Pataha

The name Pataha is a Nez Perce word that means "bushy creek". The town incorporated in 1875, as more and more people began to settle there. It became a popular spot after the arrival of three economies: the shipping/transportation industry, winter wheat farming, and flour production. The Pataha-Alpowa stage line stopped in the town, and a shipping business running the Snake River was also established some time after. Prior to 1870, Pataha was mostly a cattle raising region, but soon prospered as a farming town with the introduction of a hearty strain of wheat. In 1881, the newly formed Garfield County held its county seat at Pataha City for one year. It transferred the next year three miles away to Pomeroy, Washington. The future looked bright for Pataha until 1886. In that year the Oregon Railway and Navigation Company built a track running up to the town of Pomeroy and greatly improved transportation methods in the area. However, Pomeroy had long been Pataha City's rival, and refused to extend the line into the next town. Pataha City withered away when more and more businesses and farmers switched from shipping transport to the rails. The gristmill business (the Houser Mill or Pataha Flour Mill for example) continued on for a number of years due to a high international demand for its quality product. However, it too closed down by 1940, when the federal government placed costly and rigid regulations on small businesses.