McCleary, WA: celebrating a legacy of logging in bear country

January 2023: The town of McCleary (population 1,997*) is located south of the Seattle metro area, off of local Hwy 8. We drove through town on our way to the Pacific coast on a Thursday morning in late January. It was a beautiful slightly foggy winter day and we were eager to stretch our legs and explore on foot.  Our first interaction with the town was one of the cleverest town signs I have ever seen, with a wooden arch that had 3 climbing bear cubs and a wooden adult bear on either side. Of course we had to stop for a great photo op! 

          

McCleary – a brief history

The area saw its first European settlement in the 1890s when Henry McCleary arrived and built two sawmills and a door manufacturing company. He sold his land and companies to Simpson Logging Company in 1941, and the town was incorporated in 1943. Simpson upgraded its utilities and sold the excess energy and water to the city, starting the following year. Today, all utilities (including electricity and water) are provided by the city, and the door plan employs just over 200 workers in the manufacturing of high-quality wooden doors (as sited on the city website).

The town started its annual Bear Festival in 1959. Its origin story is based on the concept that the area had too many bears, which killed evergreen trees by eating the bark. In response, the first Bear Festival featured bear stew – a tradition which continues to this day.

Now we know the origins of the very cool bear themed town sign!

Downtown vibe / walkability

Our next stop was Beerbower Park near the middle of town, located across from a city municipal building.  The Park has baseball diamonds and a small open-air museum featuring steamer (shipping) equipment. There is also a display of big steamer pulleys.  Continuing our journey, we drove past the Simpson Door company which is located in the heart of the town. The local businesses are mostly accessible along its main road Simpson Avenue.

Local Activities / Events

As mentioned before, the primary annual event is the Bear Festival. The upcoming 64th annual festival will include a Grand Parade, a family zone, Music, a softball tournament, car show, a soap box derby race, food and craft vendors – and of course bear stew!

Tourism and Chamber of Commerce support for McCleary is provided though the Grays Harbor county for the region