This historic Columbia County mill town was named for Mt. Rainier, visible to the northeast. It was an important river town in its early days. It is connected by a bridge across the Columbia to Longview, WA.
Rainier was named for Mount Rainier. The mountain, in turn, was named by George Vancouver in 1792 for Rear-Admiral Peter Rainier of the Royal Navy. The town was formerly known as Eminence. The name was changed to Rainier on 6 Jan 1852. The first post office of Eminence was established in 1851 with Charles E. Fox, the town’s founder, as the first postmaster.

Shuttle service to Portland International Airport provided by Bay Shuttle.

Rainier is part of the Portland-Vancouver, Oregon-WA metro area.