-day Washougal was originally home to the Watlala, an indigenous Chinookan-speaking group with settlements along the Columbia River. Among the first non-indigenous people to visit the area were the Corps of Discovery led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark in 1805 and 1806; they camped near the Washougal River during their return voyage in April 1806 and tentatively named it the "Seal River" and "Seacalf River" due to the number of seals they observed in the river.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Washougal, decade by decade

Today11 recent
Washougal Harbor, Washington - Flickr - Bonnie Moreland (free images)2021Washougal Harbor, Washington - Flickr - Bonnie Morela…Washougal City Hall, October 20202020Washougal City Hall, October 2020Aerial view of the hilly countryside near the Columbia River, near the Vancouver, Washington, suburb of Washougal2018Aerial view of the hilly countryside near the Columbi…Industrial complex in the Vancouver, Washington, suburb of Washougal, on the Washougal River, a tributary of the Columb…2018Industrial complex in the Vancouver, Washington, subu…Industrial complex in the Vancouver, Washington, suburb of Washougal, on the Washougal River, a tributary of the Columb…2018Industrial complex in the Vancouver, Washington, subu…Washougal, WA-Evergreen Way2008Washougal, WA-Evergreen WayWashougal, WA, Evergreen Way and SR 14, 20082008Washougal, WA, Evergreen Way and SR 14, 2008Lumber mill2008Lumber millDowntown Washougal, Washington 022008Downtown Washougal, Washington 02Downtown Washougal, Washington 012008Downtown Washougal, Washington 01Acheson Building2006Acheson Building
On the map

Washougal on the map, 1941 to 1994

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

Washougal on the 1941 USGS mapWashougal on the 1954 USGS mapWashougal on the 1961 USGS mapWashougal on the 1970 USGS mapWashougal on the 1994 USGS map1941Camas 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 Washougal.

People over time

Washougal, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,00014,00016,00018,00019201940196019802000202017,039

Grew from 456 people in 1910 to 17,039 in 2020, more than tenfold.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Washougal

Nobody well known was born in Washougal itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Linus PaulingAmerican scientist · b. 1901
Douglas EngelbartAmerican engineer and inventor · b. 1925
Matt GroeningAmerican cartoonist · b. 1954
Mary E. BrunkowAmerican molecular biologist and immunologist · b. 1961
John ReedAmerican journalist, poet, and communist activi… · b. 1887
Dick FosburyAmerican athletics competitor, high jumper · b. 1947
Places that used to be

Old corners and burying grounds

Washougal’s post office has been open since 1852.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Parkersville
1cemetery inside Washougal
Washougal Memorial

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Camas4 historic placesB−

Questions about Washougal’s history

What year was Washougal founded?

The Washougal post office opened in 1852, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Washougal rank for history?

Washougal is more historic than 25% of U.S. towns, #153 of 285 in Washington. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

How old are the homes in Washougal?

8% of Washougal’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.2 points), against a typical 4.3% for a Washington town; the median home was built in 1999.

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).

From Wikimedia Commons (8), the Library of Congress (3), Wikipedia, 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.