Editing Sultan, Washington (section)

==History==

The area around the Sultan and Skykomish rivers was occupied by the [[Skykomish people|Skykomish]], a branch of the [[Snohomish people]], prior to the arrival of American settlers. The Skykomish had a permanent village at the confluence named {{lang|lut|tʷ'tsɬitɬd}}, along with a nearby [[fishery]] named {{lang|lut|stək'talidubc}}.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hollenbeck |first1=Jan L. |last2=Moss |first2=Madonna |year=1987 |title=A Cultural Resource Overview: Prehistory, Ethnography and History: Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest |publisher=[[United States Forest Service]] |pages=161–164 |oclc=892024380 |url=https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/005998596 |via=[[HathiTrust]] |access-date=January 5, 2019}}</ref> Following the discovery of a rich [[gold]] vein along the Sultan River, the land around the confluence was [[land claim|claimed]] for a [[Homestead Acts|homestead]] by John Nailor and his wife in 1880.<ref name="Damkaer10">{{cite book |editor-last=Damkaer |editor-first=David M. |year=2000 |title=Sultan City, W.T. — Where the Bright Waters Meet |publisher=Sky Valley Historical Society |edition=3rd |page=10 |oclc=44631560 <!--{{SfnRef|Damkaer|2000}}-->}}</ref> Among the first arrivals to the area were [[Chinese Americans|Chinese]] prospectors, who later settled the land but were evicted in 1885.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Kirk |first1=Ruth |last2=Alexander |first2=Carmela |year=1995 |title=Exploring Washington's Past: A Road Guide to History |page=262 |publisher=[[University of Washington Press]] |location=Seattle |isbn=0-295-97443-5 |oclc=33206378 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BNAYPXb22sYC |via=Google Books |access-date=January 5, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{harvp|Damkaer|2000|page=71}}</ref> Nailor built a small [[general store|store]] and hotel to serve miners and loggers, eventually serving as the first [[postmaster]] after the settlement received a [[post office]] in 1885.<ref name="HistoryLink">{{cite web |last=Riddle |first=Margaret |date=July 1, 2014 |title=Sultan is incorporated on June 28, 1905. |url=http://historylink.org/File/10802 |work=[[HistoryLink]] |access-date=January 5, 2019}}</ref> The town and river were named "Sultan", an [[Anglicisation|anglicization]] of {{lang|lut|Tseul-tud}} (also known as Tseul-dan), then chief of the Skykomish tribe.<ref name="HistoryLink"/><ref>{{cite book |last=Meany |first=Edmond S. |author-link=Edmond S. Meany |year=1923 |title=Origin of Washington Geographic Names |page=295 |publisher=[[University of Washington Press]] |oclc=1963675 |jstor=40474647 |url=https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/001444300 |via=HathiTrust |access-date=January 5, 2019}}</ref>

[[File:Street scene, Sultan, ca 1913 (PICKETT 784).jpeg|thumb|left|Main Street in Sultan, {{circa}} 1913]]

The Nailors sold {{convert|20|acre|ha}} of their homestead to William B. Stevens in 1889, who filed the first [[plat]] for Sultan City that October.<ref>{{harvp|Damkaer|2000|p=13}}</ref> The [[Great Northern Railway (U.S.)|Great Northern Railway]] placed a [[supply depot]] for its railroad workers in Sultan in 1891, meeting river [[steamboat]]s and contributing to the town's early growth.<ref name="HistoryLink"/><ref>{{harvp|Damkaer|2000|pages=33–34}}</ref> Sultan gained its first [[sawmill]] in 1891 and a [[wood shingle|shingle]] mill in 1895, as the local economy transitioned away from mining and towards logging.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hunt |first1=Herbert |last2=Kaylor |first2=Floyd C. |year=1917 |title=Washington, West of the Cascades: Historical and Descriptive |page=[https://archive.org/details/washingtonwestc00kaylgoog/page/n583 399] |publisher=[[S. J. Clarke Publishing Company]] |location=Chicago |oclc=10086413 |url=https://archive.org/details/washingtonwestc00kaylgoog |via=Internet Archive |access-date=January 5, 2019}}</ref> Sultan was officially incorporated as a city on June 28, 1905.<ref name="HistoryLink"/> At the time, the city had a population of 700 people and three general stores, along with a variety of small industries.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Warner |first=John F. |editor-last=Wilhelm |editor-first=Honor L. |date=November 1908 |title=Sultan, Washington |journal=The Coast |publisher=The Coast Publishing Company |location=Seattle |volume=XVI |issue=5 |pages=332–333 |oclc=81457448 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0LARAAAAYAAJ |via=Google Books |access-date=January 5, 2019}}</ref> By 1912, the city had a [[public library]], electrical service, paved streets, and was considering a plan to build a [[hydroelectric dam]] that would also provide [[tap water|municipal water]] service.<ref>{{cite news |last=Darwin |first=L. H. |date=May 24, 1912 |title=Profits Come From Sultan's Industries |page=23 |work=The Seattle Times}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=The Historical Committee |date=April 1959 |title=The History of Sultan |page=17 |publisher=Sultan Community Development Project }}</ref> A bridge across the Skykomish River was built in 1908 to connect to new farms on the south bank.<ref>{{harvp|Damkaer|2000|page=45}}</ref>

An economic slowdown after [[World War I]] led to a population decrease in the Skykomish Valley, causing Sultan voters to approve a reduction in the city's size in June 1920.<ref name="HistoryLink"/> The area was home to various illicit industries during the [[Prohibition era]] and experienced several major crimes, including the murder of [[Town Marshal|town marshal]] Percy Brewster on March 2, 1927, by a serial robber who later escaped from prison before being re-captured.<ref>{{harvp|Damkaer|2000|page=56}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Stevick |first=Eric |date=January 29, 2016 |title=Modern theft of vintage gun revives 1927 Sultan murder tale |url=https://www.heraldnet.com/news/modern-theft-of-vintage-gun-revives-1927-sultan-murder-tale/ |work=The Everett Herald |access-date=March 2, 2019}}</ref> The area also experienced an economic downturn during the [[Great Depression]] and was home to a [[Civilian Conservation Corps]] camp that primarily dealt with firefighting and forest management.<ref name="HistoryLink"/><ref>{{harvp|Damkaer|2000|pages=57–58}}</ref> The [[Works Progress Administration]] also completed several projects in the city, including two expansions of the [[high school]] and its gymnasium in 1929 and 1939.<ref name="Damkaer23">{{harvp|Damkaer|2000|pages=23–26}}</ref> Several major fires struck Sultan in the 1940s, including one in October 1945 that destroyed a block of buildings on Main Street and another in 1947 that decimated the Sultan Union High School.<ref>{{harvp|Damkaer|2000|page=62}}</ref>

Sultan residents participated a civic improvement program during the 1950s and 1960s that upgraded or replaced several major facilities, often with assistance from the state government. A new [[city hall]] was opened in 1954, the elementary school was expanded in 1957, and a new [[landing field]] for airplanes and helicopters opened in 1958. The city annexed {{convert|33|acre|ha}} of rural land to the southeast in 1958 and it was subsequently developed for housing. The Skykomish River Bridge was also replaced by a new span in 1961.<ref>{{harvp|Damkaer|2000|pages=66–67}}</ref> The [[Snohomish County Public Utility District]] (PUD) constructed the [[Culmback Dam]] on the Sultan River, creating the [[Spada Lake]] reservoir and providing electricity and drinking water for [[Everett, Washington|Everett]] and much of the county beginning in 1965.<ref>{{harvp|Damkaer|2000|page=65}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Winters |first=Chris |date=February 13, 2017 |title=After 90 years, salmon are returning to upper Sultan River |url=https://www.heraldnet.com/news/after-90-years-salmon-are-returning-to-upper-sultan-river/ |work=The Everett Herald |access-date=March 2, 2019}}</ref>

The [[Sky River Rock Festival|Sky River Rock Festival and Lighter Than Air Fair]], one of the first outdoor U.S. music festivals, was hosted at a [[raspberry]] farm south of Sultan beginning August 30, 1968.<ref name="Times-SRR">{{cite news |last=de Barros |first=Paul |date=August 11, 2011 |title=1968's Sky River Rock Festival revisited Friday |url=http://old.seattletimes.com/html/musicnightlife/2015887006_river12.html |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=March 2, 2019}}</ref> The three-day festival, organized by radio station [[KSER|KRAB]] and the ''[[Helix (newspaper)|Helix]]'' newspaper, attracted an estimated 20,000 [[hippie]]s, of whom 13,000 had paid tickets, and was considered to be a forerunner for later festivals like [[Woodstock]].<ref name="Times-SRR"/><ref name="Herald-SRR">{{cite news |last=Muhlstein |first=Julie |date=August 30, 2008 |title=On this weekend 40 years ago, Sultan really rocked |url=https://www.heraldnet.com/news/on-this-weekend-40-years-ago-sultan-really-rocked/ |work=The Everett Herald |access-date=March 2, 2019}}</ref> Musical acts at the festival included [[Carlos Santana|Santana]], the [[Grateful Dead]], [[Country Joe McDonald]], [[Muddy Waters]], [[Buffy St. Marie]], and [[John Fahey (musician)|John Fahey]], among others.<ref name="Herald-SRR17">{{cite news |last=Fiege |first=Gale |date=August 24, 2017 |title=Sky River Rock Festival returns to Sultan nearly 50 years later |url=https://www.heraldnet.com/life/sky-river-rock-festival-returns-to-sultan-nearly-50-years-later/ |work=The Everett Herald |access-date=March 2, 2019}}</ref> The Sultan city government declined to allow the festival to return the following year due to the traffic and logistical issues that were experienced, including the venue running out of [[drinking water]].<ref name="HistoryLink"/><ref name="Herald-SRR"/> The event was largely forgotten by local residents, but was revived for a one-time festival in 2017.<ref name="Herald-SRR"/><ref name="Herald-SRR17"/>

[[File:Sultan, Washington aerial view - 2018.jpg|thumb|right|Aerial view of Sultan, showing suburban development from the 1990s and 2000s]]

Sultan has since developed into a [[bedroom community]] for workers commuting to Everett, [[Seattle]], and [[Bellevue, Washington|Bellevue]].<ref name="Damkaer103">{{harvp|Damkaer|2000|pages=103–104}}</ref> Several suburban [[subdivision (land)|subdivision]]s were built in the 1990s and early 2000s, contributing to a population boom and political strife over the area's rural and small-town character.<ref name="PI-Manager">{{cite news |last=Langston |first=Jennifer |date=September 16, 2002 |title=Ungainly growth brings calls for city managers |page=A1 |url=https://www.seattlepi.com/news/article/Ungainly-growth-brings-calls-for-city-managers-1096193.php |work=Seattle Post-Intelligencer |access-date=January 5, 2019}}</ref><ref name="Times03">{{cite news |last=Schwarzen |first=Christopher |date=December 31, 2003 |title=Sultan eyes its more-crowded future |page=H14 |url=https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/20031231/sultan31n/sultan-eyes-its-more-crowded-future |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=March 2, 2019}}</ref> The [[Department of Veteran Affairs]] considered the Sultan area for a new [[Tahoma National Cemetery|national military cemetery]], but ultimately chose a site near [[Kent, Washington|Kent]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Wilson |first=Geordie |date=December 14, 1991 |title=Maple Valley to get veterans' cemetery |page=B7 |url=https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/19911214/1322905/maple-valley-to-get-veterans-cemetery----officials-disappointed-in-bremerton-sultan |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=March 2, 2019}}</ref> Sultan celebrated its centennial in 2005 with several festivals and the dedication of a new visitor's center.<ref>{{cite news |last=O'Harran |first=Kristi |date=October 28, 2005 |title=Sultan opens long-awaited visitor center |url=<!--http://www.heraldnet.com/stories/05/10/28/100loc_oharran001.cfm--> |work=The Everett Herald}}</ref> Despite the population growth, the city's traditional businesses have left Sultan and caused a decline in local employment options.<ref>{{cite news |last=Hui Hsu |first=Judy Chia |date=April 13, 2005 |title=Proud of the past, wary of the future |page=H14 |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/proud-of-the-past-wary-of-the-future/ |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=March 2, 2019}}</ref>

In an effort to resolve development issues and a city budget shortfall, a [[Monroe, Washington|Monroe]] city councilmember unsuccessfully suggested merging the two cities during the [[2007 financial crisis]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Nohara |first=Yoshiaki |date=July 29, 2007 |title=Monroe eat Sultan? Idea causes heartburn |url=https://www.heraldnet.com/news/monroe-eat-sultan-idea-causes-heartburn/ |work=The Everett Herald |access-date=March 2, 2019}}</ref> The Sultan city government instead began outsourcing its policing and library services to county agencies while undergoing other reforms.<ref>{{cite news |last=Nohara |first=Yoshiaki |date=July 14, 2007 |title=Sultan in red; may cut library |work=The Everett Herald}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Nohara |first=Yoshiaki |date=November 25, 2007 |title=Sultan cautious about '08 budget |work=The Everett Herald}}</ref> The city government has endorsed schemes to lure new industries, including offering tracts of land and opening new parks and a [[shooting range]] in a bid to appeal to outdoor recreation companies.<ref>{{cite news |last=Batdorf |first=Kurt |date=April 23, 2012 |title=Sultan looks to lure outdoors firms to Sky Valley |url=https://www.heraldnet.com/business/sultan-looks-to-lure-outdoors-firms-to-sky-valley/ |work=The Everett Herald |access-date=March 2, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Schwarzen |first=Christopher |date=February 7, 2007 |title=Sultan attempts to manage commercial growing pains |page=B4 |work=The Seattle Times}}</ref>