Atoona - Washington Ghost Town

ALTOONA

NAME: Altoona
COUNTY: Wahkiakum
ROADS: 2WD
GRID: 6
CLIMATE: Cool winter and summer.
BEST TIME TO VISIT: Anytime.

COMMENTS: On the water.
REMAINS: Many remnants including the docks. - Update - There are no docks, no warehouse, nothing except a few older
houses that look like people are living in.- Mark Lewis

To have survived in Altoona during its early days was a mark of individual achievement. Located on the north shore of the Columbia River near its mouth. Altoona was accessible only by boat until the early 1950s when a road from civilization finally reached the town. Being salmon country, a cannery was the main business in Altoona from the 1870s until the cannery closed in the late 1940s when canning became unprofitable. With the closing of the cannery, river traffic dwindled to practically nothing thus sealing the fate of Altoona. Pilings, docks, wharves and buildings from the olden days, although seldom used, offer an excellent picture of life and the early days of Altoona. Submitted by Henry Chenowith.	Altoona Courtesy Mark Lewis Altoona Courtesy Mark Lewis Altoona Courtesy Mark Lewis Altoona Courtesy Mark Lewis

To have survived in Altoona during its early days was a mark of individual achievement. Located on the north shore of the Columbia River near its mouth. Altoona was accessible only by boat until the early 1950s when a road from civilization finally reached the town. Being salmon country, a cannery was the main business in Altoona from the 1870s until the cannery closed in the late 1940s when canning became unprofitable. With the closing of the cannery, river traffic dwindled to practically nothing thus sealing the fate of Altoona. Pilings, docks, wharves and buildings from the olden days, although seldom used, offer an excellent picture of life and the early days of Altoona. Submitted by Henry Chenowith.

Altoona
Courtesy Mark Lewis

BACK