Elbe

History

In 1888 the first settlers came to the forests on the Nisqually River. Some of them were the German emigrants Karl Lütkens and Adam Sachs. Karl Lütkens, who was only 19 at the time, was so enthusiastic about his new home that he persuaded his parents Heinrich and Christina Lütkens to come to America as well. These left their previous home in Todendorf in the district Stormarn in Schleswig-Holstein and arrived in America in 1891. The first settlers in this area also included Ferdinand Selle, Christian Fritz, Louis Schuffenhauer, Christian Kruse, Max Ogans, Hans Bartels, Fred Duke, W. Lawrence, Levi Engel, Vincent Rotter, R. Schmidt, Frank Salzer, Gus Stoll and Christian Weilandt. The small town grew, and on June 4, 1892, a post office was already established here. The economic development of the place in the following years was good. Nearby Mount Rainier was the destination of many tourists who took a break on their way to Elbe. In 1894 Heinrich Lütkens and his son Karl built a tourist hotel with 48 rooms. Ferdinand Selle had previously built a hotel, but it burned down after a short time. At that time, the village blacksmith Levi Engel was temporarily the editor of a newspaper called "Elbe Union". With his plate camera, Engel accompanied village life for many years. In 1894 a town hall was also built, in which various events, including dance events, took place. In 1895 Heinrich Lütkens and his family had a special reunion. From Hamfelde in the district Herzogtum Lauenburg in Schleswig-Holstein was Carl Böttcher, the brother-in-law of Lütkens, emigrated with his family and settled in a neighboring town of Elbe. The town began to experience an increase in tourism after Elbe was connected to the Tacoma Eastern Railroad rail network in 1904 and the Road to Paradise,…

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , all of it land. Elbe is located approximately south of Seattle and approximately north of Portland, Oregon. Mount Rainier is approximately northeast. Elbe has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen Csb) typical for the North Coast, characterized by warm (occasionally hot) dry summers, and mild to chilly, rainy and snowy winters. In Elbe's case the climate is moderated by the proximity to the Pacific Ocean with small temperature variations on average throughout the year, resulting in mild year-round temperatures, although winter can get cool with freezing and snow. Average high temperatures range from in December to in August. Elbe on average has very wet winters and summers with a few days of rainfall, also representative for the region. Temperatures of above are common with measurable snowfall.

Largest nearby schools

• Eatonville High School
  High · Eatonville · 560 students · 21.5:1 ratio
• Eatonville Elementary School
  Elementary · Eatonville · 414 students · 15.9:1 ratio
• Eatonville Middle School
  Middle · Eatonville · 411 students · 17.9:1 ratio
• Columbia Crest A-STEM Academy
  Elementary · Ashford · 143 students · 14.3:1 ratio
• ESD New Beginnings
  High · Eatonville · 40 students
• Mt. Rainier Parent Partnership
  Elementary · Eatonville · 11 students
• Eatonville Online Academy
  Middle · Eatonville · 6 students · 6:1 ratio
• Eatonville Developmenal Pre-School
  Other · Eatonville