Brief
History:
Before Europeans arrived, the
Okanogan County region was home to
numerous indigenous peoples that would
eventually become part of three
Indian reservations referred to as the
Northern Okanogans or Sinkaietk,
Tokoratums,
Kartars and Konkonelps. They spoke
in seven types of Interior Salish
languages related to the Puget Sound
tribes.
The Okanogans experienced a
favorable climate, camping in the winter,
hunting bears in the spring, catching fish
in
the summer and hunting deer in fall.
The camps consisted of teepee-like
longhouses built with hides and bark.
Women gathered nuts and berries. A
popular destination for this was the
Kettle Falls, where the Columbia River
dropped some 20 feet (6.1 m).
Due to its remoteness, the Okanogan
County area was one of the last in
Washington settled by Europeans. It was an
early thoroughfare used by
prospectors to gain access to other
communities, such as British Columbia. By
the 21st
century, the region specialized in
agriculture, forestry and tourism.
Electric producer Grand Coulee Dam was
constructed between 1933 and 1942,
originally with two power plants, around
the Okanogan and Grant counties at
the former's southern border.
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