Mabton, Washington

Mabton, Washington
—  City  —
Location of Mabton, Washington
Coordinates: 46°12′42″N 119°59′47″W
Country	United States
State	Washington
County	Yakima
Area
• Total	0.5 sq mi (1.2 km2)
• Land	0.5 sq mi (1.2 km2)
• Water	0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation	715 ft (218 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	2,286
• Density	4,026.3/sq mi (1,554.6/km2)
Time zone	Pacific (PST) (UTC-8)
• Summer (DST)	PDT (UTC-7)
ZIP code	98935
Area code	509
FIPS code	53-40980
GNIS feature ID	1512417

Mabton is a city in Yakima County, Washington, United States. The population was 2,286 at the 2010 census. Incorporated during the first few years of the 20th century, it is located at the eastern edge of the Yakama Indian Reservation.

History

The Mabton area's original inhabitants were the Yakama people, who were forced onto a reservation in 1855. Mabton's existence as a town is due to the Northern Pacific Railway, which arrived in the area around 1884 and built a water tower and section house on the site. Nothing else existed at Mabton until 1892 when Sam P. Flower built a store and a warehouse. He soon became the town's first postmaster. Mabton was named by Charlie Sandburg, a Swedish railworker, who proposed the name "Mabletown" for the wife (or daughter) of a railroad official who had spoken kind words to track workers during an inspection. By 1895, Mabton had several stores, a hotel, a railroad depot and a schoolhouse. The Mabton Townsite Company, formed by Sam P. Flower and J.A. Humphrey, made the first plat in 1902, and by 1904, it had more than a dozen businesses and a newspaper. The town of Mabton officially incorporated on November 7, 1905.

Today, residents primarily are employed in occupations related to agriculture, especially hop growing and grape growing.

The Mabton School District has been the repeated beneficiary of grants from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation:

• $558,000 over five years (from 2000 to 2005) to enhance student access to technology;
• In 2001, Mabton High School was one of sixteen high schools chosen to participate in the Washington State Achievers Program; the school gets a share proportional to its student population (about 330 students) of more than $9 million to support school improvement and redesign efforts and more than $100 million for college scholarships for its students;
• Over $40,000 over five years (2001–2006) to improve high school education and access to higher education; and
• Over $125,000 over 34 months (2001–2004) to support professional development programs in partnership with Heritage College.

Perhaps the best known person from Mabton is Mel Stottlemyre, a pitcher and later a pitching coach for the New York Yankees. He won 164 games for them as a pitcher from 1964 to 1974, with three 20-win seasons.

A small ranch near Mabton was home to the first confirmed case of mad cow disease in the United States on December 23, 2003.

Geography

Mabton is located at 46°12'42" North, 119°59'47" West (46.211618, -119.996520). Its ZIP code is 98935.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of ½ mi² (1.2 km²), all land.

Statistics

Results from the census of 2000 taken by the United States Census Bureau are as follows:

• There are 1,891 people, 445 households, and 381 families residing in the city.
• The population density is 4,026.3 people per square mile (1,553.4/km²).
• There are 463 housing units at an average density of 985.8 per square mile (380.4/km²).
• 89% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race; this figure includes the 80.5% who reported themselves as Mexican. The racial makeup of the city is 21.73% White, 1% Asian, 0.48% Native American, 0.11% African American, and no Pacific Islanders, 73.88% from other races, and 2.80% from two or more races.
• There are 445 households out of which 60% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.3% are married couples living together, 17.3% have a female householder with no husband present, and 14.2% are non-families. 12.4% of all households are made up of individuals and 5.8% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 4.22 and the average family size is 4.54.
• The median house value is $69,800; 64.7% of the housing units are owner-occupied. 77.2% of the homes were built before 1980.
• 41.9% of the population is under the age of 18, 12.9% is from 18 to 24, 25.8% is from 25 to 44, 12.9% is from 45 to 64, and 6.5% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line. The median age is 22 years.
• There are more men than women: for every 100 females there are 104 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 104.1 males.
• The median income for a household in the city is $26,650, and the median income for a family is $26,198. Males have a median income of $18,917 versus $21,667 for females.
• The per capita income for the city is $7,694. 32.7% of the population and 27.9% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 44.0% of those under the age of 18 and 18.2% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

The city's library is open six afternoons and three evenings per week. In a space of about 1,260 sq ft (117 m²) it has over 5,000 volumes of hardback books, over 2000 paperbacks, and 26 magazine subscriptions. Many of its books and magazines are in Spanish.