According to some reports, the original name of this town when it was platted in 1884, was Bryantville. However, the post office in this location is shown as Clatskanie as early as December 1871. Clatskanie comes from a Native American word, Tlatskani. According to the Clatsop County pioneer Silas B. Smith, Tlatskani was a point in the Nehalem River that was reached from the Columbia River by way of the Youngs River or by way of the Clatskanie River. The native inhabitants, who were not in the habit of naming streams, did not use the wordTlatskani for the streams they would follow in order to get to that point, but the white men who settled here later did apply the name to the streams. Many of Clatskanie's inhabitants are of Nordic heritage, specifically Finnish, Swedish, and Norwegian.
As of the census of 2010, there were 1,737 people, 729 households, and 469 families living in the city. The population density was. There were 806 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the city was 92.9% White, 0.4% African American, 2.0% Native American, 0.5% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.9% from other races, and 3.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.7% of the population. There were 729 households, of which 32.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.8% were married couplesliving together, 12.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.5% had a male householder with no wife present, and 35.7% were non-families. 30.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.91. The median age in the city was 38.9 years. 24.8% of residents were under the age of 18; 8.6% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 22.6% were from 25 to 44; 27.8% were from 45 to 64; and 16.1% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.8% male and 52.2% female.
2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 1,528 people, 608 households, and 406 families living in the city. The population density was 1,274.1 people per square mile. There were 659 housing units at an average density of 549.5 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 93.91% White, 0.07% African American, 1.24% Native American, 0.65% Asian, 0.26% Pacific Islander, 1.05% from other races, and 2.81% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.34% of the population. 22.6% were of German, 10.3% Norwegian, 9.4% Finnish, 9.1% Irish, 8.2% English and 6.8% American ancestry according to Census 2000. 94.0% spoke English, 4.1% Spanish and 1.6% Finnish as their first language. There were 608 households, out of which 35.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.6% were married couples living together, 12.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.1% were non-families. 27.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 3.07. In the city, the population was spread out, with 29.6% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 26.0% from 25 to 44, 21.0% from 45 to 64, and 16.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.3 males. The median income for a household in the city was $35,833, and the median income for a family was $48,056. Males had a median income of $41,550 versus $24,286 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,717. About 11.1% of families and 11.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.4% of those under age 18 and 12.1% of those age 65 or over.
