The Force is Strong With Small Town Vader, Washington

Washington has plenty of small towns peppered across the state, each with its own charms. The state has plenty of towns and cities with interesting names, but even Nooksack can't top this. Vader, Washington is a small town of just over 600 people so I'm probably going to get angry phone calls if Star Wars fans start driving through and bothering the locals.

Where is Vader, Washington?

Vader is located in Lewis County, just an hour and thirty minutes from Astoria, Oregon. It is a very small town, quite literally, having less than one square mile of total land. 299 Vader residents voted in the last presidential election.

Is Vader, Washington named after Darth Vader?

No, Vader is not named after the Star Wars character. In fact, the town was named in 1913, well before the original movie's release. While the character's name is derived from the German word for father, the town of Vader is named after a person. To make a long story short, the townsfolk couldn't decide on a name (Toronto was a really popular choice) and eventually decided to name the town after another resident, Martin Vader. There was a vote in 2015 to change the town's name to its original name of Little Falls, but of course, the residents shot that down.

What can you do in Vader, Washington?

If you're hoping to find some shrine to the Star Wars character, you'll be disappointed. Vader is very much a small town, offering certain simple amenities to residents but not much in the way of tourism. That's perfectly fine. I'm just happy a town named Vader, Washington even exists.