Longview, Washington, United States

History | Historic Places | Government | Geography | Manufacturing | Sport | Parks and recreation | Education | Media : Radio | Newsprint | Media : Television : Other | Transport | Tourist Industry | Nutty Narrows Bridge

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Longview is a city in Cowlitz County, Washington, United States. It is the principal city of the Longview, Washington Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Cowlitz County. Longview's population was 37,818 at the time of the 2020 census, making it the largest city in Cowlitz County. The city is located in south-western Washington, at the junction of the Cowlitz and Columbia rivers. Longview shares a border with Kelso to the east, which is the county seat.

The Cowlitz Indian Tribe, a federally recognised tribe of Cowlitz people, is headquartered in Longview.

The Long-Bell Lumber Company, led by Robert A. Long, decided to buy a great expanse of timberland in Cowlitz County in 1918. A total of 14,000 workers were needed to run the two large mills as well as lumber camps that were planned. The number of workers needed was more than a lumber town, or the nearest town, could provide. Long planned and built a complete city in 1921 that could support a population of up to 50,000 and provide labor for the mills as well as attracting other industries. Several buildings in the city were built from Long's private funds.

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History Longview was the location of Mount Coffin, an ancestral burial ground for the local indigenous people.

The first Euro-American settlers were led by Harry and Rebecca Jane Huntington, in 1849. The area was named Monticello in honor of Thomas Jefferson's home in Virginia. In 1852 a group assembled in what would be called the "Monticello Convention" to petition Congress for statehood to be called "Columbia". Congress agreed to statehood but as Washington, after President Washington, to avoid confusion with the District of Columbia. A monument to the convention is located near the Longview Civic Center. From 1854 to 1865 the town of Monticello was the seat of Cowlitz County, before being destroyed by the flooding of the Cowlitz River in December 1867. In 1865 Nathaniel Stone founded the town of Freeport (a mile upriver from Monticello) which became the seat of Cowlitz County until 1872. The area of the towns of Monticello and Freeport is now part of the city of Longview.

The area remained sparsely populated for nearly 60 years, consisting mostly of farmland and wilderness. In 1918, Missouri timber baron Robert A. Long (1850–1934) decided to move his operation out to the west coast, owing to the Long-Bell Lumber Company's dwindling supplies in the south. By 1921, Wesley Vandercook had decided to build a mill near the small town of Kelso, Washington. It was apparent that Kelso, with a population of barely 2,000, would not be able to support the approximately 14,000 men that would be required to run the mill.

The Long-Bell company contracted with George Kessler, a city planner based in St. Louis, to build the city that would support the two mills that were now planned.

Kessler designed a masterpiece based on the nation's capital, with elements of Roman City planning. Its theme is rooted in the City Beautiful movement, which influenced urban design in the early 20th century. Longview was officially incorporated on February 14, 1924. At the time of its conception, Longview was the only planned city of its magnitude to have ever been conceived of and built entirely with private funds. A number of prominent buildings in Longview were purchased with R. A. Long's personal funds, including R. A. Long High School, the Longview Public Library, the YMCA building and the Monticello Hotel.

The initial growth period, lasting from 1923 to 1934, was very rapid. The city grew from a few thousand people to being the fourth largest city in the state by the 1930s. However, the effects of the Great Depression hampered further development of the planned city until the booming World War II economy, when the Port of Longview became a strategic location for loading cargo going into the Pacific Theater.

Suburban developments created neighborhoods in the western valley in the 1960s. The local economy has been in decline since lumber companies mechanized production in the 1970s and 1980s, reducing the availability of jobs. No major development occurred until a brief boom in the early 2000s, ended by the recession of the late 2000s.

Recently, an initiative from local activists has pushed to implement a new strategic plan to increase development in the city, in an effort to expand affordable housing.

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Historic Places Longview has many historic buildings, many of which were built in the initial growth period from 1923 to 1934, prior to the worst effects of the Great Depression. Ranging from Georgian-revival style with the major public buildings, Tudor and craftsman style homes, commercial vernacular, and Art Deco, there are many contributing properties. A park, a bridge, and many buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, along with the Civic Center, that is a National Register Historic District. • Berwind-Purcell House • Big Four Furniture Building – Built in 1924 for Lumberman's Bank. • Columbia Theater • First Christian Church • Lake Sacajawea Park • R. A. Long High School • Longview Bridge – Also known as the Lewis and Clark Bridge. • Nutty Narrows Bridge - Is a squirrel bridge in Longview. • Longview Civic Center Historic District • Longview Community Church • Longview Community Church-Saint Helen's Addition • Longview Community Store • Longview Women's Clubhouse • Mills Building • Pacific Telephone and Telegraph Building • Pounder Building • Schumann Building • Sevier and Weed Building • J. D. Tennant House • Tyni Building • US Post Office – Longview Main • Washington Gas and Electric Building • Willard Building.

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Government The city has seven council members with one serving as the mayor as well as a city manager. The city council elects a mayor out of themselves every two years. The mayor runs the council meetings, and serves as the ceremonial figure head of the city. Day-to-day operations are conducted by the City Manager, who is hired by the city council.

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Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 14.79 square miles (38.31 km²), of which 14.49 square miles (37.53 km²) is land and 0.30 square miles (0.78 km²) is water.

The Lewis and Clark Bridge spans the Columbia River, linking Longview to Rainier, Oregon. It is the only bridge spanning the river between Portland and Astoria, Oregon.

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Manufacturing Manufacturing in Longview accounts for 19% of the employment and easy access to the Columbia River, Interstate 5, and the west coast railways has attracted a rapidly diversifying manufacturing base. The abundance of timber around Longview provides the city's former two largest employers, Weyerhaeuser and Kapstone with timber products. Other major manufacturers in Longview include NORPAC (newsprint), Solvay Chemicals (hydrogen peroxide), and Westlake Chemical (formerly Axiall). Smaller operations include Epson Toyocom, Northwest Hardwoods, Interfor (originally Caffall Brothers, then Stimpson lumber, now Interfor US Inc), Peterson Manufacturing, JM Huber, Specialty Minerals, HASA and the Simpson Timber Company.

Marine transportation

The Port of Longview, established in 1921, has eight marine terminals handling a wide range of cargo from windmills, pencil pitch, calcined coke, pulp bales, lumber, grain, logs and steel. The Port is 66 miles (106 km) from the Pacific Ocean.

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Sport The Cowlitz Black Bears baseball team call Longview and Kelso home. The Black Bears play in the West Coast League, an independent summer baseball league with teams from Washington, Oregon, and British Columbia. The team plays at David Story Field on the Lower Columbia College campus.

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Parks and recreation Longview has a variety of parks and recreation facilities. Longview Parks and Recreation maintains the local parks, including Lake Sacajawea. Dozens of other parks exist within city limits with walking trails, sport fields, dog-friendly areas, children's play areas, and other features. Both Longview and its neighbor city, Kelso, are home to skateparks. Two athletic clubs exist, including the YMCA and Mint Valley Racquet and Fitness. Golf clubs in the local area include Longview Country Club and Mint Valley. The Longview parks and Recreation also works with youths of different ages with programs such as the elementary and middle schools after-school programs, The Boulevard for youths of grades 6–12, and Youth and Family link.

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Education Lower Columbia College (LCC), based in Longview, was established in 1934.

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Media: Radio • KEDO AM 1270 (Talk radio) • KBAM AM 1400 (Classic country) • KLOG AM 1490 (Classic Hits) • KJVH FM 89.5 (Christian radio) • KLWO FM 90.3 (Contemporary Christian) • KLYK FM 94.5 (Hot Adult Contemporary) • KPPK FM 98.3 "The Peak" (Adult hits) • KRQT FM 107.1 "Rocket 107" (Classic rock) • KUKN FM 105.5 (Country) • K268BN FM 101.5 "The Wave" (Classic rock)

(Simulcast as KUKN-HD2 FM 105.5)

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Newsprint • The Daily News – Longview's primary newspaper, won a 1981 Pulitzer Prize for its coverage of the Mount St. Helens eruption. • Columbia River Reader – A monthly community newspaper. • Valley Bugler – A monthly "good news" and community events paper that grew out of the now defunct Castle Rock Advocate in 1998.

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Media: Television • KLTV – Local public-access television cable television channel, which has its headquarters in downtown Longview, at the corner of 12th Avenue and Washington Way.

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Media: Other • Citizens Update News is a local news and talk show hosted by community activist Spencer Boudreau, and broadcast to Facebook. Citizens Update is based out of the historic Monticello Hotel, and covers community events and happenings.

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Transport Longview is on the I-5 Corridor and is served by State Route 4 and State Route 432, which connect it to nearby Kelso and Wahkiakum County. State Route 433 connects Longview to Rainier, OR over the Lewis and Clark Bridge.

The city is also served by RiverCities Transit, a local bus system that travels between Kelso and Longview.

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Tourist Industry Longview is right down the highway from Castle Rock, which is a gateway to the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument, and tourism is playing an increasingly important role in the area's economy.

Every Independence Day, Longview hosts the Go Fourth Fest at Lake Sacajawea. Over 30,000 people flock to the lake for vendor booths, live concerts, exhibits, the annual parade starting downtown and ending at the park, and the fireworks display on the night of the fourth.

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Nutty Narrows Bridge Longview is home to the Nutty Narrows Bridge built in 1963 by Amos Peters. For many years, it was the only bridge in the world designed and built strictly for squirrels. The bridge was built in 1963 and its purpose was to avoid squirrel casualties on the busy streets beneath.

Longview began a new annual festival, known as Squirrel Fest, in 2011. As part of the festival, a new squirrel bridge has been unveiled each year, and as of 2014, there are now four squirrel bridges in the city.

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America/Los_Angeles/Washington 
<b>America/Los_Angeles/Washington</b>
Image: Adobe Stock George Cole #293847545

Longview has a population of over 37,818 people. Longview also forms the centre of the wider Longview Metropolitan Area which has a population of over 110,730 people.

To set up a UBI Lab for Longview see: https://www.ubilabnetwork.org Twitter: https://twitter.com/UBILabNetwork

Twin Towns, Sister Cities Longview has links with:

🇯🇵 Wakō, Japan
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