- Racehorse Creek thunders over a great waterfall situated within a short, shallow and very interesting gorge. The falls drop a total of 139 feet over four distinct steps. The first two tiers are back-to-back punchbowl-type plunges of 19 and 44 feet respectively, which both feature deep potholes at their bases. Immediately below the second tier the creek accelerates down a ramp-like cascading fall for about 15 feet and then comes to the final drop where it first plunges over an undercut ledge and then slams onto a diagonally pitched bedrock ramp and veils out in a broad sheet, with a small pool on one side about three-quarters of the way down and ending in a much larger pool. The basin at the bottom of the falls is held back by a second diagonally pitched ramp of bedrock, within which is another small fall of about 10 feet.
northwest waterfall survey of
- Seattle Neighborhoods: Columbia City — Thumbnail History (historylink.org)
Columbia City, a historic neighborhood in southeast Seattle, began as a townsite developed by promoter J. K. Edmiston, who built an electric rail line from downtown Seattle through the Rainier Valley along the route now followed by Rainier Avenue. It was incorporated as an independent town in 1893 and was annexed into Seattle in 1907. Manufacturers such as the Hitt Fireworks Company and Heater Glove Company sustained the local economy until World War II, when the neighborhood became home to defense workers and Hitt Fireworks switched to military production. Columbia City saw declines in the post-war years, reaching a nadir in the late 1970s when crime was a major concern and many storefronts were empty. In subsequent decades, a combination of public and private efforts helped revitalize the area. The local business community won Landmark District status for Columbia City in 1978, helping to preserve the neighborhood’s historic ambience. Once-empty storefronts have become restaurants, offices, an art gallery, and other businesses.