A history of Copalis Beach,
then and now
Postcards, papers and photographs of Copalis Beach from public archives, woven together by decade. Neighbors fill in the gaps.
The story
from WikipediaRead it all ↗The Copalis Native Americans belong to the coastal division of the Salishan language family and historically occupied the area of Copalis River and the Pacific Coast between the mouth of Joe Creek and Grays Harbor. In 1805, Lewis and Clark estimated a population of 200 Copalis in 10 houses. The 5 individuals assigned to a "Chepalis" tribe in an enumeration given by Olson of the year 1888 probably refers to them.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Timeline
built from the dates on the items belowFinish Copalis Beach’s story
Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.
2 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 🔁Retake an old viewDamon Halferty, another man, & do…, 1912: stand where they stood+15 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10Copalis Beach, decade by decade
1990s
Nothing in Copalis Beach is on the National Register yet
That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Copalis Beach has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Grays Harbor Light Station in Westport, 16 miles away.
Copalis Beach and the nearest listed places
How a place gets listed
Then & now
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as Damon Halferty, another man, & dog standing in front of cannery and horse-drawn wagon carrying cases of canned clams, C… (1912) and it appears here side by side.
🔁 Retake this view · +15Stories next door
nearby towns’ historyFrom Wikimedia Commons (6). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.