Littlerock, Washington
Littlerock, Washington | |
|---|---|
| Coordinates: 46°54′06″N 123°01′05″W / 46.90167°N 123.01806°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Washington |
| County | Thurston |
| Elevation | 144 ft (44 m) |
| Time zone | UTC-8 (Pacific (PST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-7 (PDT) |
| ZIP code | 98556 |
| Area code | 360 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1512396[1] |
Littlerock is an unincorporated community in Thurston County, Washington, United States. Littlerock is 11 miles (18 km) southwest of Olympia. The town is west of Interstate 5 and Maytown.
Littlerock is located near several protected lands, such as the Mima Mounds Natural Area Preserve and Capitol State Forest.
History
The first white settler in the area, Thomas Elliott Rutledge, filed a claim for 160 acres (65 ha) in 1854 and named his settlement "Black River". The community was later renamed "Little Rock" or "Littlerock" for a mounting stone on the Rutledge property;[2][3] a post office called Littlerock has been in operation since 1879.[4][5]
In 1909, Littlerock had two shingle mills with 330 employees, a lumber camp and saw mill, which produced 20,000 feet (6,096.0 m) of lumber daily. A Methodist church, a school with 3 teachers, a grocery store, furniture and hardware stores were also built.[6]
In 2020, the Washington Commercial Aviation Coordinating Commission nominated a site north of Littlerock for the site of a new major airport to serve the Seattle metropolitan area alongside Seattle–Tacoma International Airport (SEA). A similar site was proposed in the 1990s for a study that ultimately resulted in an expansion of SEA. The Littlerock site was determined to be infeasible due to community opposition and its potential air corridor passing over Olympia.[7]
Parks and recreation
The Mima Mounds Natural Area Preserve, declared a National Natural Landmark, is located outside of the town center.[8]
Other nearby protected areas include the Glacial Heritage Preserve and the Black River Habitat Management Area. The community lies near the border of the Capitol State Forest.
References
- ^ "Littlerock". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved July 8, 2025.
- ^ Petite, Irving (September 22, 1957). "Little Rock: The Town That Time Passed By". The Seattle Times. p. 14.
- ^ "Thurston County Place Names: A Heritage Guide" (PDF). Thurston County Historical Commission. 1992. p. 45. Retrieved March 28, 2018.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Post Offices". Jim Forte Postal History. Retrieved August 14, 2016.
- ^ "Washington's Centennial Farms: Yesterday and Today" (PDF). Washington State Department of Agriculture. October 1989. p. 42. Retrieved June 16, 2025.
- ^ F. H. Turple (March 1909). The Coast - An illustrated monthly of the West. Seattle: The Coast Publishing Co. pp. 204–206. Retrieved June 16, 2025 – via HathiTrust.
- ^ Dodgson, Colton (June 26, 2020). "South Thurston County Viewed As Possible Location for Second Major Washington Airport". The Chronicle. Retrieved September 30, 2021.
- ^ "Mima Mounds Natural Area Preserve". Washington State Department of Natural Resources. Retrieved June 16, 2025.