Napavine, Washington

Napavine
City
Nickname:  The City on Top of the Hill
Motto(s):  Welcome to Napavine: for a day, or for a lifetime[1]
Location of Napavine, Washington
Coordinates: 46°34′45″N 122°54′39″W / 46.57917°N 122.91083°W / 46.57917; -122.91083[2]
Country	United States
State	Washington
County	Lewis
Incorporated	1913
Government
• Mayor	Shawn O'Neill
Area [3]
• Total	2.90 sq mi (7.52 km2)
• Land	2.89 sq mi (7.49 km2)
• Water	0.01 sq mi (0.03 km2)
Elevation	459 ft (140 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	1,888
• Density	691.91/sq mi (267.19/km2)
Time zone	UTC-8 (Pacific (PST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-7 (PDT)
ZIP code	98565
Area code	360
FIPS code	53-47980
GNIS feature ID	1506926[4]
Website	CityofNapavine.com

Napavine is a city in Lewis County, Washington, United States. It is also included in the Centralia, WA micropolitan area. The population was 1,766 at the 2020 census.^[5]

There are a few documented instances regarding the choice for the moniker of Napavine. A mention in the records of the Napavine Historical Society states that a J.W. Cutting merged the name in the 1870s from a Newaukum tribal leader named Napawyna. However, there is consideration that the woman may have taken her name after the newly designated town.^[1] Additional sourcing reports that Scottish immigrant James Urquhart, in platting the area, named the settlement Napavine from the Indian word "Napavoon" meaning "small prairie".^[6][1]

Settlers began arriving in the Cowlitz area in the early 1850s. In 1883, Urquhart laid out the town^[6] and Napavine was officially incorporated as a town on November 21, 1913.

The duel between outlaws David Merrill and Harry Tracy, a convicted murderer, took place outside Napavine in late-June or early-July 1902, leading to Merrill's death.^[a] The pair were fugitives after escaping from the Oregon State Penitentiary weeks earlier, traveling into Southwest Washington. Merrill was found to have been shot in the back and his body, in a state of decomposition, was discovered by a local Napavine woman and her son while picking berries.^{[7][8][9][10]} The woman, known as Mary Waggoner,^[b] later sought to claim the $1,500 reward money based on a dead or alive decree for Merrill by the state of Oregon, but was denied.^[11] Waggoner eventually married Merrill's brother, Ben, in 1905.^[12]

A railroad depot was built in the late 1910s and provided passenger service until 1960. The Napavine Depot continued to serve the area until the station was permanently closed in April 1968 despite local protest. The Northern Pacific Railway station marked the highest elevation on the line between Portland and Seattle.^[13]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.39 square miles (6.19 km²), of which, 2.38 square miles (6.16 km²) is land and 0.01 square miles (0.03 km²) is water.^[14] The large hill that Napavine is sitting on is about 400 feet above sea level.

As of the 2010 census,^{[16][better source needed]} of 2010, there were 1,988 people, 609 households, and 770 families living in the city. The population density was 742.0 inhabitants per square mile (286.5/km²). There were 662 housing units at an average density of 278.2 per square mile (107.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.0% White, 0.2% African American, 0.7% Native American, 0.8% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 2.1% from other races, and 5.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.0% of the population.

There were 609 households, of which 63.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.0% were married couples living together, 13.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.4% had a male householder with no wife present, and 22.8% were non-families. 19.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 5.90 and the average family size was 5.29.

The median age in the city was 32.9 years. 30.8% of residents were under the age of 18; 8.6% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 26.5% were from 25 to 44; 22.3% were from 45 to 64; and 11.7% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.6% male and 51.4% female.

As of the 2000 census, there were 1,361 people, 444 households, and 349 families living in the city. The population density was 1,702.5 people per square mile (656.9/km²). There were 474 housing units at an average density of 592.9 per square mile (228.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 93.02% White, 0.15% African American, 1.54% Native American, 0.15% Asian, 0.29% Pacific Islander, 3.31% from other races, and 1.54% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.73% of the population.

There were 444 households, out of which 47.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.2% were married couples living together, 16.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.2% were non-families. 16.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.05 and the average family size was 3.45.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 37.0% under the age of 18, 7.0% from 18 to 24, 30.3% from 25 to 44, 17.0% from 45 to 64, and 8.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.7 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $40,966, and the median income for a family was $41,250. Males had a median income of $38,750 versus $26,103 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,275. About 12.7% of families and 13.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.8% of those under age 18 and 11.0% of those age 65 or over.

Napavine primarily serves as a bedroom community for the Centralia/Chehalis and Olympia areas.^[17]

The city annually hosts a one-day Napavine Funtime Festival which was created in 1973 by a local Jaycees club and has been organized afterwards by two original founding members. The one-day event, which includes a parade, was headlined by a teenage "Princess Napawinah" and was based on an 18th-century Newaukum Tribal leader, Napawyna. In 2023, the festival was called into question by local residents and several local Native American groups, including the Cowlitz Indian Tribe, due to the wardrobe displayed by the princess during the festivities. Petitions and concerns cited that the displays of Native American customs and clothing created a sense of Pan-Indianism and caricature. Doubts were also raised over the veracity of the historical existence of Princess Napawinah as well as her being labeled under a title of European nobility.^[1] Due to a combination of the recent contentions of stereotyping and dwindling participation in the event, the city council passed a resolution in August 2023 to give the city oversight over, but not ownership of, the Funtime Festival, with attention to change the theme of the event.^[17] In 2024, the parade and festivities were cooperatively organized by the original founding members, a local Lions Club, and the city. The event went without a Native American motif but rather the theme, "Tiger Pride", after the local high school mascot.^[18]

Napavine hosts a community Easter Egg Hunt and has held an annual Christmas Parade, or Santa Parade, since the 1980s. The procession begins at the Napavine Community Park and courses through the downtown area.^[19][20]

The Uncle Sam billboard is located on private property within Napavine. Since being erected in the 1960s, the board has been used to display the conservative political opinions of its owners.^[21][22]

The largest and newest park in the town is the Napavine Community Park located near the downtown section. It includes an amphitheater and skate park. The community also hosts Robert Cook Day Park, also known as the Robert Cook Playground, nestled in a residential area,^[23] Near the school district is Mayme Shaddock Park which contains the Jim Haslett Kitchen. The kitchen, completed in 2024, was named in honor of a long-serving councilman and park supporter.^[24]

Napavine was considered, in 2009, as the site for the Southwest Washington Regional Equestrian Center, originally planned for Winlock.^[25] The REQ Center, as it was also known, was scaled down in cost, purpose, and size.^[26][27] The REQ plan was abandoned, replaced with a proposal for a $15 million multipurpose facility that maintained the focus of an equestrian center.^[28][29] Named the Newaukum Center, the proposed complex was never built due to time constraints for limited state funding and an eventual choice in 2010 to use such funds to construct a sports complex in Centralia.^[30]

Napavine is recognized as being majority Republican and conservative.

The 2020 election included votes for candidates of the Libertarian Party and 5 votes for write-in candidates.

In January 2008, 22 year-old Nick Bozarth became the youngest mayor in the history of Napavine. Bozarth banned city workers from taking extended lunch breaks and removed a controversial police chief.^[32] Bozarth intended to be a one-term mayor, and chose not to run for re-election, citing that public servants should not be long term office holders.^[33]

Napavine School District operates the public schools in the city of Napavine. Its high school, Napavine High School, has a 2B athletics classification and plays in the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association (WIAA) Southwest Washington District 4.^{[citation needed]} Napavine also is home to the Napavine Christian Academy owned by the Baptist church.^{[citation needed]}

The Napavine high school boys football team won the WIAA 2B state championship in 2008, 2016^[34] and 2022^[35]. The girls basketball team won the 2B state championship in 2024, overcoming Okanogan by a score of 41-40 on a 3-point shot with 16 seconds left to play in regulation.^[36]

• Patricia Anne Morton, first woman to serve as a Diplomatic Security special agent^[37]
• Skyler Wheeler, state politician in Iowa^[38]