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The name “Walla Walla” originates from the Sahaptin language spoken by the Cayuse, Walla Walla, and Umatilla Tribes, whose homeland includes the basin. The name means “place of many small streams.” This refers to the vast spring and distributary network that once characterized the basin’s waterways as they left the Blue Mountains and spread out across the alluvial sediments deposited in the Valley by the Missoula Floods.

The watershed covers an area of approximately 1,760 square miles in southeastern Washington state and northeastern Oregon.

Roughly 63,440 live within the boundaries of the Walla Walla watershed.

Historical accounts indicate that several species utilized the basin but are now extinct. Fall Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) and chum salmon (O. keta) once used the lower Walla Walla River for spawning, and coho salmon (O. kisutch) were present at some level. Spring Chinook salmon (O. tshawytscha) historically spawned in the upper reaches of the watershed, but the last significant run was observed in 1925. The species is considered extirpated today, but reintroduction efforts are underway. Summer steelhead and bull trout still persist, but both are listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act.

Walla Walla’s economy has a diverse composition, with agriculture, healthcare, manufacturing, retail, and government (educational) services together providing over 71% of total employment. Agriculture is the fourth-largest industry in the area by employment and is growing by about 0.9% annually. Tourism continues to drive growth in the area, particularly as related to the wine industry, and the basin is currently home to nearly 200 wineries (https://esd.wa.gov/labormarketinfo/county-profiles/walla-walla).