Pateros is a city in Okanogan County, Washington, United States. The population was 643 at the 2000 census and increased 3.7% to 667 in the 2010 census. Take a look below for 15 fun and interesting facts about Pateros, Washington, United States.

1. Pateros was originally established as Ive’s Landing in around 1886 by Lee Ives.

2. Ives began farming the area near the confluence of the Methow and Columbia Rivers, which was populated by a small band of Native Americans and around 20 Chinese miners.

3. Ives also built an 18-room hotel at the town site and operated a ferry crossing.

4. The first post office was built in 1895.

5. In 1900, Charles Nosler acquired most of the townsite. He renamed the town to Pateros, after a village in the Philippines he previously visited.

6. In 1903, the city consisted of four commercial establishments and nine residences and the town was sold to J.C. Steiner.

7. Steiner vigorously promoted the town, making Pateros the principal rail shipping point between Oroville and Wenatchee.

8. Pateros was officially incorporated on May 1, 1913.

9. In 1962, the Federal Power Commission granted the Douglas County Public Utility District a 50-year license to build and operate Wells Dam about 8 miles downstream of Pateros.

10. Construction of the dam would flood much of the original city.

11. The Pateros City Council accepted an offer to relocate the town, and the PUD spent about US$1,000,000 on moving or demolishing buildings and improving the town’s infrastructure.

12. Wells Dam went into operation in 1967.[8] Despite relocation of the city, the population dropped by almost a third from 1960 to 1970.

13. Much of Pateros was destroyed by the Carlton Complex wildfire on July 17 and 18, 2014. No injuries or fatalities were reported, but at least 95 homes in the area were reported destroyed, along with at least one business.

14. In mid-August Tacoma Inboard Racing Association hosts the “Pateros Hydro Classic.” Each year racers come from all over the country to race on Lake Pateros. Hydroplanes fly at speeds up to one hundred and forty miles per hour. They are powered by eight cylinders and are so loud the whole town can hear them. A mile and a quarter liquid oval course is tight for fifty hydroplanes fighting for the gold.

15. The race starts at ten thirty in the morning. Fans watch from the grassy park on the side of the lake which is really the Columbia River. A fireworks display is the finale of a long day of races on the Lake.