While Battle Ground’s name is quite misleading in that a battle never really took place here, there was something of a short-lived battle of the towns.
A town named Crawford in the late 1800s and early 1900s ended up being the city that never was — to an extent. It definitely existed, mainly on the grounds of Battle Ground Lake State Park right at the entrance.
But the full picture of the town that was platted by the Davis and Sharp Company — the owner of the business center of Crawford and the Rich Crawford Valley Small Farms — never really took off.
While Battle Ground where we know it today was starting to grow, the Crawford idea near Shadow Lake Park, now Battle Ground Lake State Park, was starting to take shape. Located along a branch of the railroad running to Yacolt from Vancouver, it was described by the Davis and Sharp Company as lying beautifully on a gentle slope.
“On the north, as pretty a park as you ever saw; and Shadow Lake lies immediately to its west,” the map of the town by the Davis and Sharp Company stated. “Crawford is the natural trading center for the central portion of Clarke County.”
The town did have its own train depot, store, school and even a motel. But the residential plots, well, now there’s the natural beauty of Battle Ground Lake State Park instead.
As for the park entrance as we know it today, envision four city blocks extending from the railroad west toward the shore of the lake with pretty much two blocks extending north. That was their vision for the trading center of this area of Clark County.
Farm plots were also being sold for $250 an acre, with the map stating that sum would be paid off in just two years time from produce sales.
“Everything that nature can do she has done to make Crawford not only an ideal place to live but an extremely profitable place to make money in,” the Davis and Sharp Company stated. “We know that success awaits everyone who goes into Crawford with his ideals set for a comfortable home in a rich agricultural community.”
However, money wasn't to be had as the company would soon go broke, and everything envisioned was derailed, the 1976 history book, “Battle Ground … In and Around,” stated.
Down the tracks to the south, older communities of Maple Grove and Dublin started to gain a central hub, dubbed Battle Ground, via information in the 1976 history book, “Battle Ground … In and Around.”
In 1902, a man named Peter Onsdorff and his wife moved to the area that is now Battle Ground. The Onsdorffs’ home in Battle Ground was built at the corner of Main Street and Clark Avenue. Their home is referred to as one of the “grandest” homes of Battle Ground. The home was finished in 1904, when present day Battle Ground was first taking shape. Onsdorff and D.B. Mickey platted the town a year earlier in 1903.
In 1904, a census was taken of the platted town of Battle Ground and surrounding neighborhood. The population was a whopping 101 when including children, boarders and employees.
A business directory from the time period indicated the town was on the line of the Portland, Vancouver and Yakima railway. Eventually, the plans to extend the railroad were cut short, and it came to an end in Chelatchie Prairie.
Photos in 1908 in “Battle Ground … In and Around” show the outside and the inside of Onsdorff’s store. The store was titled “Onsdorff and Co. General Merchandise.” Not only did Onsdorff own that important store, he was also a school board member, postmaster and even platted what is now called Old Town in Battle Ground.
The Onsdorff name lives on with Onsdorff Boulevard traversing the northern half of the city.
Onsdorff’s wife, Ida Brown Onsdorff, died in 1915. Peter Onsdorff died in 1936, 15 years prior to Battle Ground being incorporated as a town. Both are buried at the Elim Lutheran Cemetery located on Northeast 159th Street in Brush Prairie.
Flashing forward to the post-war era, in 1951, a special election was held in Clark County to determine whether or not a corporation known as the Town of Battle Ground should be established, according to the city’s website. As Battle Ground became an established town thanks to yes votes, the population sat at 742 in 1951.
In 1975, the town was upgraded to a city.
While the city has maintained a north Clark County hub status, the population grew steadily and then really gained traction with a population boom in the new century.
According to the World Population Review, Battle Ground has crossed 23,000 residents and grows at 2.28% on an annual basis and by 12.53% since the 2020 census.
