Snohomish

History

The Snohomish River Valley was originally inhabited by the Snohomish people, a Coast Salish tribe who lived between Port Gardner Bay and modern-day Monroe. An archaeological site near the confluence of the Snohomish and Pilchuck Rivers has indications of human habitation that began as early as 8,000 years before present. A village, sbadaʔɬ, was at the site of the modern-day city that now bears the tribe's name. The Snohomish had contact with white explorers in the early 19th century, with their name recorded as "Sinnahamis" by John Work of the Hudson's Bay Company, among the first to also use the name to describe the river. The Snohomish were signatories of the Point Elliott Treaty in 1855, which relocated the tribe to the Tulalip Indian Reservation. The road, proposed in the wake of the Pig War, was intended to be built far enough inland to be safe from British naval attacks. The confluence of the Snohomish and Pilchuck rivers, located near Kwehtlamanish, was sought by several American settlers from Steilacoom who arrived in 1859 to file homestead claims. Edson F. Cady and Heil Barnes, representing carpenter Emory C. Ferguson, settled near the proposed ferry landing, while Egbert H. Tucker filed a claim for a plot on the other side of the Snohomish River. The settlement was originally known as "Cadyville" and changed its name to Snohomish City in 1871. The name Snohomish comes from the name of the dominant local Native American tribe "sdoh-doh-hohbsh" (), whose meaning is widely disputed. Although the military road was never completed, Snohomish quickly became a center of commerce in the expanding region. In 1861, Snohomish County separated from Island County and the Village of Snohomish was voted the county seat. The first school in the settlement was organized in…

Geography

Snohomish is located along the north bank of the Snohomish River near where it is joined by the Pilchuck River. The city lies on the Getchell Hill Plateau, a low hill in the Snohomish River Valley that interrupts the wide, flat river valley. The river valley was formed approximately 14,000 years before present by the outflow of a glacial lake during the Vashon Glaciation event. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which, is land and is water. Snohomish's city limits are generally defined by the Snohomish River to the south, Fobes Hill to the west, several city streets to the north, and the Pilchuck River to the east. The city also has an urban growth area that extends north towards U.S. Route 2 and south of the Snohomish River to include Harvey Airfield. The historic business and residential center of the town constitutes the Snohomish Historic District, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Many houses bear plaques with the year the house was built and the name of the people who originally occupied it. Each year the city gives tours of the historic houses; one of them, the Blackman House, is a year-round museum.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  37,725
• Song Sparrow

  Melospiza melodia (A.Wilson, 1810) · Aves
  29,784
• Dark-eyed Junco

  Junco hyemalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  28,783
• Black-capped Chickadee

  Poecile atricapillus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  27,529
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  27,189
• Spotted Towhee

  Pipilo maculatus Swainson, 1827 · Aves
  23,415
• Northern Flicker

  Colaptes auratus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  20,640
• Mallard

  Anas platyrhynchos Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  20,460

Most recent

• M 2.56 — 2026-09-12
  2 km E of Mount Vernon, Washington
• M 2.51 — 2026-08-09
  11 km SSW of River Road, Washington
• M 3.8 — 2026-07-02
  2 km E of Oak Harbor, Washington
• M 2.5 — 2026-06-26
  11 km E of Carnation, Washington
• M 2.87 — 2026-06-08
  2 km ESE of Oak Harbor, Washington
• M 2.84 — 2026-05-27
  4 km W of Wauna, Washington