Anacortes, Washington

Infobox Settlement
official_name = City of Anacortes
settlement_type = City


imagesize =
image_caption =
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mapsize = 250x200px
map_caption =


mapsize1 =
map_caption1 =
subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_type1 = State
subdivision_type2 = County
subdivision_name = United States
subdivision_name1 = Washington
subdivision_name2 = Skagit
government_type =
leader_title = Mayor
leader_name = Dean Maxwell
established_date =
area_magnitude =
area_total_km2 = 36.7
area_land_km2 = 30.5
area_water_km2 = 6.2
population_as_of = 2000
population_total = 14557
population_density_km2 = 477.1
timezone = PST
utc_offset = -8
timezone_DST = PDT
utc_offset_DST = -7
latitude =
longitude =
latd = 48 |latm = 30 |lats = 7 |latNS = N
longd = 122 |longm = 37 |longs = 25 |longEW = W
website = http://www.cityofanacortes.org/
area_total_sq_mi = 14.2
area_land_sq_mi = 11.8
area_water_sq_mi = 2.4
elevation_m = 7
elevation_ft = 23
postal_code_type = ZIP code
postal_code = 98221
area_code = 360
blank_name = FIPS code
blank_info = 53-01990GR|2
blank1_name = GNIS feature ID
blank1_info = 1511964GR|3
footnotes =

Anacortes (pronEng|ˌænəˈkɔrtəs) is a city in Skagit County, Washington, USA. The name Anacortes comes from Anna Curtis, the maiden name of early settler Amos Bowman's wife." [http://museum.cityofanacortes.org/timeline.htm Historical Timeline] ." " [http://museum.cityofanacortes.org/ Anacortes History Museum] ." July 10, 2006. Retrieved on August 14, 2007.] The population was 14,557 at the 2000 census. It is one of two principal cities of and included in the Mount Vernon-Anacortes Metropolitan Statistical Area.

There is a Washington State Ferries dock that serves Lopez Island, Shaw Island, Orcas Island, and San Juan Island, as well as Victoria, British Columbia (via Sidney, British Columbia) on Vancouver Island. There is also a Skagit County-operated ferry dock that serves Guemes Island.

History

Anacortes was officially incorporated on 19 May 1891.

Geography

Anacortes is located at coor dms|48|30|7|N|122|37|25|W|city (48.502012, -122.623733)GR|1.

Anacortes is on Fidalgo Island.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 14.2 square miles (36.7 km²), of which, 11.8 square miles (30.5 km²) of it is land and 2.4 square miles (6.2 km²) of it (16.93%) is water.

Demographics

In a recent estimate, there are about 16,300 people as of 2007, 6,086 households, and 4,162 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,236.0 people per square mile (477.1/km²). There were 6,551 housing units at an average density of 556.2/sq mi (214.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 92.66% White, 0.32% African American, 1.14% Native American, 1.64% Asian, 0.13% Pacific Islander, 1.48% from other races, and 2.63% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.15% of the population.

There were 6,086 households out of which 28.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.2% were married couples living together, 9.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.6% were non-families. 26.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.84.

In the city the population was spread out with 23.4% under the age of 18, 5.5% from 18 to 24, 24.8% from 25 to 44, 25.5% from 45 to 64, and 20.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females there were 93.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.4 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $41,930, and the median income for a family was $49,531. Males had a median income of $38,080 versus $27,080 for females. The per capita income for the city was $22,297. About 6.0% of families and 7.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.4% of those under age 18 and 7.1% of those age 65 or over.

Description

Anacortes is on Fidalgo Island. It is surrounded by the north Puget Sound and San Juan Islands on three sides, and by the Swinomish Channel and the flats of Skagit Valley to the east. The weather is milder than other areas of the Pacific Northwest, because it lies within the Olympic Mountain rain shadow. Fidalgo Island gets 21" of rain per year, only half as much as Seattle.

Anacortes was established with a name and a post office in 1877 in the vain hope that it would be selected as the western terminus of the transcontinental railroad. The town was officially incorporated in 1891 shortly after the railroad bust, and became a lumber and fishing center. In the 1950s oil companies built big refineries near town. Two of the five refineries in Washington are located near the town. One is owned and operated by Tesoro (originally built and owned by Shell Oil), the other is owned and operated by Shell Puget Sound Refinery Company (originally built and owned by Texaco). Refining remains the area's largest industry, but the economic base now includes yacht construction/shipbuilding, tourism, and residential services for the nearby Whidbey Island Naval Air Station.

Anacortes is a popular destination for boaters and those traveling on to the San Juan Islands. The city maintains a convert|220|acre|km2|sing=on city park on the northwestern end of Fidalgo Island called Washington Park. This park features camping, boat launching, and majestic views of the San Juan Islands. The most prominent view is of Cypress Island.

Anacortes Community Forest Lands, convert|2800|acre|km2 with convert|50|mi|km of mountain biking and hiking trails, are a rare amenity in a city the size of Anacortes. In adjacent Mount Erie Park, a number of rock climbing routes are popular on the cliffs of the south and west faces of Mount Erie (Washington). Mount Erie has an elevation of 1273 feet, making it's views from the top scenic. [cite web | title =Climbing Area: Mount Erie | work =Climbing Area Information | publisher =Washington Climbers Coalition | url =http://www.washingtonclimbers.org/Climbing/erie.htm | accessdate = 2007-11-01 ]

An annual event held each August is the hughly popular "Anacortes Arts Festival" which originated in 1962 as the brain-child of Dr. Jack Papritz and a group of dedicated community arts patrons. The idea came from Dr. Papritz's European travels, specifically the Parisienne Montmartre, a French open-air cafe. City officals block-off the downtown main street areas. Venders, merchants, artisans present their wares in covered booths. Jazz and blues musicians are showcased from four different stages. The event is free to the public.

Anacortes also hosts the "Oyster Run", an annual biker friendly motorcycle rally held on the fourth Sunday of September. Beginning in 1981, the event has grown into the largest rally in the Pacific Northwest, with an estimated motorcycle count of 8000 bikes; and growing in numbers each year. The "Oyster Run" orgin is attributed to "Limp Lee" and some of his riding friends who originally rode to the small town of Everson for some oyster cocktails. As the event grew in popularity, there were just too many people to have an organized run up Hwy 9, so "Limp Lee" talked to the city of Anacortes about being the destination town. Lee says, "the rest is history". As for how Lee got his name...well that's another story.

Notable residents and natives

*Jake Anderson – deckhand on the F/V Northwestern, featured on Discovery Channel's show "Deadliest Catch".
*Ray Auld – founder of the Anacortes Community Forest Lands. Drive to top of Mt. Erie named in his honor.
* Craig Bartlett – animator, creator of syndicated cartoon "Hey Arnold!."
* Bobo – western lowland gorilla brought to Anacortes in 1952 by Bill Lowman. Featured in Seattle's Woodland Park Zoo.
*Dunton Sisters – acclaimed bluegrass musicians.
* Phil Elvrum – frontman of The Microphones and Mount Eerie
*T.J. Fantini – former Disney Mouseketeer.
*Wallie Funk – known as "Mr. Anacortes". Retired publisher, photographer and city historian. Owner of the extensive Ferd Brady photo collection documenting early life in Skagit County. 2008 Visionary Award for helping to preserve and protect city history.
*Donald Hume – Olympic rower, gold medalist at the 1936 Berlin Olympics.
* Burl Ives – folk singer, author, and actor.
*Rien Long – former NFL Tennessee Titans defensive lineman, 2002 Outland Trophy winner.
*Paul N. Luvera Sr. – former community grocer, State Senator. Renowned totem pole carver. Highway leading to Anacortes named in his honor.
*Bill Mitchell – city historian, artisan, creator of the "Anacortes Mural Project" which depicts an eclectic mix of more than 100 life-sized outdoor murals inspired from photographs of early Anacortes life.
*Jack Ross – of "Jack Ross and the Dick Lane Quartet". Long standing Las Vegas Harrah's headliner act, spanning more than twenty years. Endowment donor to Island Hospital.
* Charley Schanz – former Major League Baseball pitcher.

ister cities

Anacortes has four sister cities:" [http://www.sister-cities.org/icrc/directory/usa/WA Sister Cities Online Directory: Washington, USA] ." " [http://www.sister-cities.org/ Sister Cities International, Inc.] ." Retrieved on March 23, 2007.]

* Sidney, British Columbia, Canada
* Vela Luka, Croatia
* Nikaho, Japan
* Lomonosov, Russia

ee also

*Anacortes School District

References

External links

* [http://www.cityofanacortes.org/ Official City Government Website]
* [http://www.anacortes.org/ Chamber of Commerce]
* [http://www.anacortestoday.com/ photographs]
* [http://www.anacortes.mobi/ Anacortes.mobi - Anacortes mobile site providing info for the city of Anacortes Washington]
* [http://www.portofanacortes.com/ Port of Anacortes]
* [http://www.goanacortes.com/ Anacortes American (Newspaper)]