Orient is a small unincorporated community

Unincorporated area

In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...

 in northeastern Ferry County, Washington, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. The Kettle River

Kettle River (Columbia River)

The Kettle River is a tributary of the Columbia River in northeastern Washington in the United States and southeastern British Columbia in Canada. Its drainage basin is large, of which are in Canada and in the United States.-Course:...

 flows to the east of the town and marks the border with Stevens County. A BNSF

BNSF Railway

The BNSF Railway is a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. It is one of seven North American Class I railroads and the second largest freight railroad network in North America, second only to the Union Pacific Railroad, its primary...

 rail line runs through the town alongside U.S. Route 395

U.S. Route 395

U.S. Route 395 is a U.S. Route in the western United States. The southern terminus of the route is in the Mojave Desert at Interstate 15 near Hesperia. The northern terminus is at the Canadian border near Laurier, where the road becomes Highway 395 upon entering British Columbia. At one time, the...

. The population at the 2010 census was 115.

History

Orient was the endpoint of a cable bucket tramway completed in 1892 that ran from the First Thought Mine. The First Thought Mine closed down in 1942.

Orient was first settled in 1900 by Alec Ireland and by George Temple in 1901.

Orient School

Orient is served by Orient School District No. 65. The district offers classes from kindergarten to grade 8. In October 2004, the district had an enrollment of 88 and a single school. The Orient School building is one of the oldest continuously used schoolhouses in Washington state. It was built in 1910.