Mayfield, Washington
Unincorporated community
Mayfield is located in Washington (state)
Mayfield
Mayfield
Mayfield is located in the United States
Mayfield
Mayfield
Coordinates: 46°30′31″N 122°34′09″W / 46.50861°N 122.56917°W / 46.50861; -122.56917
CountryUnited States
StateWashington
CountyLewis
Elevation
[1]427 ft (130 m)
Time zoneUTC-8 (Pacific (PST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-7 (PDT)
zip code
98564
Area code360

Mayfield is an unincorporated community on the southern shore of Lake Mayfield in Lewis County, Washington. It is located off U.S. Route 12, east of Silver Creek.[1] The Mayfield Dam, which supplies hydroelectricity to Tacoma and its neighboring cities, sits 1-mile west of the area.

History

Before the arrival of non-native settlers, the location was used as a village for Native American people.[2] A post office for the territory was established in 1890 or 1891 and named Ferry, in recognition of Washington state's first governor.[3][4] The community's eponym changed to Mayfield in either 1891 or 1895 and was done so in homage to the location's first postmaster, H.T. (or W.H.) Mayfield.[4][5][6]

The original center of the town was vacated and razed, with homes relocated to the surrounding area, beginning in 1955 during the building of the Mayfield Dam. The post office would be moved, but quickly close, in 1962 when the area was flooded over that year just as the dam neared completion; the old town is permanently underwater.[2][7][8]

References

  1. ^ a b U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Mayfield, Washington
  2. ^ a b Mittge, Brian (April 6, 2002). "Living and dying by the lake". The Chronicle. pp. 37–38. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
  3. ^ "Post Offices". Jim Forte Postal History. Retrieved August 14, 2016.
  4. ^ a b "Mayfield Had To Fight To Land Postoffice". The Centralia Daily Chronicle. June 6, 1953. p. 18C. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
  5. ^ Meany, Edmond S. (1923). Origin of Washington geographic names. Seattle: University of Washington Press. p. 161.
  6. ^ "Lewis County - Mayfield". jtenlen.drizzlehosting.com. Lewis Co., WA GenWeb Project.
  7. ^ The Chronicle Staff (April 10, 2012). "From the Files: Mayfield Post Office To Close April 13". The Chronicle. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
  8. ^ Mittge, Brian (June 16, 2015). "Remembering Mayfield, the Town Beneath the Lake". The Chronicle. Retrieved December 13, 2021.


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