History of Wenatchee
About Wenatchee
The name Wenatchee is derived from the names of a river, a valley, and a tribe in the region. Although the tribe's name was Wenachi in English, the town was founded between the confluence of the Columbia and Wenatchee Rivers in Chelan County, where it is still located today. Wenatchee is also the county seat of Chelan County.
Let's go back to the late nineteenth century. Judge Thomas Burke was the original name given to a man who came to be known as "The Father of Wenatchee." He later went by the title of "The Father of Wenatchee." A native of Seattle, Burke has his fingers in a variety of business-related pies, according to his friends. Among other things, the judge was a shareholder in the Lake Shore & Eastern Railroad, the Great Northern Railway, and other companies.
Human settlement began in the region between 1871 and 1890, with Burke serving as an agent on behalf of a development firm that handled the construction of around 1,400 acres during this period.
However, despite the fact that the new community had access to fresh water and railways, the climate was dry, and the soil proved difficult to cultivate in the beginning.
With the installation of a cutting-edge irrigation system for the town in 1904, the community made significant strides forward. That was the method by which the city expanded its apple output.
Highline Canal
Highline Canal, built by Burke with the assistance of William Timothy Clark and the Wenatchee Development Company, was 16 miles long and supplied irrigation for 9,000 acres on the narrow sides of the Wenatchee River.
In conjunction with capturing and using the river's pure water to grow apples, the mineral-rich volcanic soil created a perfect environment for the development of apple cultivation in the region.
After a few years of cultivating young apple trees, apples were exported to countries all over the globe. As a result, Wenatchee earned the nickname "valley of the apples," with people and families traveling from far and wide to take advantage of the lucrative opportunity. Within 25 years, the town of Wenatchee had earned the title of "apple capital of the world."