Fall City

Fall City was established as a trading post in 1869 and became a hub of the local economy. It was known at the time as "The Landing", as shallow water and rapids upstream on the Snoqualmie river made it impassable to the large dugout canoes used for transporting goods. The first small steamboats started ferrying people and supplies up the river from Puget Sound in 1875. This route became known as the Snoqualmie River Highway.

There were two railroads that served the town. The Seattle Lakeshore & Eastern Railroad arrived in 1889, which later became the Northern Pacific and the Milwaukee Road, which arrived in 1911.

The railroads lessened the need for the steamboats and greatly improved business in the area. The railroads also brought tourists to town for a day at Snoqualmie Falls.

The first road over the pass was the Cascade Wagon Road completed in 1867 from Seattle to Ellensburg. It passed through town but was a rough and miserable road especially during the rainy season.

In 1889 the first bridge over the Snoqualmie River at Fall City was completed. Three bridges had been constructed over the years. The first bridge was completed in 1889 and was made of wood.

This bridge fell into the river in 1900 and had to be rebuilt. In 1915 when the Sunset Highway came through, the first concrete bridge across the river was beginning construction and was completed in 1917. This bridge was used until 1980 when it was replaced with the current bridge.

When the Sunset Highway connecting Seattle with eastern Washington through Fall City was improved in 1915, it further accelerated the economic and residential development of the area. By the late 1920s, most of the population either worked in the burgeoning tourist trade or commuted to work west toward Issaquah and Seattle.

The new highway brought plenty of traffic, giving rise to the community's tourism industry through hotels, restaurants, and gas stations. Fall City has 4 of these landmarks still standing from those early years.

1. Riverside Tavern. This building was built in 1925 at the junction of the Sunset Highway and the Yellowstone Trail as the Riverside Tavern. In 1933 a second story was added and it became the Riverside Tavern and Lodge, which operated under a number of owners. From 1966 to 2005, it is fondly remembered as the Colonial Inn. Today it is the Roadhouse Inn. 

2. Fall City Hotel and Restaurant. Today it is The El Caporal Mexican Restaurant.

3 .Model Garage. The Model Garage opened about 1920 at a location a little west of it's current site. It moved to it's current site in 1926 and by 1980 had expanded to the building we see today. This garage is still in business under the same name.

4. Red Crown Gas Station.  Originally it was located across the Preston-Fall City Rd. from the Roadhouse Inn. It later operated under a variety of owners. From 1989 to 2013 it was a Tesoro Station. For a the last couple of years it has not been in operation.

In 1925 the Sunset Highway split into two routes at Fall City. The primary route continued north to Preston then west to Renton. The secondary route known as the Bothell Branch continued west to Redmond and north to Bothell.

In 1936 the state had finished the Echo Lake Cutoff. This new route bypassed Fall City which was a disaster for the tourist trade. Today Fall City is a bedroom community on the eastside of Lake Washington. The town still retains much of its historic charm and is a great place to visit.