Longview is a city in Cowlitz County, Washington, United States. It is the principal city of the Longview, Washington Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Cowlitz County. Longview's population was 37,818 at the time of the 2020 census, making it the most populous city in Cowlitz County. The city is located in southwestern Washington, at the junction of the Cowlitz and Columbia rivers. Longview shares a border with Kelso to the east, which is the county seat.
The Cowlitz Indian Tribe, a federally recognized tribe of Cowlitz people, is headquartered in Longview."Tribal Directory." National Congress of American Indians. Retrieved September 29, 2013.
The Long-Bell Lumber Company, led by Robert A. Long, decided to buy a great expanse of timberland in Cowlitz County in 1918. A total of 14,000 workers were needed to run the two large mills as well as lumber camps that were planned. The number of workers needed was more than a lumber town, or the nearest town, could provide. Long planned and built a complete city in 1921 that could support a population of up to 50,000 and provide labor for the mills as well as attracting other industries. Several buildings in the city were built from Long's private funds.
History
Longview was the location of Mount Coffin, an ancestral burial ground for the local indigenous people.
The first Euro-American settlers were led by Harry and Rebecca Jane Huntington, in 1849. The area was named Monticello in honor of Thomas Jefferson's home in Virginia. In 1852 a group assembled in what would be called the "Monticello Convention" to petition Congress for statehood to be called "Columbia". Congress agreed to statehood but as Washington, after President Washington, to avoid confusion with the District of Columbia. A monument to the convention is located near the Longview Civic Center. From 1854 to 1865 the town of Monticello was the seat of Cowlitz County, before being destroyed by the flooding of the Cowlitz River in December 1867. In 1865 Nathaniel Stone founded the town of Freeport (a mile upriver from Monticello) which became the seat of Cowlitz County until 1872. The area of the towns of Monticello and Freeport is now part of the city of Longview.
The area remained sparsely populated for nearly 60 years, consisting mostly of farmland and wilderness. In 1918, Missouri timber baron Robert A. Long (1850–1934) decided to move his operation out to the west coast, owing to the Long-Bell Lumber Company's dwindling supplies in the south. By 1921, Wesley Vandercook had decided to build a mill near the small town of Kelso, Washington. It was apparent that Kelso, with a population of barely 2,000, would not be able to support the approximately 14,000 men that would be required to run the mill.
The Long-Bell company contracted with George Kessler, a city planner based in St. Louis, to build the city that would support the two mills that were now planned. Kessler designed the town based on the nation's capital, with elements of Roman City planning. Its theme is rooted in the City Beautiful movement, which influenced urban design in the early 20th century. Longview was officially incorporated on February 14, 1924. At the time of its conception, Longview was the only planned city of its magnitude to have ever been conceived of and built entirely with private funds. A number of prominent buildings in Longview were purchased with R. A. Long's personal funds, including R. A. Long High School, the Longview Public Library, the YMCA building and the Monticello Hotel.
The initial growth period, lasting from 1923 to 1934, was very rapid. The city grew from a few thousand people to being the fourth largest city in the state by the 1930s. However, the effects of the Great Depression hampered further development of the planned city until the booming World War II economy, when the Port of Longview became a strategic location for loading cargo going into the Pacific Theater.
The Allen Street Bridge disaster, which involved a wooden drawbridge connecting Longview and Kelso, occurred on January 3, 1923. , the event is recognized as the deadliest bridge disaster in the state. The span collapsed under a combination of high, rushing waters of the Cowlitz River, a log jam, and the poor condition of the overpass. The disaster happened during the end of work day, and 17 people were formally listed as having died due to the event.
Suburban developments created neighborhoods in the western valley in the 1960s. The local economy has been in decline since lumber companies mechanized production in the 1970s and 1980s, reducing the availability of jobs. No major development occurred until a brief boom in the early 2000s, ended by the recession of the late 2000s.
On May 26, 2026, at about 7:19 a.m., a large tank containing white liquor at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging ruptured and imploded. The incident killed at least eleven people and injured eight others.
Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water.
The Lewis and Clark Bridge spans the Columbia River, linking Longview to Rainier, Oregon. It is the only bridge spanning the river between Portland and Astoria, Oregon.
Climate Longview is located in a small gorge, so its climate varies from that of its close neighbor, Portland. Longview is generally about cooler than Portland. Located about inland across a stretch of relatively flat ground, the Longview skies can be overcast due to moisture from the Pacific Coast marine layer. The Columbia River gorge permits an exchange of air between eastern and western Washington. The direction and speed of air movement through the gorge is determined primarily by the pressure gradient between the eastern and western slopes of the mountains. Due to the gorge-like effect, marine pushes on summer evenings can frequently reach gusts up to There have been gusts of up to , and over at higher elevations.
Fall is usually cooler but foggy; on some days the fog never clears. By early-to-mid November, rainfall begins in typical Northwest fashion. Winter tends to be chilly and rainy, with occasional violent windstorms or spates of unusually warm——temperatures. This is due to extremely warm air coming from the Pineapple Express which can drop of rain in a matter of days. Each year there are one or two snowfalls, typically less than but up to in the surrounding foothills. Spring is warmer, but still a little wet; this is the most common time for the occasional thunderstorms.http://www.wrcc.dri.edu/narratives/WASHINGTON.htm -Weather:"EAST OLYMPIC-CASCADE FOOTHILLS"
Demographics
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, Longview had a population of 37,818, 15,511 households, and a median age of 40.6 years; 21.7% of residents were under the age of 18 and 21.2% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 93.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 91.3 males age 18 and over. 5.9% of residents were under the age of 5.
The population density was 2,555.6 inhabitants per square mile. As of the 2020 census, 99.8% of residents lived in urban areas while 0.2% lived in rural areas.
Of the 15,511 households, 27.2% had children under the age of 18 living in them, 39.1% were married-couple households, 20.0% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 30.9% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 31.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 16,478 housing units, of which 5.9% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.6% and the rental vacancy rate was 6.3%.
The median household income was $53,044, and the per capita income was $31,980. 13.7% of the population were under the poverty line.
+ Racial composition as of the 2020 census Race Number Percent White 29,891 79.0% Black or African American 468 1.2% American Indian and Alaska Native 634 1.7% Asian 952 2.5% Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 244 0.6% Some other race 1,944 5.1% Two or more races 3,685 9.7% Hispanic or Latino (of any race) 4,479 11.8%
2010 census As of the 2010 census, there were 36,648 people, 15,281 households, and 9,086 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 16,380 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 86.0% White, 0.9% African American, 1.7% Native American, 2.2% Asian, 0.3% Pacific Islander, 4.7% from other races, and 4.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 9.7% of the population.
There were 15,281 households, of which 29.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.5% were married couples living together, 13.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.6% had a male householder with no wife present, and 40.5% were non-families. 33.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.94.
The median age in the city was 39.6 years. 23.2% of residents were under the age of 18; 9.2% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 23.6% were from 25 to 44; 26.2% were from 45 to 64; and 17.5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.1% male and 51.9% female.
2000 census As of the 2000 census, there were 34,660 people, 14,066 households, and 8,931 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,530.0 people per square mile (976.8/km2). There were 15,225 housing units at an average density of 1,111.4 per square mile (429.1/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 89.35% White, 0.72% African American, 1.76% Native American, 2.17% Asian, 0.13% Pacific Islander, 2.96% from other races, and 2.92% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.82% of the population. 17.3% were of German, 11.2% English, 10.3% United States or American, 8.5% Irish and 7.3% Norwegian ancestry. 92.4% spoke English and 4.9% Spanish as their first language.
There were 14,066 households, out of which 30.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.5% were married couples living together, 12.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.5% were non-families. 30.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 2.96.
In the city, the age distribution of the population shows 26.0% under the age of 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 27.1% from 25 to 44, 22.6% from 45 to 64, and 15.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $35,171, and the median income for a family was $43,869. Males had a median income of $38,972 versus $26,625 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,559. About 12.3% of families and 16.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.0% of those under age 18 and 6.8% of those age 65 or over.
Economy