Fans of the early 90’s sleeper TV hit Northern Exposure might recognize the Roslyn Cafe mural from the opening credits of the show, where a moose casually strolled through town. Also featured prominently in the show was The Brick Saloon, which opened in 1889 and boasts a 100-year-old back bar that traveled shipping lanes from England via Cape Horn. It also has a 23-foot running water spittoon still in operation today and old jail cells in the basement where unruly drunks were reportedly held to sleep it off. [Yakima Herald]

The Northern Pacific Railway Company, which began developing coal mines in Roslyn in 1886, heavily recruited men “from coal mining regions in other parts of the United States and from nations with well-developed coal industries. Forty percent of the population in 1900 was foreign-born, mostly Slavic, Italian, and English immigrants. In fact, 24 nationalities have been recorded living in Roslyn at one time. The same census year of 1900 shows 22% of Roslyn’s population was black at that time. During a mining strike in 1888, the company recruited black miners from the southeastern U.S. to take the place of the striking miners. Special trains brought in over 300 black miners and their families. This migration represented the greatest increase in the black population of Washington Territory at that date.” This diverse cultural history is reflected in the collection of 25 different ethnic and lodge-affiliated cemeteries in Roslyn today. [Roslyn Library]

The first of its kind in Washington, “the Teanaway Community Forest demonstrates how conservation, sustainable forestry, and community partnership goals can be achieved. This beautiful 50,241-acre landscape lies at the headwaters of the Yakima Basin watershed. The state purchased the land in 2013 with funding provided by the Legislature and established Washington’s first state-owned community forest. The forest contains nearly 400 miles of free-flowing streams and prime habitat for fish and wildlife. It has a history of grazing and timber harvests and offers unique recreation opportunities.” [WA DNR]

This route will take you to Mammoth Rock, Exclamation Point Rock, Cheese Rock, and Split Rock. These rocks from the Eocene epoch (56 -33.9 million years ago) predate the Cascade Mountain Range. At that time, “you would have found meandering rivers, low hills, and swamps instead of mountains. The river deposits and swamps were compressed by overlying rock and heated by the Earth to become sandstone and coal.” These rocks are Eocene sandstone from the Roslyn Formation whose eye-catching shapes formed when the surrounding weaker rocks eroded away. [WA DNR]

The holes in Cheese Rock are called tafoni and are caused by water-induced weathering.

Northern Pacific Railway constructed a branch line between Cle Elum and Roslyn in 1886 and on to Ronald in 1887 that was used to transport coal as well as local residents. Although the rails are gone, the route has been preserved as a historical walk with signs identifying significant sites. Keep an eye out for markers along the trail calling attention to historical events such as Washington’s worst coal mining disaster (next to the pagoda mentioned below) and noteworthy mining infrastructure such as slag piles and mine locations.

An excerpt from these informative panels about Yakama Nation history and culture: “This land is the traditional territory of the Pshwánapam [who] spoke a language known as Ichishkinsinwit which translates to ‘the language that belongs to the land’. The language came to be because of the places on the land that carry a message through the wind and water. The land speaks the language and we speak it back. This creates a spiritual connection to our people through the language. It is the language that is understood by the Creator. For example, the word ‘Pshwan’ is known as rock as it is the sound that is created when a stone drops into the water.” [Read more about the Yakama Nation]

“The Northern Pacific Coal Company, a division of the Northern Pacific Railroad, owned and operated the company store that supplied goods to the residents of Roslyn in the nineteenth century. The company constructed this one-story building in the downtown commercial core at First Street and East Pennsylvania Avenue in 1889. It was one of three general stores serving Roslyn, carrying basic staples such as food, clothing, hardware, and furnishings.” [SAH Archipedia] Retail businesses and historical photos can be found inside this brick building on Pennsylvania street, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Situated directly in front is a coal miner’s memorial statue erected in 1996.