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Potlatch, Idaho
City
Potlatch City Hall
Location of Potlatch in Latah County, Idaho.
Coordinates: 46°55′24″N 116°53′54″W / 46.92333°N 116.89833°W / 46.92333; -116.89833
Country	United States
State	Idaho
County	Latah
Area
• Total	0.42 sq mi (1.10 km)
• Land	0.42 sq mi (1.10 km)
• Water	0.00 sq mi (0.00 km)
Elevation	2,572 ft (784 m)
Population
• Total	804
• Density	1,924.35/sq mi (742.40/km)
Time zone	UTC-8 (Pacific (PST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-7 (PDT)
ZIP code	83855
Area code	208
FIPS code	16-64900
GNIS feature ID	2411478
Website	www.cityofpotlatch.org

Potlatch is a city in the northwest United States, located in north central Idaho in Latah County, about six miles (10 km) east of the border with Washington. On the Palouse north of Moscow, it is served by State Highway 6, and bordered on the northeast by the small community of Onaway. The population of Potlatch was 804 at the 2010 census.

History

Company town

In 1903, Frederick Weyerhaeuser incorporated the Potlatch Lumber Company (eventually becoming the Potlatch Corporation), naming his son Charles as the President. The directors of the company selected Canadian lumberman William Deary to build a mill somewhere within the company's timber holdings. The townsite was chosen because of proximity to the company's large holdings of Western White Pine on the Palouse River. Potlatch was chosen as the mill site, and in 1904, crews working under W.A. Wilkinson of Minnesota began constructing what would be the largest white pine sawmill in the world.

Because of the remote placement of the mill, Potlatch was built as a company town to provide housing and commerce for the mill. A total of 143 houses were built in 1906, with 58 more built the following year; other building constructed during that period include boarding houses, an ice house, a Catholic church, hotel, school, and general store.

The company developed and ran Potlatch on a model mostly patterned after that used by Pullman Company for its company town in Illinois. It provide police and fire protection, a school, churches, a hospital, an inexpensive company store, and recreational amenities. It banned prostitution, prohibited alcohol, and encouraged its workers to marry by allowing only married couples to rent the houses it owned. The paternalism was profitable, even though rents were low: during 1943 the company showed a profit of $59,000 for its "townsite" services. Less than a decade later, with labor costs significantly reducing its townsite profit, the mill sold most of the homes and other buildings it owned, and Potlatch was incorporated.

On the west side of town, the mill began operating on September 11, 1906, and continued for over seven decades. Due to a depressed economy and declining lumber prices, the mill closed in August 1981.

Following the mill's closure

In 1981, the mill was shut down, shortly after the town was sold to the residents. Five years later, part of the commercial district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

After the mill's closure, Potlatch became a bedroom community for the university towns of Moscow and Pullman, Washington.

Business and political leaders of Potlatch are making a concerted effort to attract companies involved in the firearms industry; they have set aside 26 acres (11 ha) for such businesses, located on the former site of the mill. Approximately a mile (1.6 km) west of the mill, State Highway 6 connects with U.S. Route 95, Idaho's primary north-south highway.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 0.43 square miles (1.11 km), all of it land. Potlatch is north of the confluence of Rock Creek and the Palouse River, on the edge of the Palouse ecoregion.

Climate

Potlatch has a dry-summer humid continental climate (Dsb) according to the Köppen climate classification system.

Demographics

In August 1906 the town had a population of about 1,000; and a year later, it reached around 1,500.

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 804 people, 339 households, and 218 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,869.8 inhabitants per square mile (721.9/km). There were 368 housing units at an average density of 855.8 per square mile (330.4/km). The racial makeup of the city was 97.1% White, 0.1% African American, 0.1% Native American, 0.2% from other races, and 2.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.1% of the population.

There were 339 households, of which 35.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.3% were married couples living together, 10.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.1% had a male householder with no wife present, and 35.7% were non-families. 28.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.92.

The median age in the city was 32.9 years. 28.4% of residents were under the age of 18; 7% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 28.7% were from 25 to 44; 21% were from 45 to 64; and 14.8% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 49.6% male and 50.4% female.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 791 people, 332 households, and 222 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,355.7 inhabitants per square mile (909.5/km). There were 357 housing units at an average density of 1,063.2 per square mile (410.5/km). The racial makeup of the city was 96.59% White, 0.88% Native American, 0.25% Asian, 1.26% from other races, and 1.01% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.39% of the population.

There were 332 households, out of which 34.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.5% were married couples living together, 12.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.1% were non-families. 28.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 2.96.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 30.0% under the age of 18, 6.6% from 18 to 24, 27.4% from 25 to 44, 21.1% from 45 to 64, and 14.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.7 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $28,021, and the median income for a family was $35,385. Males had a median income of $30,833 versus $21,964 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,449. About 11.1% of families and 15.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.1% of those under age 18 and 11.4% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

• Roderick Asher - geologist
• Guyle Fielder - former NHL player
• Jane Goude - actress, born in Potlatch
• Malcolm Renfrew - chemist
• Pat Shea - former NHL player

See also

• Washington, Idaho and Montana Railway

References

1. "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
2. ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved December 18, 2012.
3. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Potlatch, Idaho
4. ^ Schwantes, Carlos (1996). The Pacific Northwest: An Interpretive history. University of Nebraska Press.
5. "About - The Family Tree Collection, a Potlatch Forests, Inc. Newsletter - Digital Initiatives - University of Idaho Library". www.lib.uidaho.edu. Retrieved September 10, 2019.
6. ^ Historic Resources of Potlatch, a National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form dated August 6, 1986. Retrieved 2012-05-24.
7. Carscallen, Zac; Idaho, University of. "Potlatch Lumber Mill and the Company Town". Intermountain Histories. Retrieved September 12, 2019.
8. Johnson, David (August 13, 1981). "Hard times ahead". Lewiston Morning Tribune. p. 1A.
9. Johnson, David (August 15, 1981). "The mill's last day". Lewiston Morning Tribune. p. 1A.
10. Geranios, Nicholas K. (May 24, 2012). "Idaho town seeks to lure gun and ammo makers". The Seattle Times. Associated Press. Retrieved May 24, 2012.
11. Field reports: Ammunition company moves to Potlatch from The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved 2012-05-24.
12. "US Gazetteer files 2010". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on July 2, 2012. Retrieved December 18, 2012.
13. "NOWData - NOAA Online Weather Data". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved December 13, 2023.
14. "Summary of Monthly Normals 1991-2020". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved December 13, 2023.
15. "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". United States Census Bureau. May 24, 2020. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
16. "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
17. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.

Further reading

• Petersen, Keith C. Company Town Potlatch, Idaho, and the Potlatch Lumber Company. Moscow: Latah County Historical Society.

v t e Municipalities and communities of Latah County, Idaho, United States
County seat: Moscow
Cities	Bovill Deary Genesee Juliaetta Kendrick Moscow Onaway Potlatch Troy
CDPs	Princeton Viola
Other communities	Avon Blaine Cornwall Crescent Freeze Harvard Helmer Lenville Linden Nora Stanford Vassar
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