Star Wars: Jedi Knight

Star Wars: Jedi Knight is a series of first- and third-person shooter video games set in the fictional Star Wars expanded universe. The series focuses primarily on Kyle Katarn, a former Imperial officer who becomes a mercenary working for the Rebel Alliance, and later a Jedi and instructor at Luke Skywalker's Jedi Academy. While the first game is set a year after the events of A New Hope, the sequels take place in the decade following Return of the Jedi.

The Jedi Knight series began in 1995 with the release of Star Wars: Dark Forces for DOS, Macintosh, and PlayStation. This was followed in 1997 by Star Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II for Microsoft Windows, in which Katarn learns the ways of a Jedi. In 1998, Star Wars Jedi Knight: Mysteries of the Sith was released as an expansion pack for Dark Forces II, this time giving the player control of Mara Jade as well as Katarn. In 2002, Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast was released. Jedi Outcast was developed by Raven Software and powered by the id Tech 3 game engine. It was released for Windows, Mac, Xbox and GameCube. Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy followed in 2003 on Windows, Mac and Xbox. It was powered by the same game engine as its predecessor. Jedi Academy was the first game in the series where the player does not control Katarn at any point, although he is featured prominently in the storyline.

The games in the Jedi Knight series have received generally favorable reviews. Multiple publications have commented on the quality of the series as a whole. The use of the lightsaber in the series, a prominent gameplay element in all but the first game, has received specific praise for its implementation.

## Games

- Star Wars: Dark Forces was developed and published by LucasArts, and released in North America on February 28, 1995 for MS-DOS and Macintosh, and on November 30, 1996 for PlayStation. It was the first officially produced first-person shooter set in the Star Wars universe.
- Star Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II was again developed and published by LucasArts, and released in North America on October 10, 1997 for Microsoft Windows.
  - Star Wars Jedi Knight: Mysteries of the Sith is an expansion pack for Dark Forces II. Developed and published by LucasArts, it was released on February 24, 1998 for Microsoft Windows. The expansion includes a single-player mode and fifteen multiplayer maps.
- Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast was developed by Raven Software for PC and Vicarious Visions for the Xbox and GameCube. LucasArts published the Windows version worldwide and the Xbox and GameCube versions in North America, Activision published the Xbox and GameCube versions in Europe, and Aspyr published the Mac version worldwide. The PC version was released in North America on March 26, 2002, the Mac version on November 5, and the Xbox and GameCube versions on November 19.
- Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy was developed by Raven Software for PC and Vicarious Visions for the Xbox. LucasArts published the Windows and Xbox versions in North America, Activision published them in Europe, and Aspyr published the Mac version worldwide. Jedi Academy was released on September 16, 2003 for Mac, on September 17 for Windows, and on November 18 for Xbox.

## Overview

### Gameplay

The Jedi Knight series is composed primarily of first/third-person shooter gameplay elements, with a number of variation on the norms of the genre within each game. All of the games use a level based system which contains a series of objectives that must be completed before the player can continue. From Dark Forces II onwards, the games have included lightsaber combat and the use of Force powers, which have been tweaked and modified as the series has progressed.

In the first game, Dark Forces, the focus is on combat against various creatures and characters from the Star Wars universe, and includes environmental puzzles and hazards, whilst following a central storyline outlined in mission briefings and cutscenes. For combat, the player may use fists, explosive land mines and thermal detonators, as well as blasters and other ranged weapons, with the gameplay leaning more towards ranged combat.

In Dark Forces II, the player has the option of a third-person view, plus an option to switch automatically to third-person when the lightsaber is the selected weapon. Three types of Force powers are introduced in this game: Light powers provide non violent advantages, Dark powers provide violent ones, while Neutral powers enhance athletic abilities. The game has two endings, depending on whether the player chooses to focus on the Light Side or the Dark Side.

Unlike its predecessor, Mysteries of the Sith has a single, morally positive course, as the player progresses through the game in a linear fashion. The game includes most of the enemies featured in Dark Forces II, plus some new monsters. The player has access to Force powers and projectile weapons such as a blaster or railgun, as well as a lightsaber.

Jedi Outcast's gameplay is similar to that of its predecessors, with some small additions, such as access to gun turrets, or the use of combos unique to each of the three lightsaber styles in the game; fast, medium and strong. As with Dark Forces II and Mysteries of the Sith, the use of Force powers is restricted by a "Force Meter", which depletes when the powers are used.

Jedi Academy features very similar gameplay to Jedi Outcast, although one new feature is that the player may customize their lightsaber at the outset of the game. Later, the player has the option of choosing dual sabers, or a "saber staff", similar to Darth Maul's double ended lightsaber in The Phantom Menace. Instead of moving linearly from one level to the next, the player chooses from a selection of different missions which can be played in any order. The game also introduces player-controllable vehicles and vehicle-based levels.

Starting with Jedi Knight, a multiplayer mode has been included in every game, in which up to eight people can compete with one another via a LAN or up to four people online. In Jedi Knight, the player creates an avatar, and then selects a ranking, with higher rankings having access to more Force powers. There are two types of multiplayer game available; "Capture the flag" and "Jedi Training". Mysteries of the Sith includes fifteen multiplayer maps, four of which only allow players to battle with lightsabers, and a ranking system that tracks the player's experience. The multiplayer mode allows the use of pre-set characters featured in both Jedi Knight and Mysteries of the Sith, as well as characters from the Star Wars films, such as Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader and Boba Fett. In Mysteries, the "Capture the flag" mode is altered, with the gradual reduction of the Force powers of the player who is carrying the flag.

Jedi Outcast features several multiplayer modes, which, in the PC and Mac versions, can be played over a LAN or the internet. Multiplayer mode is limited to two players on the Xbox and GameCube versions of the game. Game modes include "Free-For-All", "Team Deathmatch", "Capture the Flag", "Power Duel" and "Siege", all of which can be played with other players, bots, or both. Jedi Academy introduces several multiplayer modifications, such as Movie Battles II which allows players to take part in lightsaber duels that featured in the Star Wars films. Movie Battles also lets players choose different classes of character, ranging from Jedi Knight to Wookiee. Another popular modification, Evolution of Combat, allows players to use more movie-realistic saber combat along with other additions such as a movie accurate class system featuring tens of new characters.

### Story

The Jedi Knight video games are set in the Star Wars universe. For the majority of the series, the player controls Kyle Katarn, who begins as a mercenary, eventually learning the ways of The Force, becoming a Jedi Master and teaching at the Jedi Academy.

Prior to the events of Dark Forces, Katarn was a student studying to follow in his father's career of agricultural mechanics. However, while at an academy, he was told by officials that the Rebel Alliance had killed his parents. His anger led him to enlist in the Imperial army, where he soon met Jan Ors, an undercover double agent working for the Alliance. Ors uncovered the real information about Katarn's parents; they had actually been killed by the Empire. Shortly thereafter, Ors' cover was blown, and she was taken prisoner. Katarn helped her escape, thus ending his career with the Empire. He then became a mercenary, and due to his hatred for the Empire, regularly took on jobs for the Alliance.

In the first level of Dark Forces, which is set prior to A New Hope, Katarn recovers the plans to the Death Star, a heavily armed space station capable of destroying entire planets. The Rebel Alliance uses the plans to find a weakness in and then destroy the Death Star. Katarn then aids the Rebels in stopping the threat of the Imperial "Dark Trooper" project. Despite the successful missions on behalf of the Alliance, however, Katarn does not join their cause. Dark Forces II begins several years after the destruction of the second Death Star in Return of the Jedi, when Katarn is informed of the exact details of his father's death. His father, Morgan Katarn, had discovered the location of "The Valley of the Jedi", a source of great Force power, but a Dark Jedi named Jerec murdered Morgan in an attempt to find the location. Katarn travels to the Valley of the Jedi while learning the ways of the Jedi himself. Eventually, he confronts and defeats Jerec, avenging his father's death. However, Katarn still does not join the Jedi Order, instead using his powers for the New Republic, and taking on an apprentice with a similar history to himself; Mara Jade. During this time, Katarn learns of a Sith temple on the planet Dromund Kaas. There, Katarn is corrupted by the Dark Side of the Force. However, Jade is able to convince him to return to the Light and they leave together.

This incident causes Katarn to distance himself from the Force and return to mercenary missions with Jan Ors. In Jedi Outcast, Ors is captured by Desann, a former pupil of Luke Skywalker who has turned to the Dark Side. Katarn believes Desann to have killed Ors, and so he returns to the Valley of the Jedi in an attempt to reconnect to the Force so as to stop Desann. Eventually, it is revealed that Ors' death is a ruse by Desann for the express purpose of having Katarn return to the Valley, so Desann may learn of its location. Desann, in league with the Imperial Remnant, uses the power of the Valley to endow his troops with Force power, before using them to launch an attack on the Jedi Academy. However, Katarn defeats Desann and discovers his true path, becoming a tutor at the Academy. In Jedi Academy, Katarn takes on two students: Jaden Korr and Rosh Penin. The protagonist of the game is Jaden, who is dispatched on various peace-keeping missions across the galaxy, sometimes with Katarn, sometimes alone. Jaden eventually encounters a Sith cult led by Tavion (Desann's former apprentice) who plans to restore the Sith to power by using stolen Force energy to resurrect an ancient Sith Lord, Marka Ragnos. After learning that Rosh has betrayed the Jedi and joined Tavion, Jaden may either kill him and turn to the Dark Side or let him live and remain on the Light Side. If Jaden chooses the Dark Side, they kill Tavion, defeats Katarn, and flees with Tavion's staff, which is capable of absorbing the Force. The game ends with Katarn setting out in pursuit of Jaden. If Jaden chooses to spare Rosh, they ultimately defeat both Tavion and the spirit of Ragnos, and is lauded for their actions by Katarn and Luke.

## Development

Production of Star Wars: Dark Forces began in September 1993, with Daron Stinnett as project leader and Justin Chin as lead writer. The developers wanted to adapt the first-person shooter format to include strategy and puzzles, which at the time, had never been done. Dark Forces thus features numerous logic puzzles and parts of the game requires a strategic method to progress, often involving manipulation of the environment. This style of gameplay has remained constant in all Jedi Knight games. Another aspect that has remained the same since Dark Forces is the use of John Williams' soundtrack from the Star Wars films. In Dark Forces the music was implemented using iMuse, software that alters the music depending on what is happening at any given moment in the game. Lucasarts developed the Jedi game engine to power Dark Forces, adding features to the first-person shooter genre that were uncommon at the time, such as multi-level floors and free look, as well as athletic abilities such as running, jumping, ducking and swimming. Original plans for the game had Luke Skywalker as the main character, but due to the limitations this would impose on the story, the developers designed a new character, Kyle Katarn.

Even before the release of Dark Forces, Justin Chin had planned out Katarn's role in Dark Forces II, indicating that Katarn would face a "big trial" in a game that would be a "rite of passage." Chin became project leader for Dark Forces II. In the game, the digital audio from Dark Forces was replaced with CD audio. Dark Forces II adds two "Jedi" aspects to the series; the use of The Force and the lightsaber. The Force plays an integral role in how the player plays the game. The method of allocating credits to Force powers was designed with an RPG style in mind, allowing the player the choice of which powers to improve. Chin said in an early interview that progress through the game is based upon the abilities the player develops. A new game engine, the Sith engine, was developed for Dark Forces II, which uses both 3D graphics and sound. It was one of the first games to adopt the use of 3D graphics hardware acceleration using Microsoft Direct3D. Another development was that Dark Forces II moved on from the static images between levels used in Dark Forces to full motion video cutscenes. The characters are represented by live actors while the backgrounds are pre-rendered. The cutscenes included the first lightsaber footage filmed since Return of the Jedi in 1983. Dark Forces II also introduced multiplayer gaming to the series, allowing players to play online or via a LAN.

Nearly four years after the release of Dark Forces II, LucasArts announced at E3 2001 that Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast would be released in 2002. Unlike previous games in the series, Jedi Outcast was not developed in-house by LucasArts, but by Raven Software. The subsequent success of Outcast led LucasArts to continue the partnership with Raven, leading to the development of Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy a year later; "With the overwhelming success and critical acclaim of Star Wars: Jedi Outcast, continuing an alliance with Activision and Raven Software was a clear and very easy decision," said then-president of LucasArts, Simon Jeffery. Jedi Outcast and Jedi Academy are both powered by the Quake III: Team Arena game engine, with modifications for the use of a lightsaber and The Force. Jedi Academy is the only game in the Jedi Knight series that does not give the player control of Katarn at any point. Instead the focus is on Jaden Korr, a student of the Force under Katarn. The decision to change protagonist was made by the developers for gameplay reasons.

## Reception

The Jedi Knight series as a whole has been well received. The series itself has been described as "highly acclaimed," and has been noted by IGN as one of few Star Wars themed video game franchises that is of consistently high quality on the PC. GamersMark.com called the series "rather entertaining," whilst GameNOW rated it as "consistently great."

Individually, each game in the series has been generally well received. In 1995, Dark Forces became LucasArts' highest sell-in with more than 300,000 copies accounted for at launch. Games in the series have achieved consistently favorable review scores from most publications, and hold high aggregate scores on both Metacritic and GameRankings. The only exceptions are the PlayStation version of Dark Forces, which was perceived to have graphical problems and the GameCube version of Jedi Outcast, which was seen as considerably inferior to the PC and Xbox versions.

Games in the Jedi Knight series have also received specific commendation and awards. Dark Forces II was judged the best game of the year for 1997 by five publications, and was number one in PC Gamer's "50 best games ever" list in 1998. Jedi Outcast was a finalist in the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences "Interactive Achievement Awards" in the 2002 Computer Action/Adventure Game of the Year category. The game also received commendations from PC Gamer and Computer Gaming World.

Gameplay aspects of the series have also been well received. The lightsaber charted at number 7 in UGO Networks's countdown of the 50 best weapons in video games. The publication commented that using such a weapon in a game was "extremely satisfying," and stated that lightsaber usage had been refined as the series continued.

Kyle Katarn has also received a positive reception. IGN placed him as their 22nd top Star Wars character, praising him as "a gamer's reliable blank state," a feature which they felt made him one of the most "human" Star Wars characters. They also stated that Katarn's endearence with fans was because of his "mishmash of quirks and dispositions." In GameSpot's vote for the all-time greatest videogame hero, Katarn was eliminated in round two when faced against Lara Croft, garnering 27.5% of the votes. In round one he defeated Dig Dug, with 67.6% of the votes.

Series of video games

Video game franchises introduced in 1995


Great Eastern Highway

Great Eastern Highway is a 590-kilometre-long (370 mi) road that links the Western Australian capital of Perth with the city of Kalgoorlie. A key route for road vehicles accessing the eastern Wheatbelt and the Goldfields, it is the western portion of the main road link between Perth and the eastern states of Australia. The highway forms the majority of National Highway 94, although the alignment through the Perth suburbs of Guildford and Midland, and the eastern section between Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie are not included. Various segments form parts of other road routes, including National Route 1, Alternative National Route 94, and State Route 51.

There are numerous intersections in Perth with other highways and main roads, including Canning, Albany, Tonkin and Roe Highways, and Graham Farmer Freeway. There are also two rural highways that spur off Great Eastern Highway. Great Southern Highway begins near Perth's eastern metropolitan boundary, linking towns such as York, Brookton, Narrogin, and Katanning. Near the eastern end of the highway, Coolgardie is the starting point of Coolgardie–Esperance Highway, connecting to the interstate route Eyre Highway at Norseman, as well as the coastal town of Esperance.

The highway was created in the 1930s from an existing system of roads linking Perth with the Goldfields. Though the name Great Eastern Highway was coined to describe the route from Perth to Guildford on the northern side of the Swan River (modern-day Guildford Road), it was actually used for the road through Belmont, south of the river. This section was constructed in 1867 using convict labour, with the road base made from sections of tree trunks. Over the years the road has been upgraded, with the whole highway sealed by 1953, segments reconstructed and widened, dual carriageways created in Perth and Kalgoorlie, and grade separated interchanges built at major intersections. Great Eastern Highway Bypass in Perth's eastern suburbs opened in 1988, allowing through traffic to avoid the Guildford and Midland townsites, and in 2002 a new bypass diverted the highway around Northam. A future route to replace Great Eastern Highway's current ascent of the Darling Scarp has been identified. The planned route is a controlled-access highway along Toodyay Road to Gidgegannup, and then across to Wundowie via a new alignment. Though planning began in the 1970s, as of 2012, construction of this route has not been scheduled, and it is not considered a priority.

## Route description

Great Eastern Highway commences at The Causeway, a river crossing that connects to Perth's central business district. Travelling north-east through the city to Greenmount Hill, and following a steep climb, the highway heads east through Western Australia's Wheatbelt to Kalgoorlie, in the state's Goldfields. Within Perth, the highway is a six-lane dual carriageway from The Causeway to Tonkin Highway near Perth Airport. It travels as a four lane single carriageway to Midland, with the second carriageway reappearing after Roe Highway, and continuing all the way to The Lakes at Perth's eastern fringe. The remainder of the highway is a two-lane single carriageway until Kalgoorlie, where a dual carriageway exists. The speed limit is 60 kilometres per hour (35 mph) from The Causeway to Midland, 70 km/h (45 mph) near the bottom of Greenmount Hill, and 80 km/h (50 mph) from Greenmount to Sawyers Valley. From the eastern edge of Perth it is generally 110 km/h (70 mph), but with lower limits for sections near the towns the highway encounters en route to Kalgoorlie.

The highway runs mostly parallel to the Mundaring to Kalgoorlie water pipeline, which supplies the Goldfields with water from Mundaring Weir in the eastern part of Perth. The Golden Pipeline Heritage Trail is a tourist drive alongside the pipeline, with large sections of the trail following Great Eastern Highway. Various road routes are allocated to sections of Great Eastern Highway, with some overlap between some of the routes. It is mostly signed as National Highway 94, except for the section between Great Eastern Highway Bypass and Roe Highway, and the final 40 kilometres (25 mi) from Coolgardie to Kalgoorlie. It is also signed as National Route 1 between The Causeway and Morrison Road in Midland, State Route 51 between Johnson Street in Guildford and Roe Highway, Tourist Drive 203 between Terrace Road in Guildford and Morrison Road, Midland, and Alternate National Route 94 east of Coolgardie.

Main Roads Western Australia monitors traffic volume across the state's road network, including various locations along Great Eastern Highway. In 2008/09, the busiest section was east of the Graham Farmer Freeway interchange, averaging 60,760 vehicles per weekday. The lowest volume was an average of 850 vehicles per day near Ryans Find Road, partway between Southern Cross and Coolgardie; however, this point also received the largest proportion of heavy vehicles, at 40.2% of all traffic. As of 2012, Great Eastern Highway between Mundaring and Northam is the state's worst section of National Highway, in terms of road safety. Casualty crash rates had decreased since 2007, although the Royal Automobile Club of Western Australia (RAC) still considered it a risky section of road needing close attention from road authorities. In 2013, Great Eastern Highway remained as a road of particular concern, with the Australian Automobile Association giving 67% of the highway a low one- or two-star rating (out of five), and 77% of the route between The Lakes and Northam a one-star safety rating.

### Burswood to Midvale

Great Eastern Highway begins at a grade separated interchange between the south-eastern end of The Causeway, north-eastern end of Canning Highway, and north-western ends of Shepperton Road and Albany Highway. It proceeds in a north-easterly direction between local parks for 1.3 kilometres (0.8 mi), south of the Crown Perth entertainment complex in . After passing under the Armadale line, there is a diamond interchange with Graham Farmer Freeway to the north-west and Orrong Road to the south-east, with an additional south-westbound to north-westbound looped ramp. The highway continues north-east, parallel to the Swan River, through the residential and commercial areas of Rivervale, , , and . There are many at-grade intersections and driveway access crossovers in these high density suburbs. Major intersections are controlled by traffic lights, while many others are left-in/left-out. After 4.6 kilometres (2.9 mi), Great Eastern Highway interchanges with Tonkin Highway, which connects to Perth's north-eastern and south-eastern suburbs. Until September 2018, the interchange was also connected to Brearley Avenue, which provided access to Perth Airport's domestic terminals. The connection was removed due to the construction of Redcliffe railway station as part of the Forrestfield-Airport Link. The main connection linking Great Eastern Highway to the precinct is now at Fauntleroy Avenue to the north-east.

The road travels for another 2.1 kilometres (1.3 mi) along the border between Ascot and Redcliffe, before reaching a traffic light controlled fork with Great Eastern Highway Bypass. The main traffic flow continues east on the bypass to Roe Highway, while the Great Eastern Highway runs north-east through for 2 kilometres (1.2 mi), separating a narrow residential area along the Swan River from industrial development in the rest of the suburb. The highway crosses the Helena River via a two-lane bridge, and continues north into the historic townsite of Guildford, named as Johnson Street. After 800 metres (2,600 ft), Johnson Street terminates at a T junction, just south of the Midland railway line. The highway turns east onto James Street, which after 1.2 kilometres (0.75 mi) has a sharp 90 degree turn to the north, continuing as East Street for 450 metres (1,480 ft). Following a level crossing of the railway, and an adjacent set of traffic lights at Terrace Road, the name Great Eastern Highway is resumed.

The highway continues north-east for 1.6 kilometres (1 mi) to Midland. Throughout Midland and the adjacent suburb of , it is at the centre of a commercial area, with two shopping centres located alongside the highway, and retail businesses fronting both sides of the road. As Great Eastern Highway enters Midland, traffic splits into a pair of one-way roads. Eastbound traffic continues on Great Eastern Highway, while westbound traffic travels along Victoria Street. The split ends after 1 kilometre (0.6 mi), and a further 1.8 kilometres (1.1 mi) takes the highway to an interchange with Roe Highway, meeting up with traffic that bypassed the Guildford and Midland areas.

Most of this section of the Highway is actually a road as it contains driveways, entrances and exits. At a 2019 Belmont council meeting interstate town planners attended and mentioned that with 60,000 to 80,000 vehicles a day in the section west or Roe Hwy they could not find a busier "road" (not Highway or Freeway) in the world. They looked at the Avenue des Champs-Élysées in France and Market Street in San Francisco. West of Roe Hwy.

### Greenmount to The Lakes

Great Eastern Highway is notorious for Greenmount Hill, where the highway encounters a steep three-kilometre-long (1.9 mi) slope with a 7% gradient on Perth's eastern outskirts. The highway rises from the Swan Coastal Plain to the Darling Scarp to the north of Greenmount Hill, though it is commonly described as travelling "up Greenmount". The historic hill, with significant Aboriginal and European heritage sites, has been a well-known landmark since the 1830s, and featured on an 1846 survey of the York Road. Part of this original eastern route remains as a separate road, now known as Old York Road. The highway diverges from this original route at a point 2.8 kilometres (1.7 mi) east of Roe Highway, bypassing residential properties that line the old road. The two routes meet again at the top of the main climb of the hill, after 1.8 kilometres (1.1 mi).

From the sudden rise of Greenmount Hill through to Sawyers Valley, Great Eastern Highway has a series of rising and falling sections over rolling terrain. Along the way, the route follows the southern edge of John Forrest National Park for 3.3 kilometres (2.1 mi), passing to the north of the suburb of . Beyond the national park, the highway continues to be lined by native trees and patches of remaining forest. It continues east for six kilometres (3.7 mi) between the low-density, rural residential areas of Hovea, Mahogany Creek, and Parkerville, before entering the Mundaring town centre. Continuing its journey east, the route leaves Mundaring and travels briefly through the north-eastern corner of Beelu National Park before coming to the rural community of Sawyers Valley, three and a half kilometres (2.2 mi) east of Mundaring.

Beyond Sawyers Valley, Great Eastern Highway travels in a north-easterly direction, alongside and later within the northernmost part of the Jarrahdale State Forest. After 6.6 kilometres (4.1 mi), the highway reaches the Old Northam Road turnoff, which offers an alternative route through . The highway route bypasses the development by continuing east for 5.9 kilometres (3.7 mi) to The Lakes, where it curves around to the north to meet Great Southern Highway, at the edge of the Perth Metropolitan Region.

### East to Kalgoorlie

Great Eastern Highway continues past The Lakes in a northerly direction, reduced to a single carriageway with one lane in each direction. Five kilometres (3 mi) later, the highway encounters the north-eastern end of Old Northam Road, and subsequently winds its way through a reverse curve. It travels in between Acacia Prison and Wooroloo Prison Farm and then alongside Wooroloo Brook, for 3.7 kilometres (2.3 mi), before crossing the waterway. The highway then heads in a north-easterly direction, passing to the south of , through , and reaching after 20 kilometres (12 mi). Another 12.4 kilometres (7.7 mi) takes Great Eastern Highway to Mitchell Avenue, the turnoff for Northam, and part of the highway's former route through the town. The highway takes an 11.7-kilometre (7.3 mi) curve around the northern edge of Northam, meeting up with the eastern section of the former alignment, known as Yilgarn Avenue. This section of highway, also known as the Northam Bypass, intersects three other roads at grade separated interchanges: Northam–Toodyay Road, Irishtown Road, and Northam–Pithara Road. Each interchange consists of a flyover bridge for the highway, and a single two-way ramp that connects to each road at a T junction.

The highway heads east through the Wheatbelt as the region's main east–west route. The road passes by agricultural land and remnant native vegetation, intermittently encountering small settlements and towns such as Meckering, Cunderdin, Kellerberrin, and Merredin. Great Eastern Highway enters Southern Cross 265 kilometres (165 mi) out from Northam, near the edge of the Wheatbelt. The landscape changes to low shrubland, with few signs of human activity other than the highway itself, and the mostly parallel water pipeline and power line. The road continues eastwards in this fashion over a vast distance of 285 kilometres (177 mi) before reaching the town of Coolgardie. Three hundred metres (980 ft) beyond the townsite, traffic bound for South Australia turns south onto Coolgardie–Esperance Highway, following the National Highway 94 route. Great Eastern Highway, now signposted as Alternate National Route 94, turns north-east, travelling through another 32 kilometres (20 mi) of scrubland to the outskirts of Kalgoorlie. The road continues its journey eastward within the grid of Kalgoorlie's road system, initially passing by the industrial district of West Kalgoorlie. After 1.9 kilometres (1.2 mi), the highway once more becomes a dual carriageway, and travels past residential neighbourhoods. Following 1.2 kilometres (0.75 mi), the highway takes on the name Hannan Street, and continues for 3.5 kilometres (2.2 mi) through to downtown Kalgoorlie, terminating at Goldfields Highway on Kalgoorlie's eastern edge. Alternate Route 94 turns south, back towards the National Highway route.

## History

### Convict-era road

A road along what is now Great Eastern Highway has existed since the convict era of Western Australia. The original road is thought to have been constructed in 1867, using convict labour, with a road base made of jarrah tree trunks cut into disc shapes. The use of wooden discs as a road base had been proposed by Western Australian Governor John Hampton, leading them to be known as "Hampton's Cheeses". The discs were approximately 30 centimetres (1 ft) thick and as large as 90 centimetres (3 ft) in diameter, and the gaps between pieces would have been filled with soil or lime. The same type of road is known to have existed along Stirling Highway, Guildford Road, Albany Highway and Wanneroo Road in the 1860s, and would have prevented horses and carts from getting bogged in wet weather. Evidence of this original road was found in Belmont in 1948 when widening works uncovered jarrah discs. During upgrade works in 2012, more discs were discovered beneath the existing asphalt, over a twenty-metre (66 ft) stretch.

### Highway origins

The name Great Eastern Highway was coined by the Perth Road Board in December 1933. It was suggested for the Perth to Guildford road on the north side of the Swan River (now known as Guildford Road), as an alternative to the Bassendean Road Board's proposal, Perth Road. In February 1934, the Bassendean Road Board agreed to the name, as Perth Road would be too general, and the road was considered the main artery serving eastern districts, all the way through to Kalgoorlie. Other local governments in the area considered the issue over the next few months. The Bayswater Road Board and Greenmount Road Board were in favour of the idea, but Guildford Road Board was opposed, as several local road names would be lost. Greenmount, and public advertising, thereafter referred to the road as Great Eastern Highway, and the council wrote to the Main Roads Department, requesting the name change be gazetted. This prompted Main Roads to write to other local governments, advising of the request and soliciting their views. The Mundaring Road Board and Kellerberrin Road Board were supportive, while the Kalgoorlie Road Board suggested Great Eastern Goldfields Highway. The Kalgoorlie Municipal Council agreed that the road should be known as a highway, but thought the name was inadequate for a road that only connected Midland Junction with Coolgardie. The Midland Junction Municipal Council opposed the renaming, citing "sentimental and practical reasons for the continuance of the use of the old name".

In August 1934, the Bassendean Road Board applied to the Lands Department to change the portion of the Perth–Guildford road within its district to Great Eastern Highway. The department refused the request, reasoning that most traffic bound for Midland used The Causeway and travelled on the south side of the Swan River, and that therefore the Perth–Guildford road should not be part of the main highway. Despite this setback, the Perth Road Board organised a local government conference to consider renaming the road from Perth to Guildford. The issue was considered important, as losing the name to the south side of the river would divert traffic away from the old established centres to the north. The straightening of dangerous bends and the replacement of an old bridge between Bassendean and Guildford were also to be considered. The conference, held on 7 September 1934, was attended by representatives of the Perth, Bayswater, Bassendean, and Guildford road boards, and the Midland Junction Council. Guildford and Midland Junction were still opposed to the renaming, but the others were supportive. Motions that passed included submitting a rename proposal to the state government, urging the government to construct a new bridge at Bassendean, and approaching the government to have the road declared a main road.

In November 1934, the state government Land Council contacted the local governments on the south side of the Swan River, asking them to rename the roads that make up the Causeway–Midland route as Great Eastern Highway. Both the Perth City Council and Belmont Park Road Board agreed to the request. This created a "peculiar situation", as described by the RAC, with roads both north and south of the Swan River proposed to be renamed as Great Eastern Highway. Despite the name change not being official, some residents along the road through Belmont started describing their properties as located on Great Eastern Highway.

Another conference of the local governments north of the river was held in December 1934. They decided to continue to pursue renaming the Perth–Guildford road to Great Eastern Highway, and having it gazetted as a main road. A letter from the Commissioner of Main Roads had stated that the road through Belmont was considered the principal highway to the eastern states. He therefore recommended that if the name Great Eastern Highway were to be applied west of Midland Junction, it should be to that road, as the road through Bassendean was not considered a main road. Traffic counts collected by the Bassendean Road Board, however, showed that the north of river route, through Bassendean, carried more traffic in both directions than the southern route, through Belmont – 54% compared to 46%. The northern route was also shorter by about two miles (3.2 km), and considered by the local governments to be the "natural entrance to the city", only crossing the Swan River once and not again at the Causeway.

On 8 January 1935, representatives from the local governments north of the river urged Minister for Lands, Michael Troy, to rename the Perth–Guildford road through those areas as Great Eastern Highway. Despite the route being shorter and carrying more traffic, he refused. He said that it was not gazetted as main road, and a previous decision to rename the road through Belmont as Great Eastern Highway was made after considering the facts, and at the request of the Main Roads Board. There was resentment and an objection over the name being "pinched" from the Perth Road Board. The minister disregarded the objection. He advised the representatives to see the Minister for Works to get the road declared a main road, and then approach him with a new name. This resolved Great Eastern Highway's route, with the local governments north of the river pursuing other names such as Main Highway.

On 14 April 1938, the name Great Eastern Highway was gazetted, in accordance with section 10 of the Land Act, 1933–1937. It replaced the names previously used along the route: Ascot Road, Guildford Road, York Road, Guildford–Northam Road, Toodyay–Northam Road, Mitchell Avenue, Throsell Road, Sermon Road, Dreyer Road, Goldfields Road, Kalgoorlie Road, Woodward Street, and Coolgardie Road.

### Upgrades and improvements

By 1950, the highway had been sealed from Perth to Southern Cross, and from a few miles west of Coolgardie to Kalgoorlie. Traffic in the Goldfields was light, with an average daily traffic of 44 vehicles between Southern Cross and Coolgardie, and 33 from Coolgardie to Kalgoorlie. The road was completely sealed by 1953. Between 1954 and 1956, sections of the highway between Perth and Southern Cross were improved. The works included increasing the seal width along 38 miles (61 km) of the road, reconstructing 3 miles (5 km) of road, and resealing 23.5 miles (37.8 km). Precast concrete structures were used to replace two old, narrow wooden bridges.

In the 1950s, roundabouts were constructed at each end of The Causeway, to improve the flow of traffic on the bridges and the distribution of traffic back into the road network. The roundabout at the eastern end, connecting with Great Eastern Highway, opened in 1952. In 1973 construction began on upgrading that intersection to a grade-separated partial cloverleaf interchange. The interchange opened on 8 March 1974, having cost AUS\$1.3 million.

A major accident occurred at the intersection with Roe Highway on 30 December 1993. A truck lost control coming down Greenmount Hill and rolled over at the intersection, after crashing into six vehicles on the hill and another 14 at the intersection. One woman was killed, and another 12 people were injured, including four with serious injuries. It was Western Australia's worst accident that year, according to police, with the aftermath described by a witness as "like a battlefield". This accident led to the construction of a truck arrester bed near the bottom of the hill. It has been used in emergencies several times since.

In 1994, the federal government approved a \$43.9 million project to upgrade substandard sections of Great Eastern Highway between Northam and Southern Cross. That portion of the highway was one of the oldest sections of the National Highway in Western Australia. The road was susceptible to failure due to poor drainage and frequent flooding. Further works in the 1990s saw a second carriageway constructed from Mundaring to Sawyers Valley, and then extended to The Lakes at the edge of Perth. A dual carriageway was also constructed in Kalgoorlie, and a long overtaking lane was built near Clackline.

More recent works have improved sections of the highway in Perth. Great Eastern Highway's intersection with Roe Highway was upgraded to a grade separated interchange. The design is a diamond interchange, with free-flowing traffic on Roe Highway, and an additional looped ramp for northbound to eastbound traffic movements. Construction of the \$101.5 million project began in late 2010, and the interchange was officially opened to traffic on 9 June 2012. Another project undertaken was the widening of the highway through the suburbs of Rivervale, Belmont and Redcliffe – between Kooyong Road, just north-east of the Graham Farmer Freeway interchange, and Tonkin Highway. Work commenced in June 2011, and was completed in February 2013, nine months earlier than scheduled. Prime Minister Julia Gillard opened the upgraded highway on 28 March 2013, participating in a ribbon-cutting ceremony. The \$280 million upgrade included construction of a median strip, widening the road to three lanes in each direction, bus priority lanes at several traffic light controlled intersections, and bicycle lanes. The upgrade was expected to reduce congestion along the highway, which had been one of Perth's worst accident spots in 2011/12. However, the accidents were usually not serious, and roadworks were considered a "major contributing factor". In October 2013, the project was recognised with the Civil Contractors Federation National Earth Award for Excellence.

### Bypasses

Great Eastern Highway Bypass, together with Roe Highway, provides a limited-access bypass of Guildford and Midland town sites. The 5.6-kilometre (3.5 mi) bypass branches off the original highway alignment at South Guildford, proceeds around the northern edge of Perth Airport, and then heads east through . At the eastern end of Great Eastern Highway Bypass, traffic returns to the main highway by heading north on Roe Highway for three kilometres (1.9 mi). Plans for a major highway along a similar alignment date back to Gordon Stephenson and Alistair Hepburn's 1955 "Plan for the Metropolitan Region", which was the precursor of Perth's Metropolitan Region Scheme. The road was constructed in the late 1980s, and was known as the Redcliffe–Bushmead Highway during construction. Great Eastern Highway Bypass was opened on 14 May 1988, after 21 months of construction, and at a cost of \$10 million.

Planning for a bypass around Northam began in the 1960s. The original route through the town centre functioned as both a local access road and primary traffic route, including for heavy vehicles. There were particular concerns with the amount of traffic congestion, frequency of crashes, and the noise and visual pollution of the highway's traffic. Twelve different alignments were considered for the bypass, which were narrowed down to three options by the 1990s. In 1993 the Environmental Protection Authority assessed the proposal, and found that only the route that deviated furthest away from the townsite would be environmentally acceptable. The closer routes were not acceptable due to the potential impact on the Avon River. The project gained the Minister for the Environment's conditional approval on 24 June 1994. Construction of the Northam bypass began in January 2001, with the new road opened on 17 May 2002.

A bypass of Clackline was also constructed, realigning 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi) of Great Eastern Highway 100 metres (330 ft) north of the town. Works began in January 2007, and were completed in February 2008. The project also involved constructing overtaking lanes between Clackline and Bakers Hill, upgrading intersections in Clackline, and constructing a pedestrian underpass for a heritage trail. Clackline Brook was realigned through a large box culvert, allowing a safer crossing than the narrow Clackline Bridge on the original alignment. The bypass was originally allocated \$2.4 million of funding in 2006, but by January 2007 it was expected to cost almost \$11 million. The final project value was \$9.2 million. Issues and challenges in the project's design and construction included extensive rock protection requirements for the Clackline Brook culvert, drilling and blasting close to the existing highway, and protecting heritage and environmentally sensitive areas. The Clackline community welcomed the bypass, but there were concerns that the historic Clackline Bridge would be lost. The bridge has since received a permanent entry on the Heritage Council of Western Australia's Register of Heritage Places, in November 2008.

## Future

There are long-term plans to bypass Great Eastern Highway's current ascent of the Darling Scarp. Planning for a new major road network in Perth's eastern corridor began in the 1970s. Early planning efforts between 1978 and 1981 for a new highway reservation from Mundaring to Wooroloo encountered community opposition, and the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) requested a more detailed environmental assessment. In 1985, a study into the primary east–west traffic routes in the area was commissioned by the Main Roads Department, Metropolitan Region Planning Authority, Shire of Mundaring, and Shire of Swan. It recommended a new alignment, known as the "Orange Route", be selected for the Perth to Adelaide National Highway. Alternative routes were identified using other colours as codenames. The new national highway would travel north-east along Toodyay Road from Roe Highway to beyond , and then deviate east via the proposed Orange Route to meet Great Eastern Highway near Wundowie. The ultimate design of the highway included grade-separated interchanges for all of the roads that it intersects. The Orange Route received environmental approval on 22 November 1989. Detailed planning for the Clackline to Wooroloo section of the Orange Route was to begin in 1998. As of 2012, construction of the Orange Route is not a priority for Main Roads. The project was not in the forward works program, there was no indication of the expected starting date, and a cost–benefit analysis had not been performed recently. Plans are still in development, but the federal government is responsible for financing the project.

## Major intersections

## See also

- Highways in Australia
- List of highways in Western Australia

Highway in Western Australia

Highways and freeways in Perth, Western Australia


Marysville, Washington

Marysville is a city in Snohomish County, Washington, United States, part of the Seattle metropolitan area. The city is located 35 miles (56 km) north of Seattle, adjacent to Everett on the north side of the Snohomish River delta. It is the second-largest city in Snohomish County after Everett, with a population of 70,714 at the time of the 2020 U.S. census. As of 2015, Marysville was also the fastest-growing city in Washington state, growing at an annual rate of 2.5 percent.

Marysville was established in 1872 as a trading post by James P. Comeford, but was not populated by other settlers until 1883. After the town was platted in 1885, a period of growth brought new buildings and industries to Marysville. In 1891, Marysville was incorporated and welcomed the completed Great Northern Railway. Historically, the area has subsisted on lumber and agrarian products; the growth of strawberry fields in Marysville led to the city being nicknamed the "Strawberry City" in the 1920s.

The city experienced its first wave of suburbanization in the 1970s and 1980s, resulting in the development of new housing and commercial areas. Between 1980 and 2000, the population of Marysville increased five-fold. In the early 2000s, annexations of unincorporated areas to the north and east expanded the city to over 20 square miles (52 km2) and brought the population over 60,000.

Marysville is oriented north–south along Interstate 5, bordering the Tulalip Indian Reservation to the west, and State Route 9 to the east. Mount Pilchuck, whose 5,300-foot-high (1,600 m) peak can be seen from various points in the city, appears in the city's flag and seal.

## History

### Foundation and early history

Marysville was established in 1872 by government-appointed Indian agent James P. Comeford, an Irish immigrant who had served in the Civil War, and his wife Maria as a trading post on the Tulalip Indian Reservation. The reservation, located to the west of modern-day Marysville, was established by the Point Elliot Treaty of 1855, signed by local Native American tribes and territorial governor Isaac Stevens at modern-day Mukilteo. The treaty's signing opened most of Snohomish County to American settlement and commercial activities, including logging, fishing and trapping.

The timber industry was the largest active industry in the area during the 1860s and 1870s, with hillsides in modern-day Marysville cleared by loggers for dairy farms. The Comefords' trading post accepted business from the reservation and logging camps that were established near the mouth of the Snohomish River. In 1874, Comeford acquired three timber claims from local loggers for \$450, totaling 1,280 acres (5.2 km2), and cleared the land in preparation for settlement. Comeford and his wife moved to the present site of Marysville in 1877, building a new store and wharf. Although Marysville remained a one-man town until 1883, a post office and school district were both established by 1879 using the names and signatures of Native American neighbors of Comeford's, who were given "Boston" names for the petition. Comeford completed construction of a two-story hotel in 1883 to welcome new settlers from outside the region.

The origin of the settlement's name, Marysville, remains disputed. According to the Marysville Historical Society, it was to be named Mariasville for Maria Comeford, but was changed to Marysville after the postal department identified a similarly-named town in Idaho. Among the first residents to arrive in the area in the 1880s were James Johnson and Thomas Lloyd, who allegedly suggested that the town be named for their previous home of Marysville, California. Comeford sold his store and wharf to settlers Mark Swinnerton and Henry B. Myers in 1884, and moved north to the Kellogg Marsh (now part of Marysville) to farm 540 acres (220 ha) of land he purchased.

Marysville was formally platted on February 25, 1885, filed by the town physician J. D. Morris and dedicated by the Comefords. More settlers began to arrive after the completion of the town's first sawmill in 1887, joined by three others by the end of the decade. Marysville was officially incorporated as a fourth-class city on March 20, 1891, with a population of approximately 400 residents and Mark Swinnerton serving as the city's first mayor. The Great Northern Railway also completed construction of its tracks through Marysville in 1891, building a drawbridge over Ebey Slough and serving the city's sawmills. A newspaper named the Marysville Globe was established by Thomas P. Hopp in 1892 and continues to be published in the city.

### Early 20th century

By the turn of the century, the city's population had grown to 728, and social organizations began to establish themselves in Marysville, including a lodge of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and a Crystal Lodge of the Free and Accepted Masons. The first city hall was opened in late 1901, at a cost of \$2,000; the building also housed the city's fire department, and later the first public library in 1907. Electrical and water supply systems were both inaugurated in 1906, alongside the construction of a high school building.

The timber industry in Marysville peaked in 1910, at which point the city's population reached 1,239, with 10 sawmills producing lumber on the shores of Ebey Slough. Agriculture began to grow in Marysville, with its fertile land suited for the growing of strawberries in particular. By 1920, the city had more than 2,000 acres (810 ha) of strawberry fields, leading to the coining of the city's nickname of "Strawberry City" and the establishment of the annual Strawberry Festival in 1932.

An automobile bridge across Ebey Slough and the Snohomish River estuary to Everett was completed in 1927, with funding from the state department of highways to complete the Pacific Highway (later part of U.S. Route 99, and present-day State Route 529). The city remained relatively unchanged through the Great Depression, with the diversity of industries credited for Marysville avoiding the worst of economic hardship experienced by other nearby communities. During World War II, an ammunition depot was built on the Tulalip Reservation near present-day Quil Ceda, later being re-used as a Boeing test site after the aerospace company expanded in Everett.

### Late 20th century

Marysville began to grow into a bedroom community of Seattle and Everett in the late 1950s, spurred by the completion of Interstate 5 in stages from 1954 to 1969. The new freeway bypassed the town, causing a minor decline in tourist revenue at businesses that later rebounded to previous levels, also eliminating a major traffic bottleneck that paralyzed the city's downtown. The city annexed its first area outside its original city limits in 1954, growing to over 2,500 residents. Marysville was re-classified as a third-class city in March 1962 and the local Chamber of Commerce boosted the city during the Century 21 Exposition held in nearby Seattle, hosting a UFO exposition in Smokey Point that summer.

On June 6, 1969, a freight train operated by Great Northern rammed into several disconnected train cars in front of the Marysville depot, destroying the building, killing two men in an engine on a nearby siding and injuring two others. The crash, blamed on the engineer failing to adhere to the track's speed limit, caused \$1 million in damage to railroad property and resulted in the demolition of the depot, which had served the city since 1891 and was not rebuilt.

After the initial wave of suburbanization, which built homes in former strawberry fields to the north and east of Marysville, the city's population totaled 5,544 in 1980. The city's growth was concentrated in outlying areas, leaving downtown to weaken economically. In 1981, the Marysville City Council declared that the downtown area was "blighted" and in need of a facelift. The council presented a \$30 million urban renewal plan in November 1982 that would add new retail and office space, mixed-use development, public parks and improve pedestrian conditions in downtown, along with a large public parking lot and an expanded public marina. The plan was opposed by the marina's owner and other downtown property owners and produced lengthy public hearings that lasted until the following year. Mayor Daryl Brennick vetoed the plan in June 1983, citing public outcry and the high cost of the proposal, and the city council failed to overturn the decision. The city instead developed a downtown shopping mall that involved the demolition of a water tower (one of two in the city) and several historic buildings in 1987. The \$17 million mall opened in August 1988 with 24 stores and 180,000 square feet (17,000 m2) of retail space.

Marysville underwent further population changes in the late 1980s and 1990s, continuing to build more housing and new retail centers after the lifting of a building moratorium. The city continued to annex outlying areas, growing to a size of 9.8 square miles (25 km2) and population of 25,315 by 2000. The decade also saw the construction of new schools, a YMCA facility, a library, and a renovated senior center at Comeford Park. The Tulalip Tribes opened its first casino in 1992, the second Indian casino in the state, and began development of a large shopping mall at Quil Ceda Village in the early 2000s.

Marysville attempted to attract regional facilities in the late 1990s and 2000s, with varying degrees of success. The U.S. Navy opened Naval Station Everett in Everett in 1994, which was accompanied by a support annex in northern Marysville near Smokey Point the following year. The Puget Sound Regional Council explored the expansion of Arlington Municipal Airport into a regional airport in the 1990s to relieve Seattle–Tacoma International Airport, but decided instead to build a third runway at Sea-Tac because of existing traffic and local opposition. In September 2004, Marysville won a bid to build a 850-acre (340 ha) NASCAR racetrack (to be operated by the International Speedway Corporation) near Smokey Point. The project was cancelled two months later after concerns about traffic impacts, environmental conditions, and \$70 million in required transportation improvements arose. The NASCAR site was later pitched as a candidate for a new University of Washington satellite campus (known as UW North Sound) in the late 2000s, competing with a site in downtown Everett. The project was put on hold in 2008 after continued disagreements over the campus's location, before being cancelled entirely in 2011, replaced by a new Washington State University branch campus in Everett.

### 21st century

From 2000 to 2006, the city annexed 23 additional areas, totaling 1,416 acres (573 ha), lengthening the city to border Arlington at Smokey Point. The largest single annexation came in 2009, with Marysville absorbing 20,000 residents and 2,847 acres (1,152 ha) from North Marysville, an unincorporated area that comprised the majority of the urban growth area. New retail centers in North Lakewood and at 116th Street were built in 2007, leading to increased sales tax revenue for the city and increased traffic congestion in areas of the city.

The opening of the city's waterfront park and public boat launch in 2005 spurred interest in redevelopment of downtown Marysville. The closure of the final waterfront sawmill in 2005, followed by its acquisition and demolition by the city in 2008, led city planners to propose a downtown master plan. The 20-year plan, released and adopted by the City Council in 2009, proposed the redevelopment of the Marysville Towne Center Mall into a mixed-use, pedestrian-oriented area with a restored street grid. The waterfront area would include trails, residential buildings, and retail spaces, along with a new city hall and civic center. The city government acquired several parcels in the waterfront in the 2010s with the intent of partnering with a private developer. In 2015, the city of Marysville was also the recipient of grants and consultation from the Environmental Protection Agency's smart growth program, identifying strategies for infill development in downtown.

By 2010, Marysville had grown to a population of 60,020 and surpassed Lynnwood and Edmonds to become the second-largest city in Snohomish County. In 2015, the city grew at a rate of 2.5 percent, the largest rate of any city in Washington state. New housing and industrial areas are under construction and planned to fuel further population growth in Marysville. The city's school district opened a second high school, Marysville Getchell, in 2010 to serve students living in the eastern area of Marysville. The school previously consisted of four Small Learning Communities which share the same campus and athletics programs. On October 24, 2014, the cafeteria of Marysville Pilchuck High School was the site of a school shooting, in which five students (including the perpetrator) were killed and another was left seriously injured. The shooting garnered national attention amidst a debate about gun violence and gun restrictions. The cafeteria was closed for the rest of the school year and replaced by a new building opened in January 2017, funded by \$8.3 million from the state legislature and school district.

## Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau's 2010 census, Marysville has a total area of 20.94 square miles (54.2 km2)—20.68 square miles (53.6 km2) of land and 0.26 square miles (0.67 km2) of water. The city is located in the northwestern part of Snohomish County in Western Washington, approximately 35 miles (56 km) north of Seattle. Marysville's city limits are generally bound to the south by Ebey Slough (part of the Snohomish River delta) and Soper Hill Road, to the west by Interstate 5 and the Tulalip Indian Reservation, to the north by the city of Arlington, and to the east by the Centennial Trail and State Route 9. The city's urban growth boundary includes 158 acres (64 ha) outside of city limits, bringing the total area to 21.14 square miles (54.8 km2).

The city's topography varies from the low-lying downtown, located along the banks of Ebey Slough 5 feet (1.5 m) above sea level, rising to 160 feet (49 m) near Smokey Point and over 465 feet (142 m) in the eastern highlands. Marysville sits in the watershed of two major creeks, Quilceda Creek and Allen Creek, and approximately 70 minor streams that flow into Ebey Slough and Snohomish River. During the early 20th century, repeated controlled flooding and other engineering works in the Snohomish River delta contributed to the replenishment of the area's fertile silty soil for use in farming.

The Marysville skyline is dominated by views of Mount Pilchuck and the Cascade Mountains to the east and the Olympic Mountains to the west. The 5,324-foot (1,623 m) Mount Pilchuck appears on the city's logo and flag, and is the namesake of the Marysville Pilchuck High School.

The City of Marysville's comprehensive plan defines 11 general neighborhoods within the city and its urban growth boundary: Downtown, Jennings Park, Sunnyside, East Sunnyside/Whiskey Ridge, Cedarcrest/Getchell Hill, North Marysville/Pinewood, Kellogg Marsh, Marshall/Kruse, Shoultes, Smokey Point, and Lakewood.

## Demographics

Until the post-World War II population boom of the 1950s, Marysville's population never rose above 2,000 residents, who were all located within the original city limits. The city began annexing surrounding areas in the 1950s, anticipating suburban development that would replace existing farmland and forest lands. From 1950 to 1980, the city doubled in population, growing to over 5,000 residents, with an additional 15,000 residents in surrounding areas. Marysville's population grew five-fold between 1980 and 2000, increasing to 25,000 through natural growth and annexation of developed areas.

From 2000 to 2010, the city's population increased to over 60,000 after the annexation of the urban growth area and continued development, making Marysville the second-largest city in Snohomish County behind Everett. In 2015, Marysville was the fastest-growing city in Washington, growing at a rate of 2.5 percent to an estimated population of 66,773. As of 2016, Marysville is the 17th largest city in Washington. The United States Census Bureau designates Marysville and the surrounding cities of Arlington, Lake Stevens, and Snohomish as a continuous urbanized area, with a population of 145,140 as of 2010.

As of the 2020 census, Marysville has a population of 70,714 residents.

### 2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 60,020 people, 21,219 households, and 15,370 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,902.3 inhabitants per square mile (1,120.6/km2). There were 22,363 housing units at an average density of 1,081.4 per square mile (417.5/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 80.0% White, 1.9% African American, 1.9% Native American, 5.6% Asian, 0.6% Pacific Islander, 4.4% from other races, and 5.5% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 10.3% of the population.

There were 21,219 households, of which 40.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.8% were married couples living together, 12.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.2% had a male householder with no wife present, and 27.6% were non-families. 20.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.80 and the average family size was 3.22.

The median age in the city was 34.2 years. 27.5% of residents were under the age of 18; 9.1% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 28.8% were from 25 to 44; 24.7% were from 45 to 64; and 9.9% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 49.4% male and 50.6% female.

### 2000 census

As of the 2000 census, there were 25,315 people, 9,400 households, and 6,608 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,640.1 people per square mile (1,019.2/km2). There were 9,730 housing units at an average density of 1,014.7 per square mile (391.7/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 88.21% White, 1.02% African American, 1.60% Native American, 3.82% Asian, 0.36% Pacific Islander, 1.89% from other races, and 3.10% from two or more races. Hispanic Latino of any race were 4.83% of the population.

There were 9,400 households, out of which 40.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.1% were married couples living together, 11.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.7% were non-families. 23.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.15.

In the city, the age distribution of the population shows 30.1% under the age of 18, 7.9% from 18 to 24, 32.9% from 25 to 44, 17.7% from 45 to 64, and 11.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.6 males.

The median income for a household in the city was \$47,088, and the median income for a family was \$55,796. Males had a median income of \$42,391 versus \$30,185 for females. The per capita income for the city was \$20,414. About 3.7% of families and 5.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.0% of those under age 18 and 5.9% of those age 65 or over.

## Economy

Marysville has an estimated 33,545 residents who are in the workforce, either employed or unemployed. Only 10 percent of residents work within Marysville city limits, with the majority commuting south to employers in Everett, Downtown Seattle and the Eastside, including Boeing, Naval Station Everett, Amazon.com and Microsoft. The average one-way commute is approximately 30 minutes; 79 percent of workers drive alone to their workplace, while 12 percent carpool and 3 percent used public transit.

Marysville's economy historically relied on lumber production and agriculture, including the cultivation of strawberries, hay and oats. During the Great Depression of the 1930s, Marysville was not adversely impacted unlike other cities in the county and country because of its diverse industries, including sawmills, grain mills, a tannery, a fertilizer plant, and a berry packing plant. The city's largest employer in the early 1950s, the Weiser Lumber Company, was destroyed in a fire on May 6, 1955, causing \$300,000 in damage. The lumber mill at the site was later acquired by Welco Lumber, who closed the plant in 2007.

Suburban development and the rise of long-distance commuting in the 1950s led Marysville to transition toward a service-based economy. One of the largest employers of Marysville residents is the Boeing Company and their Everett assembly plant. While farms still operate in the area around the city, since 1980 the lumber industry has all but ceased and is no longer a major factor in the local economy. Since the late 1980s, the economy of Marysville has centered around retail areas, including the downtown Marysville Towne Center Mall (opened in 1987) and the Naval Support Complex (opened in 1995). The Tulalip Tribes built a new casino and new shopping center in the early 2000s to the west of Marysville, contributing to a fall in sales tax revenue. In the latter half of the decade, Marysville opened two large retail centers of its own in the annexed Lakewood neighborhood and at 116th Street NE, bringing additional jobs and sales tax revenue to the city. An auto row along Smokey Point Boulevard in northern Marysville was developed in the late 2010s and is home to several car dealerships.

Marysville is also home to a small manufacturing industry based in the northern part of the city near Smokey Point and Arlington's manufacturing center at Arlington Municipal Airport. The cities of Arlington and Marysville lobbied for the creation of the Cascade Industrial Center from the Puget Sound Regional Council, which was approved in 2019. The industrial area is planned to encompass 4,000 acres (1,600 ha) of land between the two cities and support 25,000 jobs by 2040; its first buildings for Amazon, Blue Origin, and other companies were opened in 2022. The city's second-largest employer is C&D Zodiac, an aerospace parts manufacturer tied to Boeing, with 670 employees at an office in northern Marysville. In 2016, outdoor footwear manufacturer Northside USA opened a new headquarters at a 110,000-square-foot (10,000 m2) warehouse in northern Marysville.

## Government and politics

Marysville, a non-charter code city, operates under a mayor–council government with an elected mayor and an elected city council. The mayor serves a term of four years. The 32nd and current mayor of Marysville, Jon Nehring, was appointed on June 28, 2010, after the resignation of incumbent Dennis Kendall; Nehring was elected to a full term in November 2011, and re-elected in 2015 and 2019.

The city council is composed of seven residents who are elected in at-large, non-partisan elections to four-year terms. The elections are staggered, with three positions elected on the same ballot as the mayor, and four positions elected two years later. The council also selects a member to serve as Council President for a one-year term. The council meets twice per month, excluding holidays and during the month of August, in the City Council Chambers at the city hall. A proposal to adopt a council–manager government system was defeated by voters in 2002.

At the federal level, Marysville is part of Washington's 2nd congressional district, which has been represented by Democrat Rick Larsen since 2001. The city lies within three state legislative districts, each with three elected officials in the state senate and state house: the 38th district includes most of the city's western side along with the Tulalip Indian Reservation and the city of Everett; the 39th district includes the northeastern part of the city and the city of Arlington; and the 44th district includes the southeastern part of the city and the cities of Lake Stevens, Snohomish and Mill Creek. Marysville is wholly part of the Snohomish County Council's 1st district, represented by Nate Nehring, son of the city's mayor Jon Nehring, since his appointment in 2017.

According to the Washington State Auditor, Marysville's municipal government employs 266 people and its general fund expenditures totaled \$38.7 million in 2015. The 2015–16 biennial budget allocated \$128.1 million in expenditures for 2015 and \$109.7 million for 2016; general fund spending was limited to \$44.1 million in 2015 and \$45.1 million. City taxes, collected from retail sales, property assessment, and other sources, accounted for \$34.3 million in annual revenue.

The city has several departments providing services to its residents, including a police department, municipal courts, garbage collection, planning and zoning, parks and recreational programs, engineering, street maintenance, water and wastewater services, and stormwater treatment. A new civic campus, combining a police station, city jail, and city hall, was built adjacent to Comeford Park in downtown and opened in October 2022. Marysville contracts with regional districts for other services, including a public library, public transport, electricity, natural gas, and fire protection.

## Culture

The Red Curtain Foundation for the Arts was founded in 2009 to offer art, music and theatre classes in Marysville, including the staging of community theatre productions. The Red Curtain renovated a former lumber store in 2012 to house a community arts center, but moved in 2015 to a new location at a shopping center in central Marysville in 2015, which will be renovated into a 10,000-square-foot (930 m2) arts center with a 130-seat theatre, classrooms, and other amenities. Other local arts organizations include the Marysville Arts Coalition, and the Sonus Boreal women's choir.

Marysville was formerly home to a children's museum from 1993 to 1995, located at the Marysville Towne Center Mall. The museum relocated to a temporary space in Everett before opening a permanent downtown Everett location in 2004 as the Imagine Children's Museum. The city also hosts a historic telephone museum located in downtown since 1996.

The 1980 made for TV movie Trouble in High Timber Country was filmed in Marysville.

### Parks and recreation

The City of Marysville operates and maintains 487.4 acres (197.2 ha) on 35 public recreational facilities within city limits, including parks, playgrounds, sports fields, nature preserves, community centers, a golf course and other facilities.

Comeford Park, located in downtown Marysville and named for town founders James P. Comeford and his wife Maria, is the city's oldest municipal park and is home to the city's landmark water tower, built in 1921 and non-functional since the 1970s. The 120-foot-tall (37 m) water tower, originally accompanied by a second tower demolished in 1987, was planned in the late 1990s to be demolished, but was saved in 2002 after \$500,000 was raised by the Marysville Historical Society to renovate and preserve the structure. The 2.1-acre (0.85 ha) Comeford Park is also home to the Ken Baxter Community Center, a gazebo donated by the city's Rotary Club, a children's playground, and a spray park that opened in 2014.

Jennings Park, located to the east of downtown Marysville on Armar Road, is considered the centerpiece of the city's park system. The 53-acre (21 ha) park includes play areas, experimental gardens and composting sites, sports fields, a nature walking trail, a preserved barn, and historical exhibits. It is also home to the Park and Recreation Department's administrative offices. The park opened in 1963 on land donated by the Jennings family.

Other major parks in Marysville include the Ebey Waterfront Park and boat launch opened in 2005, and a skate park opened in 2002. The city also maintains the Cedarcrest Golf Course in eastern Marysville, an 18-hole, 99.4-acre (40.2 ha) municipal golf course that was established in 1927 and was acquired by the city in 1972. Marysville is also home to private, non-profit recreation facilities operated by the YMCA and Boys and Girls Club, as well as a privately owned bowling alley and indoor roller skating rink.

The Marysville Parks and Recreation Department also organizes youth sports leagues for basketball and soccer. The department uses facilities leased from the Marysville School District, as well as purpose-built areas like the Strawberry Fields Athletic Complex in northern Marysville, a 71-acre (29 ha) park for soccer and disc golf.

### Events

Marysville holds an annual strawberry festival in the third week of June, which is highlighted by a grand parade on State Avenue and a nighttime fireworks show. The first annual strawberry festival was held in 1932 to celebrate the city's strawberry growing industry, and has only been cancelled during World War II from 1942 to 1945 and a polio outbreak in 1949. The week-long event attracts over 100,000 visitors and is the largest strawberry festival in Washington state. In addition to the Marysville Strawberry Festival, the city holds other annual events, including the Merrysville for the Holidays celebration and grand parade in early December.

The city re-established a farmer's market in 2015, initially in the old city hall's parking lot on State Avenue. The farmer's market was open weekly on Saturdays from July to October and operated by the Allen Creek Community Church. The event moved to 3rd Street in downtown Marysville in June 2023.

### Media

The Marysville Globe, a weekly newspaper, is based in Marysville and serves northern Snohomish County. The Globe, published since 1891 and owned by Sound Publishing alongside The Arlington Times, began delivering free newspapers to all Marysville residents on November 28, 2007; both papers suspended publication in March 2020 in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The North County Outlook was published weekly from September 2007 to October 2022.

The Herald in Everett serves the entire county, including Marysville, and prints daily editions. Marysville is also part of the Seattle–Tacoma media market, and is served by Seattle-based media outlets including The Seattle Times; broadcast television stations KOMO-TV, KING-TV, KIRO-TV, and KCPQ-TV; and various radio stations. Cable television service in Marysville is provided by Comcast and Ziply Fiber (formerly Frontier Communications) for most of the city and Wave Broadband in North Lakewood; the city also owns a public-access television station that is operated by the Marysville School District.

Marysville's public library is part of the Sno-Isle Libraries system, which operates libraries in Island and Snohomish counties; it was annexed into the system in 1968. The library is based in a 23,000-square-foot (2,100 m2) building located on Grove Street that opened on July 27, 1995, to replace a 4,000-square-foot (370 m2) building on the same street that opened in 1978. Recent population growth in northern Marysville near Smokey Point and Lakewood have led to the establishment of a pilot library in the area in 2018, and a recommendation to Sno-Isle to build a permanent branch by 2025.

### Historical preservation

The Marysville Historical Society was formed in 1974 as a non-profit organization to preserve the history of Marysville and its surrounding area. The society began planning the construction of a museum at Jennings Park in 1986, but was unable to raise enough funds to begin construction until 2012. The museum opened on March 19, 2016, coinciding with the 125th anniversary of the city's incorporation, using donated funds to finish construction.

The Marysville and Tulalip area have several properties listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). The Marysville Opera House was built by the Independent Order of Oddfellows in 1911 at a cost of \$20,000; it would later be listed in 1982 and renovated in 2003 for use by city events. On the Tulalip reservation, the Indian Shaker Church and St. Anne's Roman Catholic Church were built in the early 20th century and listed on the register in 1976; the Tulalip Indian Agency Office, built in 1912, was listed for its significance in tribal affairs as well as the town's founding. Another historic landmark in the area, not listed on the register, is the Gehl House at Jennings Park, a pioneer-era wooden cabin built in 1889 and restored with original furnishings.

### Sister city

Marysville initiated its first sister city relationship in 2017 with Yueqing, a coastal city in the Chinese province of Zhejiang. The two cities have exchanged visits by officials, including tours of manufacturing areas and infrastructure projects.

### Notable residents

Notable people from Marysville include:

- Brady Ballew, soccer player
- Robert A. Brady, economist
- Larry Christenson, baseball player
- Trina Davis, soccer player representing Fiji
- John DeCaro, hockey player
- Jan Haag, writer, artist, poet and filmmaker
- Charles Hamel, oil industry whistle-blower
- Jake Luton, American football player
- Jack Metcalf, U.S. representative from Washington's 2nd congressional district
- Howell Oakdeane Morrison, musician, dance instructor, and entrepreneur, founder of Seattle-based Morrison Records
- Steve Musseau, American football coach
- Haley Nemra, track athlete
- Jeff Pahukoa, American football player
- Shane Pahukoa, American football player
- Jarred Rome, discus thrower

- Patty Schemel, musician with Hole and other bands
- Steve Thompson, American football player
- Emily Wicks, state representative
- Simeon R. Wilson, state politician and newspaper editor

## Education

Public schools in Marysville are operated by the Marysville School District, which covers most of the incorporated city and the Tulalip Indian Reservation. The district had an enrollment of approximately 10,804 students in 2013 and has 23 total schools, including two high schools (Marysville Pilchuck and Marysville Getchell), four middle schools, eleven elementary schools, and several alternative learning facilities. The school district was the site of the then-longest teacher strike in Washington state history in 2003, lasting for 49 days until the Snohomish County Superior Court declared the strike illegal.

Other portions of the city are served by the Arlington School District, Lake Stevens School District, and Lakewood School District. Marysville also has one private school, Grace Academy, which was established as a Christian school in 1977 and enrolls 330 students.

Marysville is located near the Everett Community College, the north county region's only post-secondary education institution, situated in north Everett. The college moved its cosmetology school to Marysville in 1996, offering classes and accreditation for students as well as public salon services.

## Infrastructure

### Transportation

Marysville is located along the east side of Interstate 5 (I-5), which connects the city to Vancouver, British Columbia to the north and Seattle to the south. The freeway has four exits serving Marysville, located at 4th Street in Downtown, 88th Street NE near Quil Ceda Village, 116th Street NE near Kruse Junction, and 172nd Street NE near Smokey Point. Several state highways also run within Marysville city limits, including State Route 9, State Route 528 (4th Street and 64th Street), State Route 529 (State Avenue), and State Route 531 (172nd Street NE). The city's primary north–south arterial street, State Avenue, was formerly part of U.S. Route 99 and has been widened and improved in segments since 2000. Other major streets include 51st Avenue NE, 67th Avenue NE, Grove Street, and Sunnyside Boulevard.

Marysville ranks eighth among Washington cities for longest commute times, with an average commute of approximately 30 minutes. The state government began construction in 2023 on a northbound high-occupancy vehicle lane on I-5 and a new interchange at State Route 529 south of downtown to alleviate congestion on east–west railroad crossings in the city. On April 22, 2014, Marysville voters approved the creation of a city transportation benefit district and a 0.2 percent sales tax to fund transportation improvements in the city, including road repairs, bicycle and pedestrian access, and new capital projects.

Public transportation in Marysville and Snohomish County is provided by Community Transit. The agency operates all-day local bus service in Marysville on four routes, connecting to Smokey Point, the Tulalip Indian Reservation, Lake Stevens, Everett and Lynnwood. Community Transit also operates five commuter express routes during peak hours from park and ride facilities in Marysville to the Boeing Everett Factory, Downtown Seattle and the University of Washington campus. Marysville is one of the largest cities in the metro area excluded from the Sound Transit regional service area, but expressed interest in joining the regional transit authority in the 1990s. The city plans to receive Swift Bus Rapid Transit service from Community Transit by 2028, and has been listed as a candidate for future Sounder commuter rail and Link light rail service.

Marysville is bisected by a north–south railroad operated by BNSF Railway, carrying freight as well as Amtrak Cascades passenger trains that do not stop in Marysville. The nearest passenger rail station is located in Everett, also served by Greyhound intercity bus service, although there are plans from the Tulalip Tribes to build a train station at NE 116th Street in Marysville. The railroad, which includes a spur line to serve Arlington, has 23 total level crossings in Marysville that cause traffic congestion on intersecting streets. The nearest municipal airports to Marysville are Arlington Municipal Airport and Paine Field in Everett, while the nearest international airport is Seattle–Tacoma International Airport, 45 miles (72 km) to the south. A private airport and housing development, Frontier Airpark, is located between Marysville and Granite Falls.

Marysville is bisected by the Centennial Trail, a multi-use trail running along the eastern part of the city near State Route 9 between Snohomish and Arlington. The city also has plans to build a 30-mile (48 km) network of trails, including the partially-completed Ebey Slough waterfront trail, under transmission lines in eastern Marysville, and in the Lakewood area.

### Utilities

Electric power in Marysville is provided by the Snohomish County Public Utility District (PUD), a consumer-owned public utility that sources most of its electricity from the federal Bonneville Power Administration (BPA). The BPA operates the region's system of electrical transmission lines, including Path 3, a major national transmission corridor running along the eastern side of Marysville towards British Columbia. Puget Sound Energy provides natural gas to Marysville residents and businesses; two major north–south gas pipelines run through eastern Marysville and are maintained by the Olympic Pipeline Company, a subsidiary of BP, and the Northwest Pipeline Company, a subsidiary of Williams Companies.

The City of Marysville provides municipal solid waste collection and disposal services, while contracting Waste Management for mandatory single-stream recycling and optional yard waste disposal. The municipal government also provides water and wastewater treatment to residents and businesses within city limits and in the surrounding area. Marysville's water system is granted water rights for up to 20.71 million US gallons per day (907,000 L/ks), sourced from the Stillaguamish River, Spada Lake, and a well at Edward Springs near Lake Goodwin. The water system includes several pumping stations and over 297.6 miles (478.9 km) of water pipes. Marysville's wastewater system empties into a wastewater treatment plant south of the city with a daily capacity of 20,143 pounds per day (105.75 kg/ks). The city has 210 miles (340 km) of sewage pipeline and 15 pump stations. Stormwater treatment is also handled by the municipal Public Works Department and consists of 185 miles (298 km) of storm lines, 11,914 storm drains, and 346 detention ponds. The city built a 7-acre (2.8 ha) regional stormwater treatment plant in 2003 and took control of local treatment in 2007.

Areas annexed into the city of Marysville are transferred to municipal water and waste services through agreements between the city and the Snohomish County PUD.

### Health care

Marysville does not have a general hospital, but is located near the Providence Regional Medical Center in Everett and Cascade Valley Hospital in Arlington. The city has several community clinics, including two operated by The Everett Clinic and one operated by Providence. A clinic operated by Kaiser Permanente is planned to open in Smokey Point in 2020. A \$22 million psychiatric hospital in Smokey Point with 115 beds opened in June 2017.

City in Washington, United States

1872 establishments in Washington Territory