From the guidebook:
DAYTON, 69.3 m. (1,615 alt., 3,026 pop.), a pleasant, bustling city, spreads over the V-shaped valley formed by the conjunction of Patit Creek, which courses through the northern section, and the Touchet River, which cuts through the southern section of the city. Main Street, a broad thoroughfare bordered with substantial frame and brick structures, is flanked on the south by an attractive residential district and on the north by the older residences of the original town.
Early history of Dayton centered around the point where Pioneer Bridge now crosses the Touchet River. Here an Indian trail crossed the stream, and the grassy flats were a favorite camping ground for Indian bands. Here, too, Lewis and Clark rested on their return journey in May, 1806, and 30 years later Captain Benjamin de Bonneville also camped here. In 1855, H.M. Chase, the first settler, took up lands at the bend of the Touchet, and other settlers soon followed. Among these was Henry C. Rickey, who erected a hotel and, in 1862, started a stage line between Walla Walla and Lewiston by way of the Touchet Valley. Newcomers continued to arrive in increasing numbers, particularly after the Civil War, but little thought was given to the establishment of a town until 1871, when the townsite was platted and filed. Five years later the town was incorporated under the name of Dayton.
The town flourished. Situated at the intersection of stage routes, it profited from the transient trade of hundreds of men stampeding to the various mining districts. Additional impetus came from the discovery that the upper benchlands as well as the valleys were eminently suited to growing wheat. In 1875, it became the seat of Columbia County. By 1880 Dayton had a population of 6,300. Then the wave began to recede: a series of fires, the coming of rail lines and the end of stage routes, the deflation of mining booms all contributed to the recession. Only agriculture continued to increase in importance.
The Dayton of 1940 is the hub of a highly productive farming area; the major crops are wheat, barley, hay, apples, and peas. Cattle also are raised for beef, the Wheatland Shorthorns, owned by C.J. Broughton, being one of the famous herds of beef cattle in the United States. An average of 20,000 sheep are raised annually in the county. The industrial plants include a pea cannery, with a capacity of 500,000 cases a season, apple-packing plants, sawmills, a box factory, a creamery, and several grain warehouses.
Dayton Days, an annual three-day event, features horse racing, bucking contests, stunt riding, and steer bulldogging. This event and the picnic of the Columbia COunty Pioneer Association are both held in June at the Dayton Fairgrounds.
---Washington: A guide to the Evergreen State
Between 1880 and 1910, prosperous business men built many large impressive homes and today 90 homes are in two historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places and nearly 30 buildings in the downtown historic district. The current population of Dayton is about 2600.