With July just around the corner, communities around the country are unveiling what they have planned for participating in America250 — a nationwide celebration of America's 250th birthday on July 4 — with some planning special events, time capsule dedications and more.
In Toledo, volunteers with Vision:TOLEDO heading up America250 efforts in the South Lewis County community unveiled their contribution to this year’s Independence Day celebration during the Toledo City Council meeting on Monday, April 6.
“One of the things that we don’t have in town is recognition of the woman who named Toledo,” Vision:TOLEDO member Johanna Jones said during the city council meeting’s public comment period. “There’s nothing anywhere. Originally, we wanted to put it on the water tower, but at that time, there was no image of her, and she’s Native American, which almost nobody knows.”
That woman’s name is Celeste Rochon, and Jones stated they finally found a photo of her, which they have printed on a banner to be put on display at Toledo City Hall.
As for how the story of the naming of Toledo goes, Celeste Rochon was the wife Augustine Rochon, who first arrived in the region in 1838 as the personal servant to Father Francios Blanchet and Father Modeste Demers and helped the missionaries build the first church on the Cowlitz Prairie, according to historian Curt Cunningham. He married Celeste in 1842.
By 1881, Oren Kellogg, captain of the side-wheel Steamboat Toledo, bought some land along the banks of the Cowlitz River from Augustine and told Celeste she could have the honor of naming the new town he wanted to incorporate there.
“She named the city after the Steamboat Toledo,” Jones added.
As for the photo’s origin, Jones explained they obtained it from Celeste and Augustine’s descendants, and though the region is home to the Cowlitz Tribe, Celeste was of Chinook and French-Canadian descent.
“We have a whole family history, and the gentleman who gave (the photo) to me actually lives here in town,” Jones said.
Along with the banner of Celeste displayed at city hall, Jones showed off the design celebrating America250 in Toledo, which will soon be greeting visitors coming into town along state Route 505. It features a depiction of the Steamboat Toledo along with the phrases “Celebrate America’s 250th” and “250 years of freedom.”
“This is going to go up on the fence at the water tower,” said Jones.
Vision:TOLEDO is a community-focused nonprofit that aims to use local resources to help grow the local economy and improve life for residents, along with preserving Toledo’s history according to its website.
For more information visit https://www.visiontoledo.org/, or follow the organization on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/visiontoledo/.
