The Mabton area's original inhabitants were the Yakama, who were forced onto a reservation in 1855. Mabton existence as a town is due to the Northern Pacific Railway, which arrived in the area around 1884. The town's name is an abbreviation of Mabletown; a railroad official's daughter was named Mable. Mabton was officially incorporated on November 7, 1905.
$558,000 over five years (from 2000 to 2005) to enhance student access to technology;
In 2001, Mabton High School was one of sixteen high schools chosen to participate in the Washington State Achievers Program; the school gets a share proportional to its student population (about 330 students) of more than $9 million to support school improvement and redesign efforts and more than $100 million for college scholarships for its students;
Over $40,000 over five years (2001-2006) to improve high school education and access to higher education; and
Over $125,000 over 34 months (2001-2004) to support professional development programs in partnership with Heritage College.
Perhaps the best known person from Mabton is Mel Stottlemyre, a pitcher and later a pitching coach for the New York Yankees. He won 164 games for them as a pitcher from 1964 to 1974, with three 20-win seasons.
A small ranch near Mabton was home to the first confirmed case of mad cow disease in the United States.
Geography
Mabton is located at 46°12'42" North, 119°59'47" West (46.211618, -119.996520)[3]. Its ZIP code is 98935.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of ½ mi² (1.2 km²), all land.
There are 463 housing units at an average density of 985.8/sq mi (380.4/km²).
89% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race; this figure includes the 80.5% who reported themselves as Mexican. The racial makeup of the city is 21.73% White, 1% Asian, 0.48% Native American, 0.11% African American, and no Pacific Islanders, 73.88% from other races, and 2.80% from two or more races.
There are 445 households out of which 60% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.3% are married couples living together, 17.3% have a female householder with no husband present, and 14.2% are non-families. 12.4% of all households are made up of individuals and 5.8% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 4.22 and the average family size is 4.54.
The median house value is $69,800; 64.7% of the housing units are owner-occupied. 77.2% of the homes were built before 1980.
41.9% of the population is under the age of 18, 12.9% is from 18 to 24, 25.8% is from 25 to 44, 12.9% is from 45 to 64, and 6.5% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line. The median age is 22 years.
There are more men than women: for every 100 females there are 104 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 104.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $26,650, and the median income for a family is $26,198. Males have a median income of $18,917 versus $21,667 for females.
The per capita income for the city is $7,694. 32.7% of the population and 27.9% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 44.0% of those under the age of 18 and 18.2% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.
The city's library is open six afternoons and three evenings per week. In a space of about 1260 ft² it has over 5,000 volumes of hardback books, over 2000 paperbacks, and 26 magazine subscriptions. Many of its books and magazines are in Spanish.