A trading center for the berry farmers and wine grape growers in the rich lowlands. It was once a base for the fleet of American-Pacific Whaling Company. Oliver F. Franz platted the town site in 1904; the name has no special significance. The Annual Strawberry Festival, held in June starting in 1925, continues today, now organized and hosted by the Eastside Heritage Center, which is dedicated to preserving and interpreting artifacts and material related to East King County. Much of Bellevue’s landscape has transformed to skyscrapers and super blocks, but you’ll still find farms, such as Mercer Slough’s blueberry farms, where you can pick your own berries in the summer months.