Cora was established in either 1886 or 1888[a] by Levi A. Davis, son of the founder of Claquato, and was either named after Cora Davis, Levi's wife, or his niece, Cora M. Ferguson Patterson.[4][5][6] At the time, Cora was far removed from other settlements, necessitating the need for supplies to be delivered by foot trails to the homestead.[3] Levi Davis died in 1901.[7]
A large portion of the Davis landholdings were sold in 1906 for $32,000 to the Chicago and North Western railroad, with plans to convert the acreage into a townsite and rail headquarters.[8] The sons of Levi Davis were involved in lawsuits over ownership rights of coal lands near Cora in 1906 and 1907; successful in those proceedings, the coal disagreement reached the Supreme Court of the United States[9]
The community, situated near the Cowlitz River, experienced its first recorded flood in 1896.[10] In 1905,[4] the town began providing a cable ferry, known as the Cora Ferry, which supplied service over the Cowlitz. The operation of the ferry was based on a lease and bids to operate the transport was often done on an annual basis.[11] The ferry landing was moved in 1913 to another site within Cora,[12] and a new transfer system was built the same year.[13] A ferry accident involving the Cora occurred in 1915 that took 5 lives[14] and by the following year, the service was discontinued after the completion of the Cora Bridge.[4]
During World War I, a Red Cross auxiliary was formed in Cora in 1918.[15] By the 1920s, the growing community had a grange and held a variety of events and dances at its hall.[16] The grange building was converted into a community hall in 1923[17] which helped Cora accommodate a large gathering of regional grange members that same year.[18]
Post office
A post office was established at Cora on June 11, 1890, and remained in operation until November 30, 1908.[4][19][20] Operated exclusively during its run by members of the Davis family,[4] the closure of the post office was due to a lack of anyone else in the community wanting to undertake the postmaster position.[21]
Geography
The community shares its names with the nearby Cora Falls, a waterfall near the Nisqually Entrance to Mount Rainier National Park, fed by Cora Lake.[22]
Education
Cora had a school as early as 1903.[23] The log building[24] was replaced in 1915 after a new one-room school site, at a cost of $500, was constructed between Cora and Lewis (present-day Packwood).[25] The newer schoolhouse, which held summer classes, was reported as still existing by 1953.[26]
Infrastructure
In February 1899, the Washington House of Representatives received a state senate bill that had passed enacting the establishment of a state road from Cora, or Sulphur Springs (present-day Packwood), through the Cowlitz Pass to Cowiche.[27] Later that month, the House Committee on Appropriations recommended that the project be indefinitely postponed.[28] At the turn of the 20th century, rail lines were being built at or near Cora.[29][30]
An overpass spanning over the Cowlitz River was first constructed in Cora in 1915 and became known as the Cora Bridge.[31][4] Major road improvements to the area began in 1925, which connected the Cora community to Randle.[32]
Notes
^Most news articles on Cora agree that 1888 was the original founding year, however some reports and other sources place the founding of the Davis homestead in 1886.[3]
