Editing Kennewick, Washington (section)

===Settlement and early 20th century===
[[File:Businessmen at the Kennewick train station, September 1908 (WASTATE 1471).jpeg|thumb|left|Businessmen from the [[Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce|Seattle Chamber of Commerce]] visiting Kennewick in 1908.]]
The [[Umatilla people|Umatilla]] and [[Yakama]] tribes ceded the land Kennewick sits on at the [[Walla Walla Council (1855)|Walla Walla Council]] in 1855.<ref name=Study>{{cite book |title=Hanford Reach of the Columbia River |publisher=[[National Park Service]] |date=1992}}</ref> Ranchers began working with cattle and horses in the area as early as the 1860s, but in general settlement was slow due to the arid climate. [[Ainsworth, Washington|Ainsworth]] became the first non-Native settlement in the area—where [[U.S. Route 12 in Washington|U.S. Route 12]] now crosses the [[Snake River]] between Pasco and [[Burbank, Washington|Burbank]]. Some Ainsworth residents would commute to what is now Kennewick via small boats for work. All that remains of Ainsworth is a marker placed by the [[Washington State Department of Transportation]] near the site.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://explore-wa.com/roadside-markers-of-washington/ |title=Roadside Markers of Washington |date=October 4, 2018 |publisher=Explore Washington |access-date=December 30, 2019 |archive-date=December 30, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191230192822/https://explore-wa.com/roadside-markers-of-washington/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

During the 1880s, [[steamboat]]s and railroads connected what would become known as Kennewick to the other settlements along the Columbia River.<ref name=HistoryLink /> Until the construction of a railroad bridge, rail freight from [[Minneapolis]] to [[Tacoma, Washington|Tacoma]] had to cross the Columbia River via ferry.<ref>[http://historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=5365 "First trains cross the Northern Pacific Railroad bridge spanning the Columbia River between Pasco and Kennewick on December 3, 1887."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081202112509/http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?displaypage=output.cfm&file_id=5365 |date=December 2, 2008 }}, History Link; Retrieved November 16, 2009.</ref> In 1887, a temporary railroad bridge was constructed by the [[Northern Pacific Railroad]] connecting Kennewick and Pasco. That bridge could not endure the winter ice on the Columbia and was partially swept away in the first winter. A new, more permanent bridge was built in its place in 1888. It was around this time that a town plan was first laid out, centered around the needs of the railroad. A school was constructed using donated funds, but this burned soon after it was finished. This initial boom only lasted briefly, as most of the people who came to Kennewick left after the bridge was finished.<ref name=TCH />

In the 1890s, the Northern Pacific Irrigation Company installed pumps and ditches to bring [[Irrigation|water for agriculture]] into the Kennewick Highlands. Once there was a reliable water source, orchards and vineyards were planted all over the Kennewick area. Strawberries were another successful crop.<ref>Gibson, Elizabeth. [http://historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=5671 "Benton County&nbsp;– Thumbnail History"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100615153333/http://historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=5671 |date=June 15, 2010 }}. ''HistoryLink.org''. March 29, 2004. Retrieved February 28, 2010.</ref> The turn of the century saw the creation of the city's first newspaper, the ''Columbia Courier''. Kennewick was officially incorporated on February 5, 1904. and the name of the newspaper changed to the ''Kennewick Courier'' in 1905 to reflect this change.<ref name=KennCourier>{{cite web |url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn87093029/ |title=About The Kennewick Courier. (Kennewick, Wash.) 1905-1914 |publisher=[[Library of Congress]] |access-date=December 30, 2019 |archive-date=October 19, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201019014745/https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn87093029/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In the following decade, an unsuccessful bid attempted to move the seat of Benton County from [[Prosser, Washington|Prosser]] to Kennewick. There have been other unsuccessful attempts to make this move throughout the city's history, most recently in 2010.<ref>Gibson, Elizabeth. [http://historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=7744 "Voters fail to move Benton County seat from Prosser following rivalry with Benton City and Kennewick on November 5, 1912."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100615213452/http://historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=7744 |date=June 15, 2010 }} ''HistoryLink.org''. May 29, 2006. Retrieved February 28, 2010.</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Benton County seat move debated with editors |last=Trumbo |first=John |url=https://www.tri-cityherald.com/news/local/article31789836.html |work=Tri-City Herald |date=September 22, 2010 |access-date=December 30, 2019 |archive-date=December 30, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191230203121/https://www.tri-cityherald.com/news/local/article31789836.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1915, the opening of the [[Celilo Canal]] connected Kennewick to the Pacific Ocean via the Columbia River. City residents hoped to capitalize on this new infrastructure by forming the Port of Kennewick, making the city an [[inland port|inland seaport]]. Freight and passenger ship traffic began that same year. The port also developed rail facilities in the area.<ref name=PortHistory>{{cite web |url=https://www.portofkennewick.org/history/ |title=History |publisher=Port of Kennewick |access-date=December 30, 2019 |archive-date=September 29, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200929180410/https://www.portofkennewick.org/history/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Transportation in the region further improved with the construction of the [[Pasco-Kennewick Bridge (1922)|Pasco-Kennewick Bridge]] in 1922, which is locally known as the Green Bridge. This bridge connected the two cities by vehicle traffic for the first time.<ref>{{cite book |title=Washington Then & Now |first=Paul |last=Dorpat |author2=Sherrard, Jean |page=106 |year=2007 |publisher=Big Earth Publishing |isbn=978-1-56579-547-1}}</ref><ref name=HLPasco>{{cite web |url=https://www.historylink.org/File/8604 |title=Pasco — Thumbnail History |first=Jim |last=Kershner |work=HistoryLink |date=May 1, 2008 |access-date=December 30, 2019 |archive-date=December 30, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191230192829/https://www.historylink.org/File/8604 |url-status=live }}</ref> Kennewick and Pasco both experienced decent growth and became informally known as the Twin Cities throughout the Columbia Basin because of their juxtaposition across the river from each other.

Like many other agricultural communities, the [[Great Depression]] had an impact in Kennewick. Despite lowered prices for crops grown in the region, the city continued to experience growth, gaining another 400 people during the 1930s. Growth was aided by federal projects that improved the Columbia River. Downstream, [[Bonneville Dam]] at [[Cascade Locks, Oregon]] allowed larger barges to reach Kennewick. [[Grand Coulee Dam]], located upstream of Kennewick, fostered irrigation across the Columbia Basin north of Pasco, sending more raw material through Kennewick.<ref name=HistoryLink />