Editing Chehalis, Washington (section)

==History==
Chehalis began as a settlement around a warehouse beside a railroad track in 1873, when the [[Northern Pacific Railroad]] built northward from [[Kalama, Washington|Kalama]] to [[Tacoma, Washington|Tacoma]].  Northern Pacific's decision bypassed the town of Claquato, then the county seat.  This allowed Chehalis, in 1874, to become the central location for Lewis County government.<ref name="RHC"/> That same year, a store was added to the warehouse, and a courthouse and several houses were constructed.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ci.chehalis.wa.us/sites/default/files/fileattachments/Chehalis%20History%20on-line_0.pdf|title=History of Chehalis, Washington|publisher=City of Chehalis|access-date=June 28, 2020|archive-date=June 30, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200630153017/https://www.ci.chehalis.wa.us/sites/default/files/fileattachments/Chehalis%20History%20on-line_0.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> Chehalis was incorporated on November 23, 1883.<ref name="CTHHL"/>

[[Logging]] soon began in the nearby forests. Lumber workers of Scandinavian, [[English people|English]], and [[Scotch-Irish American|Scots-Irish]] descent arrived and settled in the neighboring valleys.<ref>{{cite news|date=1909|title=The City of Chehalis, County Seat of Lewis County, State of Washington|publisher=Chehalis Bee-Nugget|language=en}}</ref> In 1940, the chief local industries were dairying, poultry raising, fruit growing, milk condensing, fruit and vegetable packing, brick and tile manufacturing, coal mining, portable house manufacturing, and fern shipping.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Tenlen |first1=Jenny |title=Chehalis History |url=https://jtenlen.drizzlehosting.com/walewis/chehalis.html |website=Lewis Co., WA GenWeb Project |access-date=May 9, 2021 |archive-date=May 9, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210509234713/https://jtenlen.drizzlehosting.com/walewis/chehalis.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

During World War II, Chehalis was home to a [[Boeing]] manufacturing plant. The factory was responsible for producing wing parts for airplanes, particularly for [[B-17]] and [[B-29]] bombers. The plant, which received Boeing's excellence pennant, existed between 1943 and 1945 and was located in the Harry B. Quick building. Built in the mid-1920s, it has been owned by the Lewis County Public Utilities District since the early 1940s. A plaque, installed on the exterior of the building in 2005 on the 60th anniversary of the war's end, honors the workers of the Boeing manufactory, of which 70% were [[Rosie the Riveter]]s.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Sexton |first1=Owen |title=Gathering marks 80th anniversary of war era Boeing plant in Chehalis |url=https://www.chronline.com/stories/gathering-marks-80th-anniversary-of-war-era-boeing-plant-in-chehalis,329493 |access-date=November 20, 2023 |work=The Chronicle |date=November 17, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Farley |first1=Glenn |title=Boeing's forgotten World War II factories |url=https://www.king5.com/article/tech/science/aerospace/boeings-forgotten-world-war-ii-factories/281-48240553 |access-date=February 26, 2024 |work=King 5 News (Seattle, Washington) |date=November 11, 2015}}</ref>

The city, known for its flooding events, suffered damages and hardship during other natural disasters and severe weather events. A report in the aftermath of the [[1949 Olympia earthquake]] listed that approximately 40% of local Chehalis businesses and homes were damaged, including a tally of over 1,300 chimneys.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Lange |first1=Greg |title=Earthquake hits Puget Sound area on April 13, 1949 |url=https://www.historylink.org/File/2063 |website=History Link |access-date=August 21, 2023 |date=January 1, 2000}}</ref> One Chehalis resident was reported as injured and the Green Hill School, which lost the use of four buildings, recorded $2 million in damages.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Jones |first1=Pat |title=1949 Was Earth-Shaking, Heart-Breaking Time Here |url=https://www.chronline.com/stories/1949-was-earth-shaking-heart-breaking-time-here,213996? |access-date=August 21, 2023 |work=The Chronicle |date=February 17, 2007}}</ref> The high school and the West Side School were destroyed; neither was rebuilt.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Jones |first1=Pat |title=Florence Kennicott Lived a Colorful Life |url=https://newspaperarchive.com/us/washington/centralia/centralia-chronicle/2007/03-31/page-3/ |access-date=August 21, 2021 |work=The Chronicle |date=March 31, 2007 |page=A3}}</ref> Chehalis was also hit hard during the [[Hanukkah Eve windstorm of 2006]], with the interstate closed south of the city due to fallen trees.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Sistek |first1=Scott |title=Dec. 14-15, 2006: Historic Hanukkah Eve windstorm pummeled Western Washington |url=https://komonews.com/weather/seattle-weather-history/10-years-ago-today-historic-hanukkah-eve-windstorm-pummeled-western-washington# |access-date=November 14, 2023 |work=KOMO 4 News |date=December 14, 2016 |quote=Article contains a copy of a live blog during the storm and an original Associated Press article from December 15, 2006}}</ref>

A vessel in the [[United States Navy]], the gunboat [[USS Chehalis (PGM-94)|USS ''Chehalis'' (PGM-94)]], was named in honor of the city.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Francis |first1=Timothy L. |title=Chehalis II (PG-94) |url=https://www.history.navy.mil/content/history/nhhc/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/c/chehalis--pg-94--1969.html |website=Naval History and Heritage Command |publisher=U.S. Navy - Director of Naval History |access-date=August 12, 2021}}</ref>

===Flooding===
{{main|Flood history in Chehalis, Washington}}
Due to Chehalis being located near several large rivers and resting in a valley, heavy rains and snowmelt has led the city to experience numerous historic flooding events,<ref>{{cite news |author1=David Kroman |author2=Hal Bernton |title=Residents fight to keep waters at bay in Chehalis area, where threat of floods is a constant |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/weather/residents-fight-to-keep-waters-at-bay-in-chehalis-area-where-threat-of-floods-is-a-constant/ |access-date=May 7, 2024 |work=The Seattle Times |date=January 7, 2022}}</ref> often recorded between November and February.

Historical accounts and spiritual lessons passed down in the history of Native American people living in and around the Chehalis River tell of major floods in the basin.<ref name="FNAL">{{cite news |author1=Julie McDonald |author2=Edna Fund |title=From Native American Legends to 2007: A History of Flooding in the Chehalis River Basin |url=https://www.chronline.com/stories/from-native-american-legends-to-2007-a-history-of-flooding-in-the-chehalis-river-basin,21216? |access-date=July 26, 2023 |work=The Chronicle |date=December 6, 2017 |quote=Article a copy from the book "The Flood of 2007: Disaster and Survival on the Chehalis River"}}</ref> The first record of a flood, when the community known as Saundersville was settled, was in 1865.<ref name="IOAC"/>{{rp|45}} The first newspaper accounting of floods mention events in 1887 and 1897 that disrupted sawmill operations and river and railroad traffic.<ref name="FNAL"/> 

The 20th century recorded over two dozen notable flooding events in and around the Chehalis community. The earliest recordings of floods are from 1906, 1909, and 1910, with major floods in 1915 and 1919. Chehalis, which was submerged in a month-long rain event, broke flood records in 1933 and moderate floods followed later in the decade. A 1948 weather pattern, a widespread disaster for the state, led to flooding in Chehalis. Heavy rains in the early-to-mid 1950s bought moderate floodwaters.<ref name="FNAL"/>

The [[Christmas flood of 1964]] led to widespread floodwaters in 1965. A record-setting flood occurred in 1972, submerging the interstate for the first time in the city. The Chehalis River crested twice in January 1974, causing $10 million in losses. A major flood disaster developed in 1986 after {{convert|8|in|cm}} of rainfall over several days that led to the submerging of the fairgrounds and a contamination spill at a closed industrial site near Millett Field. The highway was covered with floodwaters again during a major flood disaster 1990. A [[100-year flood]] occurred in February 1996,<ref name="SFHS">{{cite news |author1=Emily Fitzgerald |author2=Eric Rosane |title=So Far 120 Homes, Structures Reporting Damage Totaling at Least $2 Million From January Flooding |url=https://www.chronline.com/stories/so-far-120-homes-structures-reporting-damage-totaling-at-least-2-million-from-january-flooding,283395 |access-date=July 17, 2023 |work=The Chronicle |date=January 26, 2022}}</ref> with the Chehalis and Skookumchuck rivers setting flood stage records. A state of emergency was declared and I-5 was closed for four days.<ref name="FNAL"/><ref name="AABAD">{{cite news |last1=Yardley |first1=William |title=Anger and blame after deadly flood in Northwest |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/03/world/americas/03iht-03flood.9002047.html |access-date=February 26, 2024 |work=The New York Times |date=January 3, 2008}}</ref>

The city in the 21st century has had several floods of various levels including a record flood that closed the interstate in the town in December 2007 due to the [[Great Coastal Gale of 2007]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Floodwaters linger in Washington, Oregon |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna22082408 |access-date=July 17, 2023 |work=NBC News |agency=Associated Press |date=December 3, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Northwest floods likened to Mount St. Helens |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna22128563 |access-date=July 17, 2023 |work=NBC News |agency=Associated Press |date=December 6, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=van Schagen |first1=Sarah |title=Massive flooding in western Washington linked to man-made causes |url=https://grist.org/article/playing-the-blame-game/ |access-date=July 17, 2023 |work=Grist |date=January 10, 2009}}</ref> Another major flood materialized over a year later in January 2009, immersing several regions within Chehalis, and I-5 and railroads were shut down once again.<ref>{{cite news |title=Roads slowly reopen in storm-hit Washington |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna28541070 |access-date=July 17, 2023 |work=NBC News |agency=Associated Press |date=January 7, 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Northwest floods close roads, stall commerce |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna28578505 |access-date=July 17, 2023 |work=NBC News |agency=Associated Press |date=January 9, 2009}}</ref> Less severe floods transpired during record daily rainfalls in 2010,<ref>{{cite news |title=Storms bring flood threat to Wash., Ore. rivers |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna40630310 |access-date=July 17, 2023 |work=NBC News |agency=Associated Press |date=December 12, 2010}}</ref> 2012,<ref>{{cite news |author1=NBC News staff and news services |title=Storm slams Pacific Northwest with record rain, wind; at least one dead |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/storm-slams-pacific-northwest-record-rain-wind-least-one-dead-flna1c7165140 |access-date=July 17, 2023 |work=NBC News |date=November 20, 2012}}</ref> and 2015.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Chen |first1=Natasha |title=Water surrounds homes in Southwestern Washington, more rain expected |url=https://www.kiro7.com/news/water-surrounds-homes-southwestern-washington-more/19124769/ |access-date=July 17, 2023 |work=KIRO 7 News |date=December 10, 2015}}</ref> A stretch of I-5 between Chehalis and Centralia was closed for several hours after a major flood in January 2022.<ref name="LCHH">{{cite news |last1=Horne |first1=Deborah |title=Lewis County hard hit by flooding |url=https://www.kiro7.com/news/local/flooding-closes-20-mile-stretch-i-5-lewis-county/VYEBKRY3GZEB7KMTPGFODCTXWE/ |access-date=July 17, 2023 |work=KIRO 7 News |date=January 7, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author1=Antonio Planas |author2=Phil Helsel |title=Flooding in Washington state shuts down interstate, forces evacuations |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/rising-floodwaters-prompt-closing-interstate-closure-evaucations-washi-rcna11413 |access-date=July 17, 2023 |work=NBC News |date=January 7, 2022}}</ref>

===Hate crimes and supremacy===
Chehalis has not been immune to a history of hate crimes, racism, and white supremacy groups. An article written in the Chehalis Bee-Nugget newspaper from 1909 details a letter from a Black man who considered Chehalis a "white man's city" and would not move to the town. While the piece mentions that the people of Chehalis have not exhibited hostilities towards non-White people, the editorial does report that a Black family has never resided in the city while also acknowledging a lack of representation for citizens of Asian heritage.<ref>{{cite news |title=This Is No Place For... |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aUxUAAAAIBAJ |access-date=November 21, 2023 |work=The Chehalis Bee-Nugget |date=November 26, 1909 |page=9}}</ref> At the beginning of the 1910 [[Chehalis Gophers]] baseball season, the club and its ballplayers participated in a minstrel show, receiving positive reviews in a local paper.<ref>{{cite news |title=The Minstrel Farce Is Great |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oXs9AAAAIBAJ |access-date=November 10, 2023 |work=The Chehalis Bee-Nugget |date=April 22, 1910 |page=12}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Minstrel Show A Success |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ons9AAAAIBAJ |access-date=November 10, 2023 |work=The Chehalis Bee-Nugget |date=April 29, 1910 |page=1}}</ref> An "anti-Greek and Italian" movement existed in Chehalis around 1911 that demanded to abolish the employment of foreigners within the town.<ref>{{cite news |title=Another Anti-Greek Gathering |url=https://www.newspaperarchive.com/us/washington/centralia/centralia-weekly-chronicle/1911/07-19/page-6 |access-date=April 16, 2024 |work=The Centralia Weekly Chronicle |date=July 19, 1911 |page=6}}</ref>

In 1924, a rally for the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) was held at the Southwest Washington Fairgrounds and the estimated attendance was recorded between 20,000 and 30,000 members from around Washington. During the Great Depression, Chehalis and the surrounding cities and counties saw a rise in the participation of "Silver Shirts", a group that followed similar aspects to the Nazi movement of the era.<ref name="LCNST">{{cite news |last1=Voie |first1=Brittany |title=Lewis County No Stranger to Extreme Right, Supremacist Groups |url=https://www.chronline.com/stories/voice-of-voie-lewis-county-no-stranger-to-extreme-right-supremacist-groups,24295 |access-date=September 19, 2023 |work=The Chronicle |date=August 18, 2017}}</ref> In a [[Life (magazine)|Life magazine]] article from March 1939, the publication reported regarding [[hate groups]] and said Chehalis had a hate group leader in it, purportedly a local insurance man.<ref>{{cite news |title=Fascism In America - A Cell In Chehalis |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lU0EAAAAMBAJ |access-date=February 23, 2024 |work=Life Magazine |date=March 6, 1939 |page=62}}</ref> A trio of female high school students wrote to the magazine, believing that the feature "did not accurately depict the feelings of local citizens" just the insurance man and his followers, and a follow-up photo article from Life in May showcased the city's actual more varied and "American ideals" atmosphere which tended to more highlight inclusion, tolerance and diversity. It was noted that the leader of that fascist group had left town after the original story had published.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Moeller |first1=Bill |title=Remembering When Chehalis Made Life Magazine |url=https://www.chronline.com/stories/bill-moeller-commentary-remembering-when-chehalis-made-life-magazine,313753 |access-date=June 9, 2023 |work=The Chronicle |date=February 8, 2023 |quote=Based on an original article from July 23, 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Pictures To The Editors - Chehalis: Students' View |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rUkEAAAAMBAJ |access-date=February 23, 2024 |work=Life Magazine |date=May 15, 1939 |pages=86–87}}</ref>

After [[World War II]], the emergence of the [[John Birch Society]] (JBS), which opposed the [[Civil Rights Movement]] of the 1960s, began to circulate in and around the community, though much of the group’s noted activity occurred outside Chehalis with the group opening a bookstore in Centralia. Active and open participation from county residents in either the KKK or the JBS began to wane in the 1970s and 1980s, and the last activity of either group was recorded as taking place at the end of the century.<ref name="LCNST"/> The city, due to its early history and present-day lack of a Black population, was listed as a [[sundown town]] though there is no evidence the city ever had sundown policies.<ref name="AWSWH">{{cite news |last1=McDonald |first1=Julie |title=Are White Supremacists Welcome Here? Is Lewis County Racist? |url=https://www.chronline.com/stories/julie-mcdonald-commentary-are-white-supremacists-welcome-here-is-lewis-county-racist,321738 |access-date=September 19, 2023 |work=The Chronicle |date=July 3, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Loewen |first1=James W. |title=Sundown Towns - Chehalis, Washington |url=https://justice.tougaloo.edu/sundowntown/chehalis-wa/ |access-date=September 19, 2023 |work=History and Social Justice}}</ref>

Residents in the city in more recent years have protested in favor of the [[Black Lives Matter]] movement, holding two demonstrations in 2020 at the Lewis County Courthouse after the [[murder of George Floyd]]. The second event was attended by approximately 300 people who knelt for [[8 minutes 46 seconds]] in protest against [[police brutality]]. Notwithstanding a brief interruption, the assembly remained peaceful.<ref>{{cite news |last1=McCarty |first1=Emily |title=Small town activists show up big for Black Lives Matter |url=https://crosscut.com/2020/06/small-town-activists-show-big-black-lives-matter |access-date=February 29, 2024 |work=Crosscut (Cascade PBS) |date=June 19, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Gardner |first1=Jackson |title=More Than 300 People Kneel in Chehalis in Second Demonstration Against Police Brutality, Racism |url=https://www.chronline.com/stories/more-than-300-people-kneel-in-chehalis-in-second-demonstration-against-police-brutality-racism,3304 |access-date=February 29, 2024 |work=The Chronicle |date=June 2, 2020}}</ref>

A rise in [[LGBT people in the United States#Hate crimes|hate crimes against LGBTQ people]] in the 21st century also affected Chehalis, usually perpetrated or led by non-Chehalis residents. In the 2020s, a billboard in Chehalis supporting LGBTQ and racial equality movements was vandalized.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Mikkelsen |first1=Drew |title=Billboard supporting people of color and LGBTQ communities vandalized in Lewis County |url=https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/chehalis-billboard-hamilton-lgbtq-people-of-color/281-02d5fb83-ca85-400f-8443-13d2fbeea18d |access-date=June 28, 2023 |work=KING 5 News |date=September 21, 2020}}</ref>  And a drag show held in June 2023 at the Chehalis Theater was a site of controversy when a political fundraiser that referred to drag performers as "groomers" was hosted nearby without theater approval by the Lewis County GOP, headed by a non-Chehalis resident, and timed so as to coincide with the drag show in the Chehalis Theater and a similarly protested [[LGBT pride|Pride]] event that had been held in Centralia earlier that day. The GOP’s actions were shortly after condemned by local leaders.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Vander Stoep |first1=Isabel |title=Pollock Doubles Down on Criticism After Outrage From Lewis County Republicans |url= https://www.chronline.com/stories/pollock-doubles-down-on-criticism-after-outrage-from-lewis-county-republicans,321228 |access-date=July 9, 2024 |work=The Chronicle |date=June 21, 2023}}</ref><ref name="AWSWH"/> A few weeks later, a single-evening hate crime act occurred that targeted LGBTQ charities and symbols within various locations of the city.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Vander Stoep |first1=Isabel |title=Four Lewis County LGBTQ+ Advocate Sites Vandalized in One Night |url=https://www.chronline.com/stories/four-lewis-county-lgbtqplus-advocate-sites-vandalized-in-one-night,321415 |access-date=June 28, 2023 |work=The Chronicle |date=June 26, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Girgis |first1=Lauren |title=Flags stolen, vandalized throughout Washington during Pride month |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/law-justice/flags-stolen-vandalized-throughout-washington-during-pride-month/ |access-date=April 16, 2024 |work=The Seattle Times |date=July 7, 2023}}</ref> The Chehalis Friendship Fence was vandalized during the hate crime attack.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Baumgardner |first1=Gwen |title=Lewis County sees wave of LGBTQIA+ spaces vandalized, believed to be hate crimes |url=https://mynorthwest.com/3904493/lewis-county-sees-wave-of-lgbtqia-spaces-vandalized-believed-to-be-hate-crimes/ |access-date=July 3, 2023 |work=KIRO 7 News |date=June 30, 2023}}</ref> The fence was repainted days later through a volunteer effort.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Wenzelburger |first1=Jared |title=Volunteers Repaint Friendship Fence in Chehalis After Vandalism |url=https://www.chronline.com/stories/in-focus-volunteers-repaint-friendship-fence-in-chehalis-after-vandalism,321599 |access-date=July 3, 2023 |work=The Chronicle |date=June 30, 2023}}</ref> The fence was targeted again in February 2024 after a group of three people, all with ties to a variety of hate groups, as well as previous hate crime acts, splashed the artwork with black paint. The perpetrators, who were not from Chehalis, were chased down by a local resident and caught; fellow neighbors were able to wipe the paint off before it dried but the damages were severe enough that parts of the local attraction needed to be repainted.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Fitzgerald |first1=Emily |title=Three arrested for vandalizing Friendship Fence in Chehalis after neighbor gives chase |url=https://www.chronline.com/stories/three-arrested-for-vandalizing-friendship-fence-in-chehalis-after-neighbor-gives-chase,335356 |access-date=April 16, 2024 |work=The Chronicle |date=February 26, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Fitzgerald |first1=Emily |title=Bail set at $20K for three Chehalis 'Friendship Fence' vandalism suspects |url=https://www.chronline.com/stories/bail-set-at-20k-for-three-chehalis-friendship-fence-vandalism-suspects,335438 |access-date=April 16, 2024 |work=The Chronicle |date=February 26, 2024}}</ref> The trio were found guilty of misdemeanor [[malicious mischief]] but were acquitted by jury on hate crime charges.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Fitzgerald |first1=Emily |title=Lewis County jury acquits three Chehalis Friendship Fence vandals of hate crime charges |url=https://www.chronline.com/stories/lewis-county-jury-acquits-three-chehalis-friendship-fence-vandals-of-hate-crime-charges,362592 |access-date=October 3, 2024 |work=The Chronicle |date=September 27, 2024}}</ref>

===Claquato===
As translated from the Chehalis Native American language, Claquato means "high prairie" or "high land".<ref name="RHC">{{cite news |last1=Skinner |first1=Andy |title=A Brief Look at the Rich History of the Claquato Church and Cemetery |url=https://www.chronline.com/stories/a-brief-look-at-the-rich-history-of-the-claquato-church-and-cemetery,19697 |access-date=June 1, 2021 |work=The Chronicle |date=February 2, 2018 |archive-date=June 2, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210602214100/https://www.chronline.com/stories/a-brief-look-at-the-rich-history-of-the-claquato-church-and-cemetery,19697 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Rush |first1=Jessica |title=Ghost Town: Claquato, Washington |url=http://www.lewistalk.com/2018/07/15/ghost-town-claquato-washington/ |website=LewsiTalk.com |date=July 15, 2018 |access-date=June 1, 2021 |archive-date=June 2, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210602215859/http://www.lewistalk.com/2018/07/15/ghost-town-claquato-washington/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The town began as a settlement in 1853 by Lewis Hawkins Davis, who originally named the area Davis Prairie.<ref>{{cite web |title=Lewis County Towns |url=https://jtenlen.drizzlehosting.com/walewis/townsal.html |website=jtenlen.drizzlehosting.com |access-date=June 1, 2021 |archive-date=February 21, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200221081304/http://www.jtenlen.drizzlehosting.com/walewis/townsal.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The community grew quickly to include [[Claquato Church]], a cemetery, hotels, and several stores and was, for a time, the largest populated town between the [[Columbia River]] and [[Olympia, Washington|Olympia]].<ref name="SAH">{{cite web |title=Claquato Church |url=https://sah-archipedia.org/buildings/WA-01-041-0034 |website=SAH-Archpedia.org |date=January 15, 2019 |access-date=June 1, 2021 |archive-date=June 2, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210602220124/https://sah-archipedia.org/buildings/WA-01-041-0034 |url-status=live }}</ref>  Davis donated land for the construction of a courthouse and by 1862 the town became the county seat for Lewis County<ref>{{cite news |last1=Jones |first1=Pat |title=She's a grand old flag, the American flag |url=https://www.chronline.com/stories/shes-a-grand-old-flag-the-american-flag,220496? |access-date=August 28, 2023 |work=The Chronicle |date=July 1, 2006}}</ref> until that designation was transferred to Chehalis in 1874.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Wilma |first1=David |title=Lewis County - Thumbnail History |url=https://www.historylink.org/File/7449 |website=HistoryLink.org |access-date=June 1, 2021 |archive-date=June 2, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210602214149/https://www.historylink.org/File/7449 |url-status=live }}</ref> A [[blockhouse]] was built and used in the community during an 1855-1856 war between settlers and Native Americans, sheltering the founding family of Chehalis during the conflict.<ref>{{cite news |last1=McDonald |first1=Julie |title=White Settlers Flee to Blockhouses During Indian Wars |url=https://www.chronline.com/stories/julie-mcdonald-commentary-white-settlers-flee-to-blockhouses-during-indian-wars,300549? |access-date=August 21, 2023 |work=The Chronicle |date=September 26, 2022}}</ref>

Claquato is no longer a recognized town or municipality,<ref name="RHC"/><ref name="SAH"/> and is considered a neighborhood outside the Chehalis city limits.<ref>{{cite web |title=Map of Chehalis City Limits |url=https://maps.lewiscountywa.gov/maps/CtyTwnUninc/chehalis.pdf |website=maps.lewiscountywa.gov |publisher=Lewis County Government |access-date=July 22, 2021}}</ref> While described as a ghost town as it was officially vacated in 1902,<ref>{{cite web |last1=Hall |first1=Sharon |title=Ghost Town Wednesday: Claquato, Washington |url=https://digging-history.com/2015/03/11/ghost-town-wednesday-claquato-washington/ |website=Digging-History.com |date=March 11, 2015 |access-date=June 1, 2021 |archive-date=June 2, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210602214100/https://digging-history.com/2015/03/11/ghost-town-wednesday-claquato-washington/ |url-status=live }}</ref> the area has been populated since its inception.