Nile

History

The community was established in the mid-1890s by families of James Beck, William Markel and Henry Sedge, who may have named the small valley and community Nile because of the area's fertility thought to resemble that of the Nile River Valley in Egypt. Henry Sedge was among the first settlers who helped establish the Nile community in the 1890s. Born in Ohio in 1855, Henry Sedge moved westward and eventually settled in the fertile Naches Valley area. He and his family were instrumental in developing the agricultural infrastructure of the region, including early irrigation efforts that transformed the Nile Valley into productive farmland. Henry Sedge also served as one of the earliest U.S. Forest Service rangers in the region, establishing a ranger station at Nile Creek and helping to lay the groundwork for forest management in the Eastern Cascades. His legacy remains an important part of Nile's history, reflected in local landmarks such as Sedge Ridge, named in his honor. According to historian Gretta Gossett, "there is yet an alluvial plain along the river near Nile Creek which is often flooded in the spring and left with a layer of silt perhaps giving rise to the name for the Nile in Egypt."

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  2,490
• Common Raven

  Corvus corax Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  2,039
• Western Wood-Pewee

  Contopus sordidulus P.L.Sclater, 1859 · Aves
  1,825
• Northern Flicker

  Colaptes auratus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,711
• Spotted Towhee

  Pipilo maculatus Swainson, 1827 · Aves
  1,651
• Chipping Sparrow

  Spizella passerina (Bechstein, 1798) · Aves
  1,623
• Yellow-rumped Warbler

  Setophaga coronata (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  1,576
• Cassin's Finch

  Haemorhous cassinii (S.F.Baird, 1854) · Aves
  1,540

Most recent

• M 3.09 — 2026-08-11
  5 km WSW of Harrah, Washington
• M 2.62 — 2026-07-09
  17 km SW of Nile, Washington
• M 2.82 — 2026-06-26
  1 km SSE of Easton, Washington
• M 2.75 — 2026-04-11
  13 km NW of Cliffdell, Washington
• M 2.52 — 2026-03-17
  7 km SE of Mineral, Washington
• M 2.5300000000000002 — 2025-10-24
  2 km SE of Buckley, Washington