Okanogan, Washington, United States

🇺🇸 Okanogan ("rendezvous", "meeting place") is a city in Okanogan County, Washington, United States. Within the Greater Omak Area. It is the seat of Okanogan County. It has a small commuter airfield, Okanogan Legion Airport – (S35) with one paved runway of 2,533 ft (772 m) in length.

History Okanogan was officially incorporated on October 29, 1907. A pair of 115 year old 60 ft (18 m) long murals were discovered during renovation of a 1907 commercial building in January 2022. The murals were initially tentatively attributed to Western photographer Frank S. Matsura as the building had been used as a theater several times and Matsura had played in the Okanogan County Band on stage there. The mural is painted on canvases split between the north and south walls, and a 1915 newspaper clipping found by the Okanogan County Historical Society provided coverage of plans for the murals. Then the Hub Theater, the building was planned to incorporate panoramic scenery murals in tans painted by a local artist. further investigation lead to attribution of the murals to a Wenatchee painter W.J. McConnon. The owners planned to take the murals down for restoration before rehanging them as the centerpiece of a historical exhibit.

Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.00 square miles (5.18 km²), of which, 1.95 square miles (5.05 km²) is land and 0.05 square miles (0.13 km²) is water. The town is located along the Okanogan River.

Demographics As of the 2010 census, there were 2,552 people, 983 households, and 619 families living in the city. The population density was 1,308.7 inhabitants per square mile (505.3/km²). There were 1,051 housing units at an average density of 539.0 per square mile (208.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 79.8% White, 0.5% African American, 7.9% Native American, 0.4% Asian, 0.2% Pacific Islander, 6.4% from other races, and 4.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 14.1% of the population.

There were 983 households, of which 32.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.6% were married couples living together, 15.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.6% had a male householder with no wife present, and 37.0% were non-families. 30.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.91.

The median age in the city was 37.7 years. 24.2% of residents were under the age of 18; 10.1% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 24.3% were from 25 to 44; 26.6% were from 45 to 64; and 14.9% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 50.7% male and 49.3% female.