Sequim ( ) is a city in
Clallam
County
, Washington
, United
States
. The population is estimated to be 5,951 as
of 2007, not including the approximately 20,000 residents in the
Dungeness Valley immediately surrounding the city limits.
Sequim is
located along the Dungeness River
near the base of the Olympic Mountains
. The city has been increasing in population
dramatically in recent years due to the influx of retirees from the
Puget Sound region and California. Recent approximations show a
population growth of about 34% since the year 2000
[20533].
Sequim lies within the
rainshadow of the
Olympic Mountains and receives an average of less than 15 inches of
rain per year, nearly qualifying it as a desert.
Fogs and cool breezes
from the Juan de Fuca
Strait
make Sequim's environment more humid than would be
expected from the low average annual precipitation. Some
places have surprisingly luxuriant forests dominated by
Douglas-fir and
western red cedar.
Black cottonwood,
red
alder,
bigleaf maple,
Pacific madrone,
lodgepole pine and
Garry
oak can also be large. Historically, much of the area was an
open oak-studded prairie supported by somewhat excessively drained
gravelly sandy loam soil, though agriculture and development of the
Dungeness valley have changed this ecosystem. Most soils under
Sequim have been placed in a series which is named after the
city.
[20534] This "Sequim series" is one of the few
Mollisols in western Washington and its
high
base saturation, a
characteristic of the Mollisol order, is attributed to the minimal
leaching of bases caused by low annual rainfall.
[20535]
The city
and the surrounding area are particularly known for the commercial
growth of lavender, supported by the unique
climate: it makes Sequim the "Lavender Capital of North America",
rivaled only in France
. The
area is also known for its
Dungeness
crab.
Sequim is pronounced as one syllable, with the
e elided:
"skwim".
Media
The local news publications consist of the community news paper
Sequim Gazette, the
Peninsula Daily News and the
weekly
Sequim This Week by the Peninsula Daily News.
Sister city
Sequim's
sister city is Shiso,
Hyogo
, Japan. Sequim and Shiso have an
exchange student program set up through
Sequim High School and
Sequim Middle School.
History
Aboriginal inhabitants
The
S'Klallam tribe had inhabited the region
prior to the arrival of the first Europeans. The tribal name of the
village at Washington Harbor, located just to the east of the
present day city, later evolved into the name Sequim. Both
Manuel Quimper and
George Vancouver explored the region's
coast in the 1790s.
First European settlers
The first
European settlers arrived in the Dungeness Valley in the 1850s,
settling nearby Dungeness, Washington
. While the lands along the river became
fertile farmlands, the remainder of the area remained arid prairie.
Irrigation canals first brought water to the prairie in the 1890s,
allowing the expansion of farmlands.
Incorporation
Sequim was officially incorporated on
October
31,
1913. For many decades small farms,
mostly dairy farms, dotted the area around the small town.
Near the
end of World War I, Sequim became a stop
for a railway which passed through from Port Angeles
to Port
Townsend
, built
primarily to carry wood products from the forests of the western
Olympic
Peninsula
.
Modern
In recent decades, the family farms that once dotted the valley
have been parceled off into home sites as the area's excellent
climate has drawn many retired people. Recent years have seen a
resurgence of organic farming in the area, with Nash Huber of
Nash's Organic Produce leading the way, and a weekly
farmer's market is held downtown from May to October.
Commemmoration
Each May since 1895, Sequim holds the Irrigation Festival. , it is
the longest continuously running festival in the state.
The
Sequim Lavender Festival has been held every July
since 1996. It includes three days of lavender farm tours and a
street fair.
Tourist attractions
Sequim is home of a herd of
Roosevelt
elk, one attraction to the area.Sequim holds a Lavender
Festival during the summer of every year, usually around July,
which attracts tens of thousands of people.
The
Museum
and Arts Center features both natural and cultural exhibits
including a mastodon mural mounted with the remaining
mastodons bones, artifacts, and a video on the
excavation. The Olympic
Game Farm allows visitors to get a close look at many large game
animals.
The
Dungeness National Wildlife
Refuge
is located just north of the city, near the mouth
of the Dungeness River.
It
includes Dungeness
Spit
and a five mile hike to the New Dungeness
Lighthouse at the end of the spit.
To the east along Highway 101 is Sequim Bay, a 4 mile long inlet
from the Straits of Juan de Fuca. Along the western stretch is the
Sequim Bay State Park and the John Wayne Marina. The land for the
latter was bequeathed by the movie actor
John
Wayne. The inlet is a popular bird watching area.
Geography
Sequim is located at (48.078002, -123.101427).
According to the
United
States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of
5.3 square miles (13.7 km²), all of it land.
Climate
Sequim experiences an
oceanic
climate (
Köppen
climate classification Cfb).
Demographics
As of the
census of 2000, there were 4,334
people, 2,163 households, and 1,111 families residing in the city.
The
population density was 820.6
people per square mile (316.9/km²). There were 2,424 housing units
at an average density of 459.0/sq mi (177.3/km²). The racial
makeup of the city was 93.91%
White, 0.30%
African American, 1.15%
Native American, 1.75%
Asian, 0.09%
Pacific Islander, 0.92% from
other races, and 1.87%
from two or more races.
Hispanic or
Latino of any race were 2.86% of the
population.
There were 2,163 households out of which 15.5% had children under
the age of 18 living with them, 40.1% were
married couples living together, 9.1% had a female
householder with no husband present, and 48.6% were non-families.
44.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 30.5% had
someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average
household size was 1.90 and the average family size was 2.55.
In the city the population was spread out with 15.3% under the age
of 18, 5.4% from 18 to 24, 15.2% from 25 to 44, 19.5% from 45 to
64, and 44.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was
59 years. For every 100 females there were 73.2 males. For every
100 females age 18 and over, there were 68.9 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $27,880, and the
median income for a family was $35,652. Males had a median income
of $35,160 versus $20,347 for females. The
per capita income for the city was
$19,253. About 9.8% of families and 13.9% of the population were
below the
poverty line, including 19.9%
of those under age 18 and 10.7% of those age 65 or over.
References
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