Construction of the Leavenworth facility took place from 1938 to 1940 on 170 acres of Icicle Valley land, two miles south of the town of Leavenworth. When the Complex was first established, spring Chinook salmon and steelhead were identified as the primary mitigation species. The initial operating plan for the Complex called for adult spring Chinook salmon and summer steelhead to be trapped at Rock Island Dam and hauled to Leavenworth NFH for holding and spawning. Salmon and steelhead trapped at the Rock Island Dam represented a mix of fish destined for the upper Columbia River system. Leavenworth NFH was considered to be the primary adult holding and spawning site with eggs shipped from there to the Entiat and Winthrop facilities. Over the years, the Leavenworth NFH production program has included a variety of species including spring and summer Chinook salmon, coho salmon, steelhead, kokanee, and various resident salmonids. Since 1974, spring Chinook salmon have been the priority species and the continued success of the program provides for sport, tribal and commercial fisheries in the Pacific Ocean, Columbia River and Icicle Creek. In 1998, the Leavenworth NFH was placed on the National Registry of Historic Places by the U. S. Department of the Interior, recognizing the historic significance of its construction in 1939. Major features on the facility site now include the hatchery building nursery and visitor center, adult holding ponds, fish ladder, numerous raceways, historic Foster-Lucas rearing ponds, sand settling basin, pollution abatement pond, and nature trail. |
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