In 1864 Krišjānis Valdemārs sponsored the first nautical school in Livonia (today Latvia), training young Estonian and Latvian farmers to become ship captains for free.
The town is named after Krišjānis Valdemārs, born in nearby Valdgale parish (then part of Ārlava parish), who was one of the leaders of the first Latvian National Awakening.