The Lummi, Nooksack, Samish, and Nuwhaha in particular fished in Bellingham Bay and shared the hunting and gathering grounds in the nearby forests and prairies.

The first European immigrants reached the area about 1852 when Henry Roeder and Russel Peabody set up a lumber mill at Whatcom, now the northern part of Bellingham.

At about the same time, Dan Harris arrived, claiming a homestead along Padden Creek, and after acquiring surrounding properties, platted the town of Fairhaven in 1883.

The BBIC invested in several diverse enterprises such as shipping, coal, mining, railroad construction, real estate sales and utilities.

Even though their dreams of turning the cities by the bay into a Pacific Northwest metropolis never came to fruition, the BBIC made an immense contribution to the economic development of Bellingham.

In 1898, the utility merged into the Northern Railway and Improvement Company which prompted the Electric Corporation of Boston to purchase a large block of shares.

[20][21][22] Bellingham's proximity to the Strait of Juan de Fuca and to the Inside Passage to Alaska helped to retain some cannery operations.

It lies west of Mount Baker and Lake Whatcom (from which it gets its drinking water) and north of the Chuckanut Mountains and the Skagit Valley.

Mount Baker is the largest peak in the local area, with a summit elevation of 10,778 feet (3,285 m) that is only 31 miles (50 km) from Bellingham Bay.

[citation needed] Bellingham's neighborhoods are Alabama Hill, Barkley, Birchwood, Columbia, Cordata, Cornwall Park, Downtown Central Business District, Edgemoor, Fairhaven, Happy Valley, Irongate, King Mountain, Lettered Streets, Meridian, Puget, Roosevelt, Samish, Sehome, Silver Beach, South, South Hill, Sunnyland, Whatcom Falls, Western Washington University (WWU) (including the campus), and York.

[23] Bellingham's climate is generally mild and typical of the Puget Sound region; classified as warm-summer Mediterranean (Köppen: Csb) or oceanic (Trewartha: Do).

The Cascades to the east block continental influence, while the Olympics provide a rain shadow effect that buffers Bellingham from much of the rainfall approaching from the southwest.

It will typically follow several days of Arctic northeast outflow winds, and it can melt significant snow accumulations quickly, pushing drainage systems to their limits.

[39] Strong job and income growth, along with low inventory of homes for sale, have contributed to a median monthly rental payment in February 2017 of $1,526.

Wednesday nights in the summer see Downtown Sounds, a family-friendly concert series featuring food booths and a beer garden with local breweries held on Bay Street.

[54] From May to September, the Downtown Bellingham Partnership runs the Commercial Street Night Market, with local food, artisan vendors, live music and performances.

[60] The presence of a large university-age population has helped Bellingham become home to a number of regionally and nationally noted musical acts such as Death Cab for Cutie, Odesza, The Posies, Crayon, Idiot Pilot, Mono Men, No-Fi Soul Rebellion, Sculptured, Federation X, The Trucks, Black Eyes & Neckties, Black Breath, The High Mountain String Band, Shimmertraps, Dizzy Spins, and Shook Ones.

[63] In 2011, the city hosted the first annual Chuckanut Writers Conference,[64] run by Whatcom Community College and Village Books,[65] a local bookstore.

[73] In 2012, the City Council unanimously passed a resolution calling upon the federal government to overturn the Supreme Court's decision in the case of FEC v. Citizens United by declaring that U.S.

[79] According to Aaron Terrazas, senior economist at Zillow, "Given the area's pace of growth, it would require very aggressive building to keep rent affordability in check.

site was scaled-down;[86] Fairhaven neighbors led the effort to prevent the development of Fairhaven Highlands,[87] (now Chuckanut Ridge), which the City ended up purchasing for $8.2 million,[88] preventing more than 700 new housing units;[89] neighborhood groups pressured the City Council to go against staff recommendation to rezone Squalicum Lofts for residential development.

In 1965, G-P built a chlor-alkali facility, which became a source of mercury contamination in the Whatcom Waterway and on the uplands of the site for decades.

[105] Future Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr. began his professional career with the short-season class A Bellingham Mariners of the Northwest League in 1987.

Of these, the violent crimes consisted of 22 forcible rapes, 135 robberies and 221 aggravated assaults, while 804 burglaries, 5,193 larceny-thefts, 500 motor vehicle thefts and 20 arson defined the property offenses.

The area has had exceptionally early and strong penetration of cable television since the 1950s, and there have never been any local translators of the major Seattle TV stations.

Stations in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, can be viewed over the air with suitable antennae, but those in Seattle are too distant to receive in most locations in the county.

Alaska Airlines and Allegiant Air used to fly to Hawaii from Bellingham, serving Honolulu, Kahului, and Kona at various times, but this service ceased by 2019.

The Whatcom Transportation Authority (WTA) is the county's public transit agency and operates fixed bus service within Bellingham and its neighboring cities.

[139][140] The Bellingham Cruise Terminal is adjacent to the Amtrak station and serves as the southern terminus of the Alaska Marine Highway, a state-run ferry for passengers and vehicles.

The relationship with Tateyama is the most active and includes regular events such as an annual city hall staff exchange and community cultural visits.