Chimacum, Washington

Chimacum is an unincorporated community in eastern Jefferson County, Washington, United States. It lies on the Olympic Peninsula at coordinates 48°0′42″N 122°46′10″W / 48.01167°N 122.76944°W / 48.01167; -122.76944. It was named after the Chemakum group of Native Americans that lived there until the late 19th century. Chimacum is the home of Chimacum Schools' main campus, which serves the unincorporated communities of East Jefferson County to the south of Port Townsend and north of Quilcene, including Chimacum itself, Port Hadlock, Irondale, Marrowstone Island, Oak Bay, Paradise Bay, Port Ludlow, and Shine. Probably at least in part due to the (arguably declining) prevalence of dairy and cattle farming in the Chimacum area, Chimacum High School's sports teams are the Cowboys. The Chimacum valley remains an agricultural area with many small farms and a farmers' market. The area is also served by local branch of The National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry that celebrated its 90th anniversary in April 2008. Chimacum is part of the so-called "tri-area" of Chimacum, Port Hadlock and Irondale, in central-east Jefferson County. Betty MacDonald's The Egg and I, the book upon which the Ma and Pa Kettle films were based, described the author's experiences on a chicken farm near Chimacum. Linda Perhacs's 1970 album Parallelograms contains the poignant "Chimacum rain", a song inspired by Chimacum's natural beauty.