The earliest people in Tukwila were the Duwamish who made their homes along the Black and Duwamish Rivers. They named Tukwila for the lush forests of hazelnut trees which grew around them. The Duwamish lived in cedar longhouses, hunted and fished, picked wild berries and used the river for trade with neighboring peoples.

Settlers arrived in the 1850's, traveling by boats and wagons to farm the rich soil of the Duwamish River Valley. The most prominent settlers were Luther and Lucinda Collins, John Holgate, Joseph and Martha Foster, Henry Van Asselt and Samuel Maple and his children. Local schools and streets are named for them.

Most well known was Joseph Foster, early Washington state legislator, first superintendent of schools in Tukwila, and a well-respected local leader. His homestead was located at the present day site of Foster Golf Course. A plaque commemorating Foster's homestead is located on Tukwila's oldest maple tree at the north end of the golf course. Nearby is a monument citing Foster's landing where riverboats stopped to load and unload goods and passengers.

Tukwila's location at the crossroads of rivers, trails, highways and railroads has determined its destiny as a center of commerce. In the 1860's, shipping was done by 65-70' flat-bottomed riverboats that traveled the Duwamish/Green and Black Rivers from Seattle to Auburn and back. These boats carried coal from local mines, produce and livestock from valley farms, and people. The journey from Seattle to Tukwila took two days by boat.

Early electric rail trains traveled along Interurban Avenue in Tukwila, connecting to Renton and a line to Tacoma. The Interurban Railroad operated a commuter line from 1902 to 1928, making it possible to travel from Seattle to Tacoma in less than an hour. The first Macadam-paved road in Washington State was in Tukwila and bears the name of this new method of street paving. One of the earliest paved military roads is located in Tukwila.

Tukwila incorporated as a City in 1908. Since that time, the city has continued to grow and flourish as a center of commerce for South King County. At the crossroads of two interstate highways -- I-5 and I-405, within five minutes of an international airport, Tukwila is a local leader in retail/commercial sales, warehousing and distribution of goods, and manufacturing.

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