Life | The Daily Chronicle

Jefferson Lincoln third grader Aubree Huber smiles while holding a trophy and poster featuring her winning artwork as classmates cheer during a classroom party honoring her for winning the Washington Poison Control Center’s annual statewide poster contest in Centralia on Friday, May 9.

Centralia third grader wins annual state poison control poster competition

Every year, the Washington Poison Control Center invites students from kindergarten through 12th grade to participate in a poster-making competition for National Poison Awareness Week. … more

By Tyrus VanTuyl / ty@chronline.com | 5/12/25

The Shady Lady owner Holly Ryan hands out flowers to participants during the Centralia Downtown Association’s Flower Crawl in Centralia on Saturday, May 10. “Stroll through downtown and celebrate spring with our Flower Crawl,” the downtown association wrote before the event. “Visit participating businesses to enjoy beautiful blooms, special deals and seasonal treats while discovering all that downtown has to offer. Grab a map, explore and collect flowers along the way — because nothing says spring like a little shopping and a lot of petals!”

In focus: Flower Crawl wafts through downtown Centralia

Chronicle photographer Kody Christen captured these photos during the first Flower Crawl hosted by the Centralia Downtown Association on Saturday. “Stroll through downtown and celebrate … more

5/12/25

Thurston County teen to graduate at age 19 with degree in quantum information science from USC

Liv Coverdale, an Olympia teen who graduated from Pacific Lutheran University at age 16, is set to graduate May 16 from the University of Southern California with a master’s of science degree … more

By The Chronicle staff | 5/12/25

A competitor rides a horse through the arena while shooting balloon targets during the South Sound Mounted Shooters Spring Fling at the T90 Ranch in Tenino on Friday, May 9.

In focus: South Sound Mounted Shooters ride through Spring Fling

The South Sound Mounted Shooters hosted its Spring Flong competition at the T90 Ranch in Tenino over the weekend. “Mounted shooting embodies the spirit of the American Old West, … more

5/12/25

A LeMay mobile shredding truck is on sight to shred sensitive documents during a community recycle event in 2024.

Shred sensitive documents in Vader on Saturday

Lewis County residents will have the opportunity to shred sensitive documents they no longer want or need at a special event in Vader on Saturday, May 17. The event will take place in the … more

By The Chronicle staff | 5/12/25

Survivor Katie Foss, center, holds hands with her husband John, right, and other participants in a Relay For Life walk at the Southwest Washington Fairgrounds on Saturday, May 20, 2023.

Relay for Life of Lewis County aiming to ‘derail’ cancer with free event Saturday

Relay for Life of Lewis County is back with its annual free event at the Southwest Washington Fairgrounds on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Attendees can enjoy food, live music from Bonzo Balm … more

By Dylan Reubenking / dylanr@chronline.com | 5/12/25

Almost the entire Holiday Inn Express hotel has been updated, with new flooring, paint and wallpaper, furniture, lighting and decor in all of the rooms.

Holiday Inn Express in Chehalis to hold ribbon-cutting in celebration of new renovations

Holiday Inn Express will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony in celebration of the completion of its new renovations. The ceremony takes place on Thursday, May 22, at 5 p.m. to 730 Liberty Place in … more

By The Chronicle staff | 5/12/25

Young kids learn how to show sheep during the Spring Youth Fair at the Southwest Washington Fairgrounds on Saturday, May 3.

Participation surged at 2025 Spring Youth Fair

The Spring Youth Fair started off its jam-packed weekend last Friday with a dedication event officially renaming the exposition hall in honor of Lewis County’s beloved “fair father” … more

By Jacob Moore / jacob@chronline.com | 5/9/25

W.F. West students and Lewis County Coffee Co. staff members and owners pose for a photo outside of the stand in Chehalis on Tuesday, May 21, 2024

Lewis County Coffee Co. supporting W.F. West club behind Crimson & Gray coffee shop with fundraiser

Lewis County Coffee Co. will serve a drink called the Bearcat Energizer from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Tuesday, May 13 at its 2015 Jackson Hwy location in Chehalis to support W.F. West High School’s … more

By The Chronicle staff | 5/9/25

"Eastern Railway, Lumber Firm Was Once Biggest: Organized in 1903, the Eastern Railway and Lumber Company of Centralia reigned as an industrial landmark for nearly 40 years. During its heyday, it was one of the largest mill operations in the state although by the time it was destroyed by fire in the fall of 1939, much of its equipment had become outdated in comparison to the mill giants that had sprung up at Longview, Everett, and Grays Harbor. The record is not entirely clear, but the location was first by the Ballard and Bond mill, built about 1888 and one of Lewis County's early mills. It operated until 1903, when F. B. Hubbard purchased the plant with the assistance of eastern capital. He enlarged its operations and gave it the name it carried for almost 40 years. The Eastern became Centralia's largest payroll, employing more than 500 men at one time. The Eastern firm. also acquired what was the H. H. Martin Lumber Co., and named it the Western Mill. It was located northwest of the Eastern plant and on the west side of the mainline Northern Pacific railroad tracks. For a short time, both plants combined their railway and logging operations, giving jobs to about 1,000 men. Mention history of the Eastern Railway and Lumber Co., and in most of it is Sam Agnew, who rose from foreman to be its general manager and owner of the principal amount of its stock. The Eastern also figured in the history of Centralia's municipal light system. In the middle 1920s, the city and the Puget Sound Power and Light Co., which supplied the city-owned system, tangled over a raise in power rates. Under a corporation arrangement, the mill firm built large generators at the Western Mill, coupled them with the mill's generators and provided power for the city. The arrangement lasted for about 10 years, when the city utility entered its hydroelectric project on the Nisqually River near Yelm. When the Eastern was lost in the fire, Sam Agnew headed an organization to lease the Western properties from the Eastern corporation. That was the S. A. Agnew Lumber Co., which continued production until the 1950s. By 1965, the plant equipment was sold off and work started to remove the mill's structures. Mr. Agnew, with more than 70 years in the industry, died in 1965, He was 86 and regarded as one of the Northwest's last lumber kings." — originally published by The Daily Chronicle on Oct. 10, 1966

A Look Back in Time: Strike shuts down Centralia sawmill; Burglar accidently gets into police car; Tumwater woman honored as Mother of the Year at WSU

In this installment of A Look Back in Time, the Friday, May 10, 1935, edition of The Chronicle featured a story about operations being shut down due to the start of a labor strike at the Eastern … more

By Owen Sexton / owen@chronline.com | 5/9/25

The WSU Extension Lewis County Master Gardeners' 2023 Spring Plant Sale.

Master Gardener Foundation of Lewis County to host annual Spring Plant Sale

The Master Gardener Foundation of Lewis County has announced the return of its annual Spring Plant Sale. The event will take place from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on May 17 and from 9 a.m. until sold out … more

By The Chronicle | 5/9/25

This static image is from a USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory research camera located at the Johnston Ridge Observatory, north of Mount St. Helens. The view is to the south. This camera is intended to assist the USGS with situational awareness. At times, clouds, rain, and snow obscure visibility.

After two years, Mount St. Helens camera back online

After nearly two years, the camera at the site of the 1980 Mount St. Helens eruption is back online. Steven Friederich, public information officer for the Washington Emergency Management … more

By The Daily News | 5/9/25

Readers Lens: Stunning morning views from above Mount St. Helens

Mount St. Helens is pictured from above at about 6 a.m. May 2 in these photos captured by Shawn Downs, a commercial rated pilot who flies out of Toledo. It was captured from about 7,500 feet from … more

5/9/25

Centralia Mayor Kelly Smith Johnston receives a round of applause and a standing ovation during a Women in Business Seminar inside the Vintage Grand Room at the Washington Hotel in Chehalis in 2023. She is a speaker at this year’s Women in Business event.

Economic Alliance of Lewis County’s annual Women in Business Seminar set for May 14

The Economic Alliance of Lewis County will host its third annual Women in Business Seminar on Wednesday, May 14. The event invites working women and their supporters to learn from the … more

By Emily Fitzgerald / emily@chronline.com | 5/9/25

Centralia College’s 2025 Legacy Award honoree once opened for Elvis Presley

The Centralia College Foundation has selected Don Rich, who was born Donald Eugene Urich, for its 2025 Legacy Award. The award honors his dedication, commitment and contribution to music, … more

By The Chronicle staff | 5/8/25

Mount Rainier glows during sunset on Friday, Jan. 12, as seen from U.S. Highway 12 near Onalaska.

Strange things in the skies above Lewis County: Reports reveal sightings of unidentified objects going back to 1996

UFOs and discussion of sightings, long discredited and mocked in the mainstream, have become more widely accepted. In 2022, the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) even established the All-Domain … more

By Owen Sexton / owen@chronline.com | 5/7/25

Chehalis Flying Saucer Party speaker Steve Edmiston talks about the Maury Island Incident at McFiler's Chehalis Theater during the Flying Saucer Party on Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024.

Organizers preparing for UFO debate in New Mexico, pitting Kenneth Arnold and Harold Dahl against Mac Brazel

While Chehalis Flying Saucer Party organizers are preparing for this year’s festival in September, they also have a debate coming up — and the debate’s date has now been set, … more

By Owen Sexton / owen@chronline.com | 5/7/25

Julia Dalan, left, and Camila Garibay, right, receive the 2025 Visiting Nurses Foundation Scholarship during the Centralia-Chehalis Chamber of Commerce 25x25 Rob Fuller Scholarship Luncheon at the TransAtla Commons on Tuesday, May 6. They are pictured with Visiting Nurses Foundation Executive Director Jacki Jewell.

Visiting Nurses Foundation awards over $23K in scholarships to future health care professionals

The Visiting Nurses Foundation will award a total of $23,250 of its annual scholarship awards to support local students pursuing careers in health care. These scholarships are a reflection of … more

By The Chronicle staff | 5/7/25

Powersports Northwest President Jonathan Hubbert, left, poses with his staff in the business's new location at 197 N. Hamilton Road in Chehalis. This photo was provided by Powersports Northwest and captured by Amanda Anderson Photography.

Powersports Northwest thrives after move from Centralia to larger showroom along Interstate 5

Throughout its decades-long history, Powersports Northwest has been located at various locations in the Twin Cities area, including at the old Yard Birds shopping mall. After being located at … more

By Owen Sexton / owen@chronline.com | 5/7/25

Whitley Campbell works at an American Red Cross blood drive in the Lewis County Courthouse in Chehalis on Tuesday, Oct. 29.

American Red Cross announces summer blood drives, including one in Lewis County

The American Red Cross encourages the public to schedule their May donation appointment before summer gets into full swing, as evenings and weekends will likely be full, and patients are counting on … more

By The Chronicle staff | 5/7/25