ISSAQUAH AND HOW IT GOT ITS FUNNY NAME
If you can’t quite find that perfect name, just keep changing it and eventually something will stick. This is the tale of just such a quandary.
It was back in 1862 that natural riches—coal, not gold—were discovered along the Squak River, about 15 miles east-southeast of Seattle. At the time, the river had a native name, “Is-qu-ah.” This Indian word meant “snake” or maybe “little stream” or just the sound of certain birds. But the best, newly-arrived white men could make of the word with their untrained (or casual) ears was “squak.” So Squak River it came to be. In fact, in 1870, the area’s first post office was established nearby. Officially it was known as the Squak P.O.
Daniel Hunt Gilman came to the area in 1887 with an entrepreneurial swagger and a pocket full of dollars to invest in the newly developing coal mine. However, he did not take kindly to “his” town being called Squak. So in 1888 he renamed the town (you guessed it) Gilman.
But postal authorities declined to accept Gilman as the area’s new name, as it was similar top an existing post office in Klickitat County. So Postmaster George Parks arbitrarily changed the name to Olney. (I could not discover where this odd name came from, possibly his mother’s maiden name.) For a time it did business as the Olney P.O.
The increasingly-influential and stubborn Daniel Gilman was on hand when the area was officially incorporated in 1892 as (you guessed it again) Gilman.
Throughout these stressful name changes, local folks longed for and continued using the old name of Squak.
In 1895 the town (meaning its citizens) renamed itself. By adding an “s” and an “a” within the original Indian “Is-qu-ah” they came up with the more easily-spoken “Issaquah.” It took an act of state legislature to make the name official and final.
Gone today are Daniel Gilman’s coal mines, the logging industry, and their associated boomtown activities. Until recently, the quiet rural pursuits of farming and the dairy industry could just about sum up Issaquah’s collective personality. But nowadays the rural atmosphere and its companion industries are all but gone, too.
Today Issaquah is a growing and prosperous suburban community, whose city limits include the Issaquah Highlands, Cougar and Squak Mountains, and part of the Sammamish Plateau. Issaquah is a community blessed with an abundance of natural beauty and nature itself; occasional bears and cougars, passing through, might agree. Lake Sammamish and its State Park join at the northern limits of the city, answering the needs of camping, fishing, boating and swimming enthusiasts. Cascade Mountain ski resorts and other mountain activities are mere minutes away from Issaquah via interstate 90. And Cougar Mountain offers nearly year-round paragliding—oh, so close.
Community spirit is strong in Issaquah. The Issaquah Historical Society plays an active role in preserving the annals of old Squak. And as Issaquah continues to grow, the Issaquah Chamber of Commerce busily promotes the wonders of the area.
