The town grew around an economy of stone quarrying, with local sandstone being used in several government and university buildings in the Pacific Northwest.

[6] Tenino gained notoriety during the Great Depression for the use of wooden money as public currency for its residents, a practice briefly revived during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The two main theories given for a century were that Tenino was a Chinook Jargon word for a fork or branch in the trail, or a form of T9o or 10-9-0 used by the railroad for a locomotive number, survey stake, or train car.

[citation needed] According to city historian Richard A. Edwards, the name "Tenino" was used by a steamboat of the Oregon Steam Navigation Company (OSN) on the Columbia and Snake rivers.

[9] On October 12, 1872, at a meeting in Portland, Oregon, shortly after their tour up the Columbia River, John C. Ainsworth and other officers of the OSN made a presentation about their common interests, President Cass proposed a resolution that also named the momentarily Northern terminus near Hodgden's station "Tenino".

[11][page needed] In early 1873, the Northern Pacific Railroad and local homesteader Stephen Hodgden filed plats in Thurston county establishing the town of Tenino.

[12] The city was officially incorporated on July 24, 1906, but Tenino existed as a rural community since the mid-19th century, the area containing a population of approximately 170 people by 1870[10] and the site fully platted in 1873.

[13] Initially, American settlers were attracted to the open prairies created and maintained by local natives through controlled burns to cultivate camas root, a staple food source.

Records indicate the initial settlers' community centered on the prairie approximately 1⁄2 a mile (0.80 km) south of the present town.

The railroad ended at Tenino for a time after Northern Pacific underwent financial difficulties, making the town the final passenger and freight stop on the line to Olympia.

Timber production and manufacturing, as well as agriculture and mining, were early economic factors in Tenino, contributing to the community's growth.

By the late 19th century, a number of sandstone quarrying companies began shipping the stone as a construction material for large buildings on the West Coast.

Buildings that used Tenino sandstone withstood two catastrophic events, the Great Seattle Fire of 1889 and the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, leading to the increase and popularity of the material.

[15] Eventually, Tenio sandstone was used in the construction of the Old Capitol Building and the old Thurston County Courthouse in Olympia, the rebuilt Seattle public library,[15] the Mason County Courthouse in Shelton, the First Congregational Church, developed by Cameron Stone, in Tacoma, Denny Hall and the Theodore Jacobson Observatory at the University of Washington, the Pittock Mansion and the Pioneer Courthouse in Portland, Oregon, the Calvary Presbyterian Church of San Francisco[15] and several US post office buildings, including at The Dalles, Oregon.

[citation needed] Additional buildings constructed with Tenio sandstone include the Portland Public Library and the Science Hall at Washington State University.

[citation needed] During the late 1940s and early 1950s, before the construction of Interstate 5, a notorious stretch along U.S. Route 99 through Tenino gained a reputation as the "Speed Trap of the West".

Due to the dissent, several bills were proposed in the state legislature that would add stricter requirements and better communication policies regarding sex offender housing.

The day-long event hosted a parade and vendor markets, with the highlight of a "birthday card" written in chalk by artists on a closed intersection in the city.

The city's U.S. House of Representative at the time, Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, bestowed Tenino with a Congressional Record copy of a floor speech she gave honoring the community and its achievement.

After the local bank failed in 1931, the town government temporarily issued wooden money scrip, made of thin-cut cedar and spruce, and was used by Tenino's residents when cash was scarce.

After the loss of a meat processing plant within the region, the city and county began plans to develop a more encompassing business park to help the local economy.

[29] One of the first schools constructed in the county, after the formation of the Washington Territory, was erected approximately in 1862 at was then referred to as the Coal Bank Precinct.

[30] Inspired by a mayoral proclamation in 1968 for Tenino to honor pioneer history and culture, the city began holding an annual weekend "Oregon Trail Days" festival.

"Black powder shoots", historical exhibits, live music, cuisine, vintage car shows, and a parade round out the celebration.

[37] A non-profit theater group, known as the Tenino Young-at-Heart Theatre (TYT), was formed in 1990 and produces live performances at various locations throughout the city.

The TYT purchased land, with help from an anonymous donor, near the high school in 2021 with plans to build a performing arts center.