Riverside, WA

Riverside is an Okanogan County town where the 2020 census counted 329 residents. Uriah Ward first settled the community in the 1880s, near the mouth of Johnson Creek and the Okanogan River. When steamboats began traveling up the river during high water, Riverside became the upstream limit of navigation, giving the town a short but important role in regional transport.

Riverside is sometimes treated as part of Greater Omak and is home to Omak Airport, while Omak School District serves the town. The Okanogan River defines the larger valley geography, with mountains and dry farm country stretching beyond the community's streets. Riverside's early story came from river travel; its current connections come from the airport, school district, roads, and nearby Omak. The town is a small north-central Washington place where a former steamboat endpoint still helps place the name and location. The river remains the town's clearest geographic reference on the county map. Its shoreline history still matters today too.