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Kettle Falls is a community and region that is rich in history. Through archeological excavations, diaries
and ledgers, the lives and culture of the first people to live at Kettle Falls has been discovered. Over
9,000 years of habitation in and around the falls has been documented. It was with David Thompson's
arrival in 1811, that marks when the white man's influence in the region began.
This was the first area settled in the State of Washington, east of the Cascade mountains. The
construction of the Hudson 's Bay Company grist mill at Meyers Falls has been documented back as far
as 1826, although some say 1816 may have been the year when settlement of the area began.
The town site of Kettle Falls was platted on August 14, 1889, covering three 40 acre tracts almost a mile
from the falls which the town was named. In 1904 historians wrote: "Where a few months before there
was nothing but gloomy, sighing forests, in 1891 appeared a city! Pines, spruce, firs and tamaracks
disappeared. In their places the most enterprising town in the western part of the United States made its
magical appearance. Broad streets and avenues lined on either side by handsome business blocks,
public buildings and princely residences sprung up to attract the attention of the entire state. Twelve
miles of twelve-foot plank sidewalk were constructed. The handsomest and best appointed hotel west of
Helena, Montana, was located where a few months before the foot of man had not trod. This hotel was
constructed at a cost Of $18,000. The furnishings, which are described as magnificent, were purchased
in Saginaw, Michigan, at a cost of $9,200. Two houses of worship and a public school building of
handsome architectural design were built. A public library building of brick, containing several hundred
volumes, was located in the central portion of the town. A system of water works was established. An
electric lighting system, conducted on a magnificent scale, was in operation." They went on to state that
"There had been many "boom" towns in the west, especially in mining camps, which had sprung up
luxuriantly and acquired a large population in a remarkably short time. But there had never been
anything in history to equal the spontaneity of this coltish town in the magnificence of its planning and
the elaborateness of its buildings."
The town prospered until the late 1930's when the construction of Grand Coulee Dam forced the town
to relocate, ending a era and changing the quality of life for many. Many Kettle Falls residents decided
to relocate their homes and businesses to the small community of Meyers Falls, 4 miles away, while
others relocated to other parts of the county and state. In 1939, Kettle Falls merged with the community
of Meyers Falls creating the town as you see it today.
and ledgers, the lives and culture of the first people to live at Kettle Falls has been discovered. Over
9,000 years of habitation in and around the falls has been documented. It was with David Thompson's
arrival in 1811, that marks when the white man's influence in the region began.
This was the first area settled in the State of Washington, east of the Cascade mountains. The
construction of the Hudson 's Bay Company grist mill at Meyers Falls has been documented back as far
as 1826, although some say 1816 may have been the year when settlement of the area began.
The town site of Kettle Falls was platted on August 14, 1889, covering three 40 acre tracts almost a mile
from the falls which the town was named. In 1904 historians wrote: "Where a few months before there
was nothing but gloomy, sighing forests, in 1891 appeared a city! Pines, spruce, firs and tamaracks
disappeared. In their places the most enterprising town in the western part of the United States made its
magical appearance. Broad streets and avenues lined on either side by handsome business blocks,
public buildings and princely residences sprung up to attract the attention of the entire state. Twelve
miles of twelve-foot plank sidewalk were constructed. The handsomest and best appointed hotel west of
Helena, Montana, was located where a few months before the foot of man had not trod. This hotel was
constructed at a cost Of $18,000. The furnishings, which are described as magnificent, were purchased
in Saginaw, Michigan, at a cost of $9,200. Two houses of worship and a public school building of
handsome architectural design were built. A public library building of brick, containing several hundred
volumes, was located in the central portion of the town. A system of water works was established. An
electric lighting system, conducted on a magnificent scale, was in operation." They went on to state that
"There had been many "boom" towns in the west, especially in mining camps, which had sprung up
luxuriantly and acquired a large population in a remarkably short time. But there had never been
anything in history to equal the spontaneity of this coltish town in the magnificence of its planning and
the elaborateness of its buildings."
The town prospered until the late 1930's when the construction of Grand Coulee Dam forced the town
to relocate, ending a era and changing the quality of life for many. Many Kettle Falls residents decided
to relocate their homes and businesses to the small community of Meyers Falls, 4 miles away, while
others relocated to other parts of the county and state. In 1939, Kettle Falls merged with the community
of Meyers Falls creating the town as you see it today.
