Carbonado, Washington

Carbonado was one of several in the Carbon River valley to be settled during an economic boom in the region. The boom was brought on by the demand for raw material in nearby growing cities such as Seattle and Tacoma. Starting with the town of Wilkeson and moving on through Burnett, Carbonado, Montezuma, Fairfax, and finally Manley Moore, these settlements sprawled up the valley to the very boundary of Mount Rainier National Park. Most of these towns were company towns, meaning that they specialized in the harvest of raw materials on the plot of land on which the town was situated, which was owned by a commercial company. Often – and such was the case of Carbonado – the company owned the houses and energy resources as well. The energy resource in Carbonado was also the raw material that the citizens of the company town were harvesting, coal. More than 100 miners died in mining accidents in and around Carbonado, including 31 who were killed in an explosion in Carbon Hill Coal Company's Mine Number 7 on December 9, 1899. During the time of the initial boom in the valley, Carbonado grew to rival the size of Tacoma. The railroad, integral to the transportation of people, supplies and exported materials, extended all the way up the valley, servicing the towns and several homesteads. These were settled predominantly by Polish immigrants, and supplied the towns down the valley with fresh milk and eggs. Two survive today, one known as Carbon River Ranch (the main house is the old Fairfax school and can be seen from Washington State Route 165) and the other formerly known as Huckle-Chuck. At Huckle-Chuck, the original house and one of the barns are still used and functional. At the peak of the boom both of these homesteads and the towns which they supplied were quite productive and lively. However, the boom did not last as the economy suffered a downturn, and with it came the end of the need for the lower-grade coal being mined at Carbonado and the timber being harvested for use in the settlements further up the valley. Since the decline of the mining era, Carbonado has experienced extreme shrinking and small booms ultimately ending with a steady population. All of the current residents work elsewhere and what was once an economic center for the valley is now a residential community. The railroad also pulled out of the town. The Rails to Trails project has most of the actual rail line land in its possession. The time that Carbonado did spend as a coal mining town is evidenced by the cemetery, abandoned mines, an overgrown coal slag pile, a school, and the company houses left behind. The cemetery holds the memories of older and more recent dead with many of the grave holders' family still living nearby. Huge concrete monoliths that once held that cables for the mining carts point straight towards the old mine shafts and openings and stand overgrown and now only utilized by the town's children. One hill in the town started out as the coal slag pile and now has been carpeted by ivy and trees. The school makes up what is known as the Carbonado Historical School District and grades K-8th still attend there. Many of the houses that the company built and originally owned still line main street. They look very similar to each other as was the style of the company builders at the time. Although many of the miners abandoned the town, the direct descendants of the original miners still live in some of the houses. Carbonado was officially incorporated on September 13, 1948. ==Geography==