Welcome to the new Othello Community Museum website. We have been working to create a site people will enjoy.

The Othello Community Museum began in 1973 with a mission to preserve the history of Othello and the surrounding area. Since that time, we have been working toward expanding our presence and this website is just one of those ways we are doing that.

Each year, we focus on one aspect of our rich heritage. This year, it is the Columbia Basin Project, which brought water to the otherwise parched desert.

The irrigation project was authorized by Congress in 1943 – 80 years ago – and construction began shortly after the end of World War II. The first water went to Pasco in 1948 and was delivered to 5,400 acres. Four years later, in 1952, the first water from Grand Coulee Dam was sent to about 66,000 acres. Today, the system irrigates 671,000 acres and more is planned as the project is expanded in the near future.

The water from the project also provides flood control and both municipal and industrial water uses. It also provides many jobs and recreation along the vast waterways created by the system. Anyone living or visiting the state of Washington is impacted by the Columbia Basin Project.

We are hoping to see you at the museum sometime this summer. We will open for the season at 1 p.m. Saturday, June 15, with a special presentation about the irrigation. After that, we will be open each Saturday from 1 to 5 p.m. through September.

For more information on the project, visit usbr.gov, cbdl.org, agr.wa.gov, nwcouncil.org, or ecbid.org.