Editing Index, Washington (section)

===Post-mining era===
[[File:Index, WA. (1702484342).jpg|thumb|right|The [[Red Men Hall (Index, Washington)|Red Men Hall]], listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]] in 1973 and destroyed in 2009]]

Index entered a period of economic stagnation and reduced employment following the Great Depression and World War II, as most of its industries had closed and were not replaced.<ref name="Roe-158"/> Local families left the town and were replaced by a population of retirees and urban residents who maintained [[vacation home]]s; by 1975, there was a permanent population of 171 residents in Index and the surrounding area.<ref>{{cite news |last=Carrick |first=Ned |date=March 21, 1975 |title=She's Indexed 34 years of her life |page=4A |work=The Everett Herald |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-herald-shes-indexed-34-years/165040152/ |via=Newspapers.com |accessdate=February 8, 2025}}</ref> After Index's [[high school]] closed in 1942, students were moved to [[Sultan Senior High School]]. The other school buildings were condemned by the state [[fire marshal]] in 1952 and replaced three years later by a new consolidated school.<ref name="Herald-School"/><ref>{{harvp|Burgstahler|1980|pp=33–34}}</ref> From 1962 to 1964, Great Northern rebuilt its railroad through Index on an [[embankment (earthworks)|embankment]] with a wider curve that cut off several streets and split the town into two halves.<ref>{{cite news |last=Hagman |first=Tye |date=March 15, 1964 |title=Index—A Town Split in Two by a Railroad |page=4 |work=The Seattle Times}}</ref> The original railroad depot in the town was also demolished and the lone grade crossing was made steeper, creating a blind hill.<ref name="HistoryLink"/><ref>{{cite news |date=December 8, 1964 |title=Index Seeks RR Crossing Safety |page=1B |work=The Everett Herald |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-herald-index-seeks-rr-crossing/164888275/ |via=Newspapers.com |accessdate=February 6, 2025}}</ref>

The town has been frequented by [[rock climbing|rock climbers]] since routes on the Index Town Wall, a set of granite cliffs that face the Skykomish River, were mapped in the 1950s and developed in the early 1970s by enthusiasts from Seattle.<ref name="Climbing-2009">{{cite news |last=Sjong |first=Angele |date=November 13, 2009 |title=Index Club |url=https://www.climbing.com/news/index-club/ |work=[[Climbing (magazine)|Climbing]] |accessdate=February 8, 2025}}</ref><ref name="Times-Climbing">{{cite news |last=Scruggs |first=Gregory |date=November 14, 2023 |title=WA climbers purchase 20 acres of popular climbing walls in Index |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/life/outdoors/wa-climbers-purchase-beginner-friendly-crag-in-index/ |work=The Seattle Times |accessdate=February 5, 2025}}</ref> A replacement of Index's wooden [[water main]] and reservoir system, which are supplied by a mountain [[spring (hydrology)|spring]], began in 1967 and was completed a decade later by the town government using federal and state grants.<ref>{{cite news |last=Carrick |first=Ned |date=December 30, 1967 |title=Snohomish, Skykomish Valleys Look Ahead to Snowball Growth |page=8C |work=The Everett Herald |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-herald-snohomish-skykomish-va/165043091/ |via=Newspapers.com |accessdate=February 8, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Carrick |first=Ned |date=April 2, 1977 |title=Index completes new water system |page=4A |work=The Everett Herald |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-herald-index-completes-new-wat/165044094/ |via=Newspapers.com |accessdate=February 8, 2025}}</ref> The Bush House, a historic hotel that opened in 1898 and closed in the 1930s,<ref name="Times-Bush"/> was renovated and reopened as a restaurant in 1975 and for lodging two years later.<ref>{{cite news |last=Hayes |first=Bruce |date=August 8, 1975 |title=Bush House serves history along with its food |page=11A |work=The Everett Herald |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-herald-bush-house-serves-histo/165043974/ |via=Newspapers.com |accessdate=February 8, 2025}}</ref><ref name="Herald-1977">{{cite news |last=Carrick |first=Ned |date=November 23, 1977 |title=Turn back to the Index |page=3B |work=The Everett Herald |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-herald-turn-back-to-the-index/165042170/ |via=Newspapers.com |accessdate=February 8, 2025}}</ref> It was among the few active businesses in Index along with a general store and [[tavern]]; the town had become a destination for retirees and vacationers by the 1970s and had few permanent residents.<ref>{{cite news |last=Frisino |first=Joe |date=March 18, 1979 |title=Mountain's Magic Looks After Index |page=C1 |work=Seattle Post-Intelligencer}}</ref> The [[Red Men Hall (Index, Washington)|Red Men Hall]], traditionally a meeting place for the local chapter of the [[Independent Order of Red Men]], was listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]] in 1973.<ref>{{cite news |date=December 28, 1974 |title=Red Men's Wigwam and Index boost colorful past |page=4 |work=The Everett Herald |department=Panorama |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-herald-red-mens-wigwam-and-in/166308763/ |via=Newspapers.com |accessdate=May 3, 2025}}</ref>

On December 26, 1980, heavy rainfall caused the North Fork Skykomish River to flood Index and the surrounding area with up to {{convert|24|ft|m}} of water.<ref>{{cite news |last=Lewis |first=Peter |date=December 31, 1980 |title=Index flood victims get little help |page=E3 |work=The Seattle Times}}</ref> The flood washed away seven homes, a portion of Avenue A, and the town's water main, with damage estimated at $691,000 (equivalent to ${{Format price|{{Inflation|US-GDP|691000|1980}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US-GDP}} dollars){{inflation-fn|US-GDP}} by local officials.<ref>{{cite news |last=Gullien |first=Tomas |date=December 27, 1980 |title=Index residents keep wary eye on surging Skykomish |page=A3 |work=The Seattle Times}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Bray |first=Kari |date=July 6, 2016 |title=Darrington historians, UW students create mudslide archive |page=A1 |url=https://www.heraldnet.com/news/darrington-historians-uw-students-create-oso-mudslide-archive/ |work=The Everett Herald |accessdate=February 8, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Flatt |first=Sherri |date=December 31, 1980 |title=Flood disaster relief main concern of Index residents |page=3A |work=The Everett Herald |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-herald-flood-disaster-relief-m/165033880/ |via=Newspapers.com |accessdate=March 1, 2025}}</ref> Buildings and roads were later rebuilt by residents, while a temporary [[riprap]] was installed by the [[United States Army Corps of Engineers|U.S. Army Corps of Engineers]].<ref>{{harvp|Cameron|LeWarne|May|O'Donnell|2005|p=348}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Lewis |first=Peter |date=April 8, 1981 |title=Index dispute pits neighbor against neighbor |page=B1 |work=The Seattle Times}}</ref> The town government had previously requested aid to repair an existing riprap along Avenue A that had been damaged in a 1975 flood as well as remove a {{convert|100|ft|m|adj=mid}} [[log jam]] that had formed in the river upstream from Index.<ref>{{cite news |date=August 8, 1980 |title=Mayor says Index needs flooding help |page=7D |work=The Everett Herald |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-herald-mayor-says-index-needs/167017377/ |via=Newspapers.com |accessdate=March 1, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Harden |first=Mark |date=April 12, 1981 |title=Corps won't reimburse owner of washed-out Index home |page=5A |work=The Everett Herald |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-herald-corps-wont-reimburse-o/167101774/ |via=Newspapers.com |accessdate=March 2, 2025}}</ref> The Army Corps of Engineers constructed a new, {{convert|500|ft|m|adj=mid}} riprap along Avenue A in April 1981 but denied responsibility for the flood damage, which it described as a "natural occurrence".<ref>{{cite news |last1=Maxwell |first1=Blanche |last2=Harden |first2=Mark |date=July 26, 1981 |title=Index, resident reach deal on flood project |page=3A |work=The Everett Herald |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-herald-index-resident-reach-d/167101784/ |via=Newspapers.com |accessdate=March 2, 2025}}</ref>