Oakville, Washington facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Oakville
City
Nickname(s):  City Of Oakville
Motto(s):  Acorns
Location of Oakville, Washington
Country	United States
State	Washington
County	Grays Harbor
Government
• Type	Mayor–council
Area
• Total	0.55 sq mi (1.43 km2)
• Land	0.55 sq mi (1.43 km2)
• Water	0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2)
Elevation	95 ft (29 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	715
Time zone	UTC-8 (Pacific (PST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-7 (PDT)
ZIP code	98568
Area code(s)	360
FIPS code	53-50430
GNIS feature ID	1507136

Oakville is a city in Grays Harbor County, Washington, United States. It was incorporated in 1905, with booming lumber, railway, and farming industries including dog food; creating the early foundation of the community. The population was 715 at the 2020 census.

History

Oakville was officially incorporated on December 18, 1905.

"Clear Blobs" incident

On August 7, 1994 during a rainstorm, blobs of a translucent gelatinous substance, half the size of grains of rice each, fell at the farm home of Sunny Barclift. Shortly afterwards, Barclift's mother, Dotty Hearn, had to go to the hospital suffering from dizziness and nausea, and Barclift and a friend also suffered minor bouts of fatigue and nausea after handling the blobs. However, Dr. David Litle, who treated Hearn, expressed doubt that Hearn's symptoms were due to the blobs, and appeared instead to have been caused by an inner ear condition. Hearn herself also acknowledged that the appearance the blobs could have been a mere coincidence unconnected with their maladies. It was also reported that Sunny's kitten had died after contact with the blobs, following a battle with severe intestinal problems prior to the incident. The blobs were confirmed to have fallen a second time at the Barclift farm, but no one was reported to have fallen ill the second time.

Several attempts were made to identify the blobs, with Barclift initially asking her mother's doctor to run tests on the substance at the hospital. Litle obliged, and reported that it contained human white blood cells. Barclift also managed to persuade Mike Osweiler, of the Washington State Department of Ecology's hazardous materials spill response unit, to examine the substance. While white blood cells contain nuclei, further examination by Osweiler's staff reported that the blobs contained cells that lacked this cellular structure.

Several theories cropped up at the time to explain the appearance of the blobs, though none have been proven correct. A popular theory with the townsfolk at the time was the "jellyfish theory", which postulated that the blobs were the result of bombing runs by the military in the ocean 50 miles (80 km) away from the farm causing explosion within a smack of jellyfish, which were then dispersed into a rain cloud. Although neither Barclift nor Osweiler favoured the idea, the theory was so popular with the townsfolk that there was discussion of holding a jellyfish festival, and that the local tavern even concocted a new drink in honor of the incident, "The Jellyfish", composed of vodka, gelatin, and juice.

Another theory, propagated by David Litle, who handled the original analysis of the blobs, was that the blobs were drops of concentrated fluid waste from an airplane toilet, though when Barclift contacted the FAA about this later, this idea was rebuffed, as she was told that all commercial plane toilet fluids are dyed blue, a property the blobs did not possess.

Geography

Oakville is located at 46°50′22″N 123°14′1″W / 46.83944°N 123.23361°W / 46.83944; -123.23361 (46.839312, -123.233599).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 0.50 square miles (1.29 km²), all of it land.

Climate

According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Oakville has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate, abbreviated "Csb" on climate maps.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 684 people, 260 households, and 176 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,368.0 inhabitants per square mile (528.2/km²). There were 291 housing units at an average density of 582.0 per square mile (224.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 86.5% White, 0.6% African American, 5.1% Native American, 0.9% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 4.1% from other races, and 2.6% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6.6% of the population.

The fire station serving Oakville, Washington.

There were 260 households, of which 36.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.2% were married couples living together, 13.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 8.1% had a male householder with no wife present, and 32.3% were non-families. 22.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.08.

The median age in the city was 37.1 years. 26% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.2% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 27% were from 25 to 44; 25.7% were from 45 to 64; and 14% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 49.1% male and 50.9% female.

Flooding

Oakville is on the northern shore of the Chehalis River, just downstream from the convergence of the Chehalis and Black Rivers. This is an area subject to annual flooding with major floods occurring most recently in 2007 and 1996. Each of these floods was a federally declared disaster due to the extensive damage to human life, livestock, and property in the region.

Economy

What was once the "Little Bit General Store" in 1902 operates as a bedding store in the 21st century.

In the first few decades of Oakville, the area had a booming trade in lumber, with logging and mills providing a flourishing foundation to the economy, and with many other businesses springing up to sell to the workers these trades brought in. As the timber industry faded, many of the other businesses shut down as well.

As of 2018, Oakville's main businesses included a small grocery store, a few diners, an organic bedding manufacturer, an auction house, and a chip plant, as well as some farms on the outskirts of the city. Oakville also has a chamber of commerce.

Education

The sign on the gymnasium of the high school in Oakville, Washington.

Oakville School District No. 400 has one elementary school, one middle school, and one high school. It serves 241 students in Grays Harbor County in May 2018. The Board of Directors governs the operations of the district; this board has five members, who are elected to terms lasting four years. The day-to-day operations of the district are managed under the leadership of the superintendent, who is appointed by the school board. The district employs approximately thirty people in the roles of teachers and support staff. The district operates on a general fund budget of approximately $3.5 million.

The original Oakville elementary school, built in 1953, began to be demolished in November 2021 after a bond program to rebuild and renovate the school system campus was passed in 2020. The $5.6 million measure would cover the cost of a new elementary building and help to refurbish several areas at the high school. A separate, small schools modernization grant of $4.6 million covered additional upgrades on the campus.

Notable people

• Hazel Pete (March 21, 1914 – January 2, 2003), basket weaver from the Chehalis tribe
• Katherine Van Winkle Palmer (1895 – September 12, 1982), paleontologist
• Frank Hinman Waskey (April 20, 1875 – January 18, 1964), delegate from the District of Alaska

Images for kids

• 

  Settlers at their homestead on the west side of Oakville, circa 1890.

• 

  Track being laid for the railroad near Oakville, circa 1890.

• 

  Oakville in 1906

See also

In Spanish: Oakville (Washington) para niños