City of Leavenworth history

In 1892, Great Northern Railway (later became part of the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway) began construction on the first rail route across Stevens Pass, which is a 4,061–foot mountain pass thirty-five miles west of Leavenworth.

In addition to the exodus from Icicle, a number of prominent businessmen of Wenatchee relocated to Leavenworth, and by February 1893, the town claimed a population of 700.

In 1901 the Icicle Canal Company began work on an ambitious irrigation system.

Logs were floated down the Wenatchee River to a sawmill the Lamb-Davis Lumber Company from Iowa built at Leavenworth in 1904.

The company, which by 1906 employed 200 in its camps and mills, also founded Leavenworth’s first bank, the Tumwater Savings Bank, and eventually established waterworks and a light plant.

1923), a pharmaceutical representative, and Robert F. “Bob” Rodgers both had jobs that took them through Leavenworth regularly.

In 1962, the Leavenworth Improvement for Everyone ("LIFE") Committee was formed.

One of the community groups working most actively toward revitalization of Leavenworth was the Vesta Junior Women’s Club, which in 1964 was the first women’s club in Washington to win the Sears Roebuck and General Federation of Women’s Clubs award for outstanding community service.

According to the Leavenworth Echo, Leavenworth “was honored for pulling itself out of a serious economic slump” (Echo, Sonnenschein Edition for 1969-70, 1). Not surprisingly, Ted Price had a major hand in preparing the application.

In order to ensure continuing authenticity, the town created the Leavenworth Design Review Board, which became official on July 16, 1970.

The most renowned jumper from Leavenworth was Ron Steele, who competed in the 1972 Olympics.) In addition, the Stevens Pass ski area was nearby, and of course, spring, summer, and fall in the upper Wenatchee valley offered hiking, hunting, fishing, and mountain climbing.

The two partners left Leavenworth in 1986 and eventually retired to Palm Springs.

Sleeping Lady Mountain Retreat and Conference Center (Jones and Jones, 1990), Icicle Creek, Leavenworth, 1990

There was even in recent years a temporary revival of the sawmill era, when the Longview Fibre Company built a mill in 1991.