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Claquato Washington was located in Lewis County.  Claquato was founded by Lewis Hawkins Davis who came from Indiana in the early 1850's.  Claquato became a prosperous lumber town with a mill.  The original Lewis County court house was completed in 1862 and located in Claquato.  Claquato prospered under the leadership of Davis.  Things took a turn for th worse when Davis was killed in a mill accident in 1864.

The railroads came in 1874 and Claquato like many towns was bypassed. This lead to the eventual demise of the town.  It was at this time that the county seat moved from Claquato to Chehalis.  Claquato was officially removed from county records in 1902.

Claquato means "high prairie" in Chehalis Native American language.

Today the only remains of Claquato are the church and cemetery.

The Claquato Church is a historic Methodist church.  It was built in 1857 and is it the oldest standing church in the state of Washington.

Claquato Cemetery - The first burial in the Claquato Cemetery was in 1856.  Many other pioneer burials were soon to follow.  In 1893 the Order of the Odd Fellows formed a cemetery near the Davis plot.     

 
   

After the church lost its congregation the church stood vacant into the 1950's until it was restored.
 

  

The louvered belfry and crown steeple modeled after mid-nineteenth century New England meeting houses.   
       

 

       

 

  
Claquato Church         

Claquato, WA 1857 - 1902   
 Site visit 2011