City of Centralia Lewis County, Washington
Mapped Location
City of Centralia: The mapped location is an approximation and should not be used for navigation or wayfinding.
Information
General information on City of Centralia
- Feature Type: Incorporated
Official, historical, colloquial and alternative toponyms for City of Centralia
A brief list of names that this geographic feature has been named
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| City of Centralia | Official |
| Centralia | Official |
A Selected Bibliography of City of Centralia, Lewis County, Washington
A compilation of essential readings detailing the history, geography, and culture of the region.
George Washington of Centralia how the pioneering son of a slave crossed the continent, founded a town, and saved it during its darkest hours by Brian Mittge, Kerry MacGregor Serl
Although George Washington has been in the public eye since facing a racially-charged court case in the 1840s and a quick vote of support by the Missouri Legislature, his full life’s story has never been completely told — until now. Local historians Brian Mittge and Kerry MacGregor Serl have pulled together public documents, little-known archival materials and oral histories into a 200-page story that reads like the full history of the 19th century. From slavery to the frontier, from the Oregon Trail to the Pacific Northwest, this is a story that is sweeping in its scope but human to its core. You’ll read about the ways that George Washington nurtured ties during a time of division, creating unity in the community he created and sustaining his neighbors through the depth of dire economic depression.
xviii, 198 pages : illustrations, maps ; 23 cm
Non-circulating [ 1 ]
The Centralia tragedy of 1919 Elmer Smith and the Wobblies by Tom Copeland
On November 11, 1919, the citizens of Centralia, Washington, gathered to watch former servicemen, local Boy Scouts, and other community groups march in the Armistice Day parade. When the marchers swung past the meeting hall of the Industrial Workers of the World, a group of veterans broke ranks, charged the hall, and were met by gunshots. Before the day was over, four of the marchers were dead and one of the Wobblies had been lynched by the mob. Through a wealth of newly available primary source material including previously sealed court documents, FBI records released under the Freedom of Information Act, and interviews with surviving witnesses, Tom Copeland has pieced together the events of that day and has traced the fate of the men who were accused and convicted of murdering the marchers. Copeland focuses on Elmer Smith, the local attorney who advised the Wobblies that they had the right to defend their hall against an anticipated attack. Although he never belonged to the I.W.W., Smith sympathized with their interests, championing the rights of working people and speaking on their behalf. He was originally arrested with the Wobblies and then took up their cause in the courts, beginning a life-long struggle to free the men who were charged with murdering the Centralia marchers. The fight lasted for fourteen years, during which Smith endured insults, threats, arrest, disbarment, and reinstatement. Copeland recounts Smith's run for political office, his speeches throughout the Northwest, and his unyielding support for the workers' cause. In 1932 he died at the age of forty-four. The book is a balanced treatment of the Centralia tragedy and its legal repercussions written by a practicing lawyer. It is also a compelling human drama, centering on the marginal life of an industrial frontier labor lawyer; a study of radical politics of the 1920s; and a depiction of conditions of life in the lumber camps and towns. It is thus biography as well as legal, political, and social history
xv, 233 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations ; 25 cm
Non-circulating [ 1 ]
Centralia, the first fifty years, 1845-1900 by Herndon Smith (Compiler), Centralia High School (Wash)
Centralia, the first fifty years, 1845-1900 examines the steady civic expansion and critical overland transit development situated within the broad, fertile prairies and river corridors of the Chehalis River valley in southwestern Washington. Smith and the students of Centralia High School detail how the region's distinct topography—specifically its natural prairie clearings amidst dense lowland forests and its vital position at the confluence of the Chehalis and Skookumchuck rivers—strictly dictated the margins of early pioneer settlement and later rail expansion. By mapping the evolution of this natural terrestrial crossroads into a crucial railway hub connecting the Columbia River to Puget Sound, the narrative highlights how the specific valley geography anchored the town's enduring commercial role. Ultimately, this civic and educational record serves as a localized spatial history, demonstrating how the expansive valley terrain and strategic midpoint geography of this Pacific Northwest landscape fundamentally shaped the highly connected, transit-dependent character of early Centralia.
xvi, 368 pages : illustrations, portraits ; 22 cm
Non-circulating [ 1 ]
Lewis County
- Adna
- Ajlune
- Alpha
- Alta Vista
- Berry Patch
- Blakeslee Junction
- Boistfort
- Bremer
- Bunker
- Carlson
- City of Centralia
- Ceres
- City of Chehalis
- Cinebar
- Cispus
- Claquato
- Cora
- Cowlitz
- Crego (historical)
- Curtis
- Doty
- Dryad
- Ethel
- Evaline
- Fayette
- Fords Prairie
- Forest
- Galvin
- Glenoma
- Harmony
- Klaber
- Klaus
- Kopiah
- Kosmos (historical)
- Lacamas
- Lindberg (historical)
- Littell
- Marys Corner
- Mayfield
- Mays (historical)
- McCormick
- Meskill
- Millburn
- Mineral
- City of Morton
- City of Mossyrock
- Murnen
- City of Napavine
- Nesika
- Newaukum
- Nulls Crossing
- Onalaska
- Oxley
- Packwood
- Town of Pe Ell
- Phillips
- Randle
- Reynolds (historical)
- Riffe (historical)
- Ruth
- Saint Urban
- Salkum
- Siler
- Silver Brook
- Silver Creek
- Swofford
- City of Toledo
- City of Vader
- Vance (not official)
- Wabash
- Walville
- Wildwood
- Wilson
- City of Winlock
- Winston
Political Boundaries
Last updated: 2017-01-15