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97 unusual facts about Washington


17th Scripps National Spelling Bee

The 17th Scripps National Spelling Bee was held in Washington, District of Columbia in 1941.

2011 Spokane bombing attempt

On March 9, 2011, the FBI arrested Kevin William Harpham, 36, of Addy, Washington, in connection with the bombing attempt.

21st Scripps National Spelling Bee

The 21st Scripps National Spelling Bee was held in Washington, District of Columbia in 1948, by the E.W. Scripps Company.

24th Scripps National Spelling Bee

The 24th Scripps National Spelling Bee was held in Washington, District of Columbia in 1951, by the E.W. Scripps Company.

27th Scripps National Spelling Bee

The 27th Scripps National Spelling Bee was held in Washington, District of Columbia in 1954, by the E.W. Scripps Company.

28th Scripps National Spelling Bee

The 28th Scripps National Spelling Bee was held in Washington, District of Columbia in 1955, by the E.W. Scripps Company.

Aircraft Warning Service Observation Tower

The Aircraft Warning Service Observation Tower in Agnew, Washington was built in 1941 as a spotting station for Aircraft Warning Service volunteers watching for intruding Japanese airplanes during World War II.

Anacostia Park

It is one of Washington, D.C.'s largest and most important recreation areas, with over 1200 acres (4.9 km2) at multiple sites.

Aphonia Recordings

Although their collaborations remained intermittent through their teenage years they would later find themselves both studying experimental music composition at The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington.

Ballston, Arlington, Virginia

Washington-Lee High School and two small parks, Welburn Square and Glebe and Randolph Park, are also located in Ballston.

Basin City, Washington

The tallest peak visible from Basin City is Rattlesnake Mountain about 25 miles to the southwest on the opposite side of the Columbia River.

Bomb Queen

This pleased politicians in Washington, D.C., due to the lowered crime rates in other states.

Boundary Bay, British Columbia

South of it, across the border, is the community of Maple Beach, Washington, although there is no border crossing directly connecting the two communities (the border crossing is in Tsawwassen proper).

Brad Klippert

Klippert is a Pentecostal minister and a sheriff's deputy for the Benton County sheriff's department, serving as a school officer during legislative sessions and a patrol officer at other times.

Braj Kumar Nehru

Nehru worked as Executive Director in the World Bank (1949) and was Economic Minister at the Indian Embassy in Washington (1954).

Bristol, Washington

Bristol is located on State Route 10 between Cle Elum and Thorp in Kittitas County, Washington, United States.

British Embassy, Washington

It is located at 3100 Massachusetts Avenue, NW in Washington, D.C.

Canary rockfish

On October 29, 2007, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) received a petition from Sam Wright of Olympia, Washington to list a distinct population segment (DPS) of canary rockfish, and four other rockfishes, in Puget Sound, as an endangered or threatened species under the Endangered Species Act).

Charles E. Laughton

He was elected as a territorial representative for Stevens, Okanogan, and Spokane counties in 1888, before Washington Territory became a state.

Chris Cleary

Chris Cleary (born August 2, 1979 in Washington, D.C.) is a retired American soccer player whose professional career had been played entirely in Europe.

Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor

Set in Friday Harbor, the novel opens with a prologue that features six-year-old Holly Nolan’s letter to Santa Claus, asking for a mother for Christmas.

Christylez Bacon

Christylez Bacon (pronounced: chris-styles) is a Grammy Nominated Progressive Hip-Hop artist and multi-instrumentalist from Southeast, Washington, D.C. As a performer, Christylez multi-tasks between various instruments such as the West African djembe drum, acoustic guitar, and the human beat-box (oral percussion), all while continuing the oral tradition of storytelling through his lyrics.

Craig Pridemore

He was a candidate for the United States House of Representatives for Washington's 3rd congressional district in the 2010 election to succeed retiring Congressman Brian Baird.

Dan Dickau

Born in Portland, Oregon, Dickau graduated from Prairie High School in Brush Prairie, Washington.

David Boone

His body was discovered outside of his house in the resort community of Point Roberts, Washington.

Discovery Bay, Washington

Cape George is located on high bluffs at the northeast entrance of the bay.

E.B.E.

With help from MUFON and NICAP, Mulder tracks Druce and the E.B.E. to a power plant in Mattawa, Washington.

Earth Day 20 International Peace Climb

The climbers highlighted their expedition with a live satellite phone call to President George H.W. Bush as well as to Furia, Earth Day 20 organizers and thousands of supporters gathered in George, Washington, near the Columbia River on April 22, 1990.

Eosalmo

Fossils from this genus have also been found at sites in Princeton, British Columbia, the McAbee Fossil Beds in B.C., and Republic, Washington, USA.

Erechim

City planners were inspired by urban concepts used in the design of Washington, D.C. (1791) and Paris (1850).

Forsyth Street

On the east side of the block from East Broadway to Canal Street, a number of so-called “Chinatown buses” (operated by different companies) start their routes to cities across the East Coast of the United States, including Boston, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C..

George Massey Tunnel

It is located approximately 20 km (12 mi) south of the city centre of Vancouver, British Columbia, and approximately 30 km (20 mi) north of the Canada-U.S. Border at Blaine, Washington.

Glacier View Wilderness

Glacier View Wilderness is administered by the Gifford Pinchot National Forest through the Cowlitz Valley Ranger district with headquarters located in Randle, Washington.

Henry Pittock

In 1866 he was a partner in the first paper mill in the Northwest, at Oregon City, and later a second mill there and another at Camas, Washington.

I'm a Truck

Breeden and Simpson met in Vancouver, Washington in 1971, where Simpson agreed to record the song.

Interstate 90 floating bridge

Interstate 90 floating bridge is the common name for the twin floating bridges that carry Interstate 90 across Lake Washington between Seattle and Mercer Island.

Isaac Cathcart

His large land holdings were purchased by George Hillman who platted and sold the lots, eventually creating the town of Clearview.

James H. Hawley

Through luck or an acute weather sense, they chose to leave the area for Walla Walla, Washington before the depth of winter set in.

Johnston Blakeley

Blakely Island, part of the San Juan Islands in Washington state, and Port Blakely were named by Charles Wilkes during the Wilkes Expedition of 1838-1842, in honor of Johnston Blakeley.

Joseph Kearney

He then became a high school principal in the state of Washington when he was hired by Onalaska High School (Onalaska, Washington), where he also taught and coached.

Juba Kalamka

In 2005, Kalamka was contacted by artist and sex worker advocate Annie Oakley (whom he'd met at the Olympia, Washington queer arts fest HomoAGoGo) and accepted an invitation to tour with The Sex Workers' Art Show, a month long cross-country cabaret style theater event featuring current and former sex worker artist/activists.

Kalervo Kallio

The bust is placed at the United States Senate Vice Presidential Bust Collection in Washington, D.C..

Lake Revelstoke

The dam's site is at what had been the head of river navigation by steamboat from Northport, Washington via the Arrow Lakes.

Langdon Park

Langdon, Washington, D.C., an area of Washington, D.C. in the United States

Lenox Dale, Massachusetts

There is also a marble quarry on the border with the town of Washington.

Liz Pike

The Cowlitz and Clark county commissioners had selected Pike, despite Vick being the first choice of the district's Precinct Committee Officers.

Lloyd District, Portland, Oregon

TriMet buses and MAX trains provide frequent service in the district, as well as a commuter express bus route form Vancouver via C-Tran.

Lou Stewart

During that time, Stewart was the Labor Council's chief state lobbyist in Olympia.

Lyle, Washington

In 1866 French sold his holdings to James O. Lyle from The Dalles, Oregon, and moved to White Bluffs.

Manson, Washington

Manson is part of the WenatcheeEast Wenatchee Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Marine Barracks

Marine Barracks, Washington, D.C., listed on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington, D.C. as the U.S. Marine Corps Barracks and Commandant's House

Mark Sidran

Sidran spent ten years (1975-1985) as a Deputy Prosecuting Attorney in the King County Prosecuting Attorney's Office.

Marvin Austin

A native of Washington, D. C., Austin chose to attend Coolidge High School in the Manor Park neighborhood, despite being courted by notable D. C. area athletic programs like DeMatha coming out of middle school.

McNeil Island Corrections Center

The McNeil Island Corrections Center (MICC) was a Washington State Department of Corrections prison on McNeil Island in unincorported Pierce County, Washington, near Steilacoom.

Microbrewery

Interest spread to the US, and in 1982, Grant's Brewery Pub in Yakima, Washington was opened, reviving the US "brewery taverns" of well-known early Americans as William Penn, Samuel Adams and Patrick Henry.

Milwaukee Road Bunkhouse

The bunkhouse served the crews at the rail yard and division point at South Cle Elum, Washington.

Mitchell Rupe

Mitchell Rupe (1955–February 7, 2006) was a convicted murderer who died of liver disease in the Washington State Penitentiary in Walla Walla, Washington.

Morseth

In 1953 he patented the "Safe-lok" sheath system and in 1956 moved the factory to Clinton, Washington.

Mushroom Corner, Washington

Mushroom Corner is located in the urban growth area of Lacey, along Interstate 5 south of Olympia, and is included in the Tanglewilde-Thompson Place Census-designated place (CDP) for Census purposes.

Naval Base Kitsap

Naval Base Kitsap is the largest naval organization in Navy Region Northwest, and it is composed of installations at Bremerton, Bangor, and Keyport, Washington.

Naval Undersea Museum

The Naval Undersea Museum is an official naval museum located at Keyport, Washington, USA.

Neal Potter

An economist with the U.S. Office of Price Administration from 1941 to 1946, he went on to teach economics at Carnegie Tech (now Carnegie Mellon University) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from 1946 to 1947, and at Washington State College in Pullman, Washington, from 1947 to 1951.

Nesmith Ankeny

Nesmith Cornett Ankeny (1927, Walla Walla, Washington – 4 August 1993, Seattle) was an American mathematician specialising in number theory.

Old Cariboo Road

Connecting to the Oregon Trail at Wallula, it ran north across Quincy Flats past Moses Lake, then crossed the lower Grand Coulee at present day Coulee City.

Oxon Run Parkway

The Oxon Run Parkway, is a roadway and small park in the Washington Highlands neighborhood of Washington, D.C..

Pomeroy, Washington

The town has been the seat of Garfield County ever since 1882, despite fierce competition in the 1880s with neighboring towns Pataha and Asotin.

Randle, Washington

Randle is the center of the White Pass School District, which, in addition to Randle, covers the small towns of Glenoma, Washington, and Packwood, Washington (its school district jurisdiction includes a vast rural expanse in extreme eastern Lewis County, terminating at the Cascade Mountains and the county border with Yakima County).

Roderick N. Matheson

He traveled to Washington, D.C., for Abraham Lincoln's inauguration in 1861, intending to stay only a few weeks, but found himself swept up in the fever of approaching war.

Roy Alexander Gano

From 1937-1939, he served as Special Engineer, United States Navy Research Lab, Bellevue, Washington.

Roy Geiger

Geiger spent most of his enlisted time at the Marine Barracks, Washington, D.C. where he was also promoted to Corporal on June 2, 1908.

Safety Not Guaranteed

The film was shot in Seattle and Ocean Shores, Washington, and other locations within 30 miles of Seattle.

Sappho, Washington

Traveling by steamer from Seattle, they landed at an Indian settlement called Pysht on the Strait of Juan de Fuca and hiked inland 20 miles through the rainforest to their claim.

Sauk-Suiattle Indian Tribe of Washington

The Sauk-Suiattle Indian Reservation is in this area, centered near the present-day town of Darrington.

Sherril Huff

Originally from Kitsap County Huff spent two years as Assistant Director of the elections department at King County, Washington.

Sherril Huff is the current Director of Elections of King County, Washington.

Spokane Public Library

, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in Spokane County, Washington

Stuart Forbes

In November 1942, Forbes was married to Mary L. Miller by a Justice of the Peace at the courthouse in King County, Washington.

Tacoma Jets

The Tacoma Thunder were an International Basketball League team based in Tacoma, Washington.

Three Rivers Hospital

Three Rivers Hospital is a hospital based in Brewster, Washington, USA, which is a city that is part of the Okanogan region.

Tom Copeland

Copeland was elected to the Washington House of Representatives in 1957, for District 11, which encompassed the counties of Asotin, Columbia, Garfield and parts of Walla Walla.

Treva Throneberry

He was convicted in Clark County, Washington of "having sex with a minor" and sentenced to 50 days in jail.

Tyna Barinaga

In 1964 Barinaga and fellow Port Angeles, Washington resident Caroline Jensen (Hein) became the first all-teenage team to capture the women's doubles title at the U.S. Open Championships.

Washington, Baltimore and Annapolis Trail

Here, the 33kV line enters the substation and is replaced by a much larger BG&E transmission line; the line runs parallel to the trail all the way to Bowie.

Washington, D.C., in the American Civil War

Among the notables who served as nurses or medical assistants were poet Walt Whitman, American Red Cross founder Clara Barton, and Dorothea Dix.

Washington, Kansas

Washington was established in spring 1860 and until the end of the American Civil War it was protected by two stockaded buildings, the Washington Company House and Woolbert's Stockade Hotel.

Washington, Kentucky

Other noteworthy people who lived in Washington during the first half of the 1800s include Lorrin Andrews, who taught school in Washington, married a local girl, Mary Wilson, and went on to found what became the University of Hawaii.

Washington, Louisiana

Washington was the birthplace of Louisiana Governor Oramel H. Simpson, who served from 1926 until his defeat by the legendary Huey Pierce Long, Jr. in the 1928 Democratic gubernatorial primary.

Washington, Mississippi

The college was created by an act of the first General Assembly of the Mississippi Territory in 1802 and was named in honor of Thomas Jefferson, then-president of the United States.

Washington, Village and Capital, 1800-1878

Washington, Village and Capital, 1800-1878 is a two-volume Pulitzer Prize-winning book by American historian Constance McLaughlin Green.

Washington's 10th congressional district

Washington's 10th congressional district is a congressional district created by the 2010 United States Census that elected a member of the United States House of Representatives beginning with the 2012 elections.

Washington's 39th legislative district

This urban district is represented by state senator Kirk Pearson and state representatives Dan Kristiansen (pos. 1) and Elizabeth Scott (pos. 2), all Republicans.

Washington's 3rd Legislative District

The largely rural district is represented by state senator Andy Billig (D) and state representatives Marcus Riccelli (D-pos. 1) and Timm Ormsby (D-pos. 2).

Washington's 4th congressional district

In the 2008 election, Hastings easily defeated challenger George Fearing (D-Kennewick).

Washougal High School

Washougal High School is a public school in the Washougal School District founded in the early 1900s in Clark County, Washington.

Wauconda

Wauconda, Washington, an unincorporated community in Okanogan County, Washington, United States

West Richland, Washington

It crossed the Fallon Bridge between Richland and West Richland and then proceeded directly west to Kiona.

William J. Gedney

William J. Gedney (born April 4, 1915 in Orchards, Washington; died November 14, 1999 in Ann Arbor, Michigan) was an American linguist and Southeast Asian language specialist.


32nd meridian west from Washington

The 32nd meridian of longitude west from Washington is a line of longitude approximately 109°02′48″ west of the Prime Meridian of Greenwich.

Any Bonds Today?

Barry Wood introduced the song (along with another Berlin composition called "Arms for the Love of America") on Arsenal Day, June 10, 1941, at the War College in Washington, D.C.; he also recorded the song in the same week for RCA Victor.

Ardeshir Zahedi

In the mid-1970s, Zahedi became known as a companion of the American movie star Elizabeth Taylor, with the two being dubbed "the hottest couple" in Washington D.C., according to the writer Barbara Howar.

Carlos Washington Lencinas

Carlos Washington Lencinas (November 13, 1888 - November 10, 1929) was an Argentine politician and governor of Mendoza, Argentina.

Cary Sherman

He is an officer of the board of the Levine School of Music in Washington, D.C., and has also served in advisory roles for the Anti-Defamation League, BNA’s Patent, Trademark and Copyright Journal, the Washington Area Lawyers for the Arts, The Computer Law Association, the Copyright Society, and The Computer Lawyer.

Charles Fickert

A 1919 grand jury exonerated Fickert from charges made by John B. Densmore, investigator from Washington, Director General of Employment, in the framing of Mooney and Billings and for his having conspired with Pete McDonough in the freeing of wealthy defendants.

Chris Cillizza

Dana Milbank and Chris Cillizza appeared in a series of humor videos called "Mouthpiece Theater" which appeared on the Washington Posts website.

David Corn

In the Washington Post, Roger Warner called it "an impressive feat of research"; but, in the New York Times, Joseph Finder claimed Corn was seriously distorting history to blame Shackley for a series of CIA failings.

Dean Richmond

In 1861, as President-Elect Abraham Lincoln made his way to Washington, D.C., the engine that pulled the train was The Dean Richmond.

Dixie Network

Marston also was elected to the National Association of Broadcasters Board of Directors in 1970 Edward B. Fritts, who began his broadcast career at WENK, Union City, Tennessee, was elected President of The National Association of Broadcasters, Washington, D.C., where he led the national trade association with distinction.

Edge city

Garreau's classic example of an edge city is the information technology center, Tysons Corner, Virginia, west of Washington, D.C. As recently as the end of World War II, it was a country crossroads, but it now has more office space than downtown Atlanta.

Elizabeth Lewis

Betty Washington Lewis (1733–1797) was the only sister of George Washington to live to adulthood

Ellsworthite

Bulletin of the National Research Council, Number 77, Physics of the Earth - I Volcanology, By the Subsidiary Committee on Volcanology, Published by the National Research Council of The National Academy of Sciences Washington, D.C., (1931)

Embassy Row

The first purpose-designed embassy building in Washington appears to have been the embassy of the Kingdom of Siam, now the Consular Services of the Embassy of Thailand on 2300 Kalorama Road NW, built in the 1920s.

Evangelical and Reformed Church

United States President Theodore Roosevelt attended Washington D.C.'s Grace Reformed Church, an Evangelical and Reformed congregation.

Fort Ellsworth

Over the seven weeks that followed the occupation of northern Virginia, forts were constructed along the banks of the Potomac River and at the approaches to each of the three major bridges (Chain Bridge, Long Bridge, and Aqueduct Bridge) connecting Virginia to Washington and Georgetown.

Frankie Jaxon

In 1941 he retired from show business and worked at The Pentagon in Washington, D.C. He was transferred to Los Angeles, California.

Green Fire

The author of the novel Green Fire, on which the film was based, was Major Peter William Rainier 1890-1946, a South African whose great-great-grand-uncle was the person that Mount Rainier, Washington was named after (by the explorer George Vancouver).

Healy

Healy Hall, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, United States

Hechinger

Their sponsorship of the 11:00 p.m. newscast at T.V. station WTOP in Washington, D.C., was a first, according to Walter Cronkite (an anchor of those broadcasts) in his autobiography A Reporter's Life.

In the News

Three new one-minute segments were produced each week, narrated by CBS Radio News Washington Correspondent Dan Raviv.

Isa Genzken

Genzken's work is included in the collections of many institutions internationally, including the Museum of Modern Art, New York; Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh; the Generali Foundation, Vienna; the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington, D.C.; the Kemper Art Museum, St. Louis; the Museum Ludwig, Cologne; the Museum Frieder Burda, Baden-Baden; and the Van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven.

Jack L. Tilley

The Sergeants Major of the Army, Daniel K. Elder, Center of Military History, United States Army Washington, D.C. 2003.

Jhoon Goo Rhee

Rhee is well known in the Washington, D.C. area for a television commercial that has a jingle by Nils Lofgren and features the catch phrase, "Nobody bothers me," followed by "Nobody bothers me, either."

Katherine Washington

Katherine Washington is a former American women's basketball player, who played on the first two U.S. women's national teams, earning world championships in 1953 and 1957.

KHCV

KFFV, a television station (channel 44) licensed to serve Seattle, Washington, United States, which held the call sign KHCV from 1999 to 2009

Kurt Schork

After Schork died, as per his personal wishes, upon cremation half of his ashes was buried next to his mother in Washington, D.C., and half at "Groblje LAV" (The Lion Cemetery) in Sarajevo, next to the grave of Boško and Admira, the central figures in Schork's acclaimed story.

KXLY

KXLY-TV, a television station (channel 4) licensed to Spokane, Washington, United States

Lauren Kessler

She is also author of Washington Post best-seller Clever Girl: Elizabeth Bentley, the Spy Who Ushered in the McCarthy Era, a biography of Elizabeth Bentley, and the Los Angeles Times best-seller and Oregon Book Award finalist The Happy Bottom Riding Club, a biography of aviator Florence Pancho Barnes.

North Admiral, Seattle

North Admiral (or simply the Admiral District) is the oldest neighborhood in West Seattle, Washington.

Old Lyme, Connecticut

John McCurdy (b.1724), whose home was the resting place for George Washington on April 10, 1776 while traveling to New York City to take on the British Army and Navy (source: Papers of George Washington, Connecticut State Library); grandfather of Connecticut Supreme Court judge Charles McCurdy

Olin Kreutz

It was also the second consecutive year in which the Bears selected an offensive lineman from Washington, after Bob Sapp in 1997.

Pat Goss

Goss is the master technician on the television program MotorWeek, where he hosts a segment called Goss' Garage, and hosts a weekend radio show about cars on WJFK-FM in Washington, DC.

Peter Daniel Young

At the age of nine, he moved to Mercer Island, Washington, near Seattle, where he graduated from Mercer Island High School.

Puyallup

The Washington State Fair, formerly the Puyallup Fair and the Western Washington Fair, held in Puyallup, Washington

Quillayute

Quillayute Airport, formerly known as Quillayute State Airport, a public airport in Clallam County, Washington, United States

Richard Urquhart Goode

In 1889, he was appointed a geographer with the Survey and was placed in charge of surveys of the Pacific Coast States - California, Oregon, and Washington.

Robert Stewart Sparks

In 1925, the 5th District was bounded by Washington Street on the north, the city limits on the east, Exposition Boulevard on the south and Vermont Avenue on the west.

Sara Little Turnbull

Later, when Turnbull became executive vice president of National Forest Products Assn, they moved to Washington, D.C., with an apartment at the Watergate complex.

Simon Acland

Acland's father is Sir Antony Acland KG, GCMG, GCVO, former Head of the Diplomatic Service and British Ambassador in Washington.

Stanley Allen Bastian

On September 19, 2013, President Obama nominated Bastian to serve as a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Washington, to the seat vacated by Judge Edward F. Shea, who took senior status on June 7, 2012.

Stonycreek Township, Somerset County, Pennsylvania

It is widely held that the Flight 93 hijackers intended to use the craft to destroy the United States Capitol building in Washington, D.C. The crash here was a result of a struggle over control of the plane between hijackers and passengers, who learned of the plane's intended fate through cellphone calls to and from family members.

Track of the Cat

The outdoor scenes were filmed on Mount Rainier, Washington and Mitchum regarded shooting in the deep snow and cold as the worst filming conditions he had ever experienced.

WDAZ-TV

Owned by Forum Communications of Fargo, which also owns the Grand Forks Herald, WDAZ has facilities on South Washington Street in Grand Forks near Kmart and a news bureau and sales office on U.S. Highway 2 in Devils Lake.

Western pond turtle

Western pond turtles originally ranged from northern Baja California, Mexico, north to the Puget Sound region of Washington.