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Washington was named after President George Washington by an act of the United States Congress during the creation of Washington Territory in 1853; the territory was to be named "Columbia", for the Columbia River and the Columbia District, but Kentucky representative Richard H. Stanton found the name too similar to the District of Columbia (the national capital, itself containing the city of ...
- Overview
- Territory and state
Until the 1840s citizens of both the United States and Britain by agreement could settle and trade in what was still known as the Oregon country. In the 1844 presidential election, however, Democratic candidate James K. Polk campaigned on a platform that included a demand that the region be ceded in its entirety to the United States, proclaiming the slogan “Fifty-four forty or fight” (the latitude of Oregon’s northern border with Russian Alaska). In 1846 the two countries compromised and agreed on the present boundary between the United States and Canada (the 49th parallel), and in 1848 Congress established the Oregon Territory, which included all of the present-day states of Oregon, Washington, and Idaho as well as parts of Wyoming and Montana. This enormous area was difficult to govern from the territorial capital in the Willamette valley. As the population around Puget Sound grew, agitation arose to form a separate territory of the area north and west of the Columbia. In 1853 Congress created the Washington Territory—named for the first president of the United States—and extended it east of the Columbia River to the crest of the Rockies, including parts of present-day Idaho and Montana.
Different rates of population growth and difficulties of communication continued to cause problems, and various movements called for the creation of a separate territory in eastern Washington and even the creation of an independent Pacific Republic. In the 1870s and ’80s the extension of the telegraph and the railroads to the Northwest strengthened ties with the United States, and attention turned to seeking statehood, granted in 1889.
Gold discoveries in the interior in the 1850s made Walla Walla the centre of eastern Washington for a time, but these were merely a prelude to Washington’s role in provisioning the gold seekers who set out for the Alaskan and Yukon strikes of the late 1890s. The gold stimulated the trade of cities on Puget Sound, and the new prosperity was celebrated at the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition, held in Seattle in 1909.
The ongoing industrialization and resource extraction that underlay the state’s economy proved fertile ground for militant trade unions, such as the Industrial Workers of the World, and labour unrest, often violent, marked the second decade of the 20th century. Possibly the greatest stimulus to the state’s economic progress during that time was initiated by the development of the Columbia Basin Project and related projects, which greatly increased hydroelectric power and provided the basis for increased irrigation and flood control. A navigation improvement project was authorized as early as 1911, and work began on the Bonneville and Grand Coulee dams in 1933. Construction was completed on Bonneville in 1937 and on the main structure of Grand Coulee in 1941. (Grand Coulee’s generators were not installed until the following year.) The first two Grand Coulee power plants were completed in 1951, and a third power plant began operation in 1975.
Washington’s prosperity and its growing role in the commerce of the Pacific Northwest were among the features celebrated in the Seattle World’s Fair of 1962, named the Century 21 Exposition. Among the developments in the latter half of the 20th century were increased urbanization, consolidation of agricultural landholdings, improved transportation networks, and expanded trade with the Pacific Basin countries. On May 18, 1980, Mount Saint Helens, in the southwestern part of the state, erupted. One of the greatest volcanic explosions ever recorded in North America, it triggered a gigantic landslide that destroyed the north slope and created a plume of ash and gas some 16 miles (26 km) high.
By the 1990s western Washington had emerged as a technological leader at the forefront of a rapidly changing global economy. These developments, coupled with the scenic beauty and other attractions of the state, stimulated an astonishing rate of growth at the end of the 20th century, notably in King, Pierce, and Snohomish counties. At the end of the 1990s, more than 2.5 million people lived in those counties, and continued population growth was projected through the first decades of the 21st century.
Until the 1840s citizens of both the United States and Britain by agreement could settle and trade in what was still known as the Oregon country. In the 1844 presidential election, however, Democratic candidate James K. Polk campaigned on a platform that included a demand that the region be ceded in its entirety to the United States, proclaiming the slogan “Fifty-four forty or fight” (the latitude of Oregon’s northern border with Russian Alaska). In 1846 the two countries compromised and agreed on the present boundary between the United States and Canada (the 49th parallel), and in 1848 Congress established the Oregon Territory, which included all of the present-day states of Oregon, Washington, and Idaho as well as parts of Wyoming and Montana. This enormous area was difficult to govern from the territorial capital in the Willamette valley. As the population around Puget Sound grew, agitation arose to form a separate territory of the area north and west of the Columbia. In 1853 Congress created the Washington Territory—named for the first president of the United States—and extended it east of the Columbia River to the crest of the Rockies, including parts of present-day Idaho and Montana.
Different rates of population growth and difficulties of communication continued to cause problems, and various movements called for the creation of a separate territory in eastern Washington and even the creation of an independent Pacific Republic. In the 1870s and ’80s the extension of the telegraph and the railroads to the Northwest strengthened ties with the United States, and attention turned to seeking statehood, granted in 1889.
Gold discoveries in the interior in the 1850s made Walla Walla the centre of eastern Washington for a time, but these were merely a prelude to Washington’s role in provisioning the gold seekers who set out for the Alaskan and Yukon strikes of the late 1890s. The gold stimulated the trade of cities on Puget Sound, and the new prosperity was celebrated at the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition, held in Seattle in 1909.
The ongoing industrialization and resource extraction that underlay the state’s economy proved fertile ground for militant trade unions, such as the Industrial Workers of the World, and labour unrest, often violent, marked the second decade of the 20th century. Possibly the greatest stimulus to the state’s economic progress during that time was initiated by the development of the Columbia Basin Project and related projects, which greatly increased hydroelectric power and provided the basis for increased irrigation and flood control. A navigation improvement project was authorized as early as 1911, and work began on the Bonneville and Grand Coulee dams in 1933. Construction was completed on Bonneville in 1937 and on the main structure of Grand Coulee in 1941. (Grand Coulee’s generators were not installed until the following year.) The first two Grand Coulee power plants were completed in 1951, and a third power plant began operation in 1975.
Washington’s prosperity and its growing role in the commerce of the Pacific Northwest were among the features celebrated in the Seattle World’s Fair of 1962, named the Century 21 Exposition. Among the developments in the latter half of the 20th century were increased urbanization, consolidation of agricultural landholdings, improved transportation networks, and expanded trade with the Pacific Basin countries. On May 18, 1980, Mount Saint Helens, in the southwestern part of the state, erupted. One of the greatest volcanic explosions ever recorded in North America, it triggered a gigantic landslide that destroyed the north slope and created a plume of ash and gas some 16 miles (26 km) high.
By the 1990s western Washington had emerged as a technological leader at the forefront of a rapidly changing global economy. These developments, coupled with the scenic beauty and other attractions of the state, stimulated an astonishing rate of growth at the end of the 20th century, notably in King, Pierce, and Snohomish counties. At the end of the 1990s, more than 2.5 million people lived in those counties, and continued population growth was projected through the first decades of the 21st century.
The Territory of Washington was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1853, until November 11, 1889, when the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Washington. It was created from the portion of the Oregon Territory north of the lower Columbia River and north of the 46th parallel east ...
Sep 17, 2024 · Washington, constituent state of the United States of America. Lying at the northwestern corner of the 48 conterminous states, it is bounded by the Canadian province of British Columbia to the north, the U.S. states of Idaho to the east and Oregon to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. The capital is Olympia, located at the southern ...
The two nations signed a treaty that divided the land in 1846. America’s Oregon Territory—which included the land that would become Washington—was established. The British took control over what’s now Canada to the north. The state of Washington was created in 1889.
- Jamie Kiffel-Alcheh
- 3 min
Washington was the 42nd state to join the United States, on November 11, 1889. It is often called "Washington State" so that it does not get confused with the nation's capital, Washington, D.C. The name "Washington" comes from President George Washington. The capital of Washington is Olympia.
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Mar 3, 2023 · Key Facts. Washington is a state located in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the south, Idaho to the east, Canada to the north. The state has a total area of approximately 71,362 square miles and ranks as the 18th largest state in the country. Washington's geography is diverse, with four distinct ...
