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#   Entered Union      Year Settled

42^nd           Nov. 11, 1889       1811

 

Nickname

Evergreen State

 

Rank   Population

13^th            6,549,224

 

Rank   Square Miles

18^th            71,300

 

State Bird

Willow Goldfinch aka American Goldfinch

 

State Flower

Coast Rhododendron

 

State Tree

Western Hemlock

 

State Motto

Al-ki     By and by

 

In 1853, the Washington Territory was formed from part of the Oregon Territory. Named in honor of George Washington, Washington was the 42nd state to join the Union, in 1889. Its coastal location and Puget Sound harbors give it a leading role in trade with Alaska, Canada, and the Pacific Rim.

 

The state has two major mountain ranges--the 7,000-foot Olympic Mountains surrounded by temperate rain forest on the peninsula west of Puget Sound, and the more majestic Cascade Range, which boasts the 14,410-foot Mount Rainier and the volcanic Mount St. Helens, which erupted twice in the 1980s.

 

Although the capital is Olympia, most people live in the metropolitan areas of Seattle-Everett and Tacoma.

 

Mount Rainier

Do you know who Mount Rainier is named after? Or, do you know its Indian name?

 

The mountain, a part of the Cascade Range, is a volcano that has not erupted for 2,000 years. It is also the highest mountain in the state of Washington. English explorer George Vancouver named Mount Rainier in honor of another navigator, Peter Rainier. Some people, however, prefer to call the mountain by its Indian name, Mount Tacoma.

 

The park's wildlife, waterfalls, lakes, and especially its many glaciers have drawn more than 90 million visitors in the more than 100 years since the park was created. Each year more than two million people visit Mount Rainier National Park, many to see the dramatic views of Mount Rainier.

 

The Centennial Trail

What's the longest nature trail you have ever been on?

 

The Centennial Trail in eastern Washington State is a paved trail that runs for 37 miles along the Spokane River -- from Nine Mile Falls to the Idaho state line. Nine Mile Falls is also the site of Riverside State Park, where visitors can camp and explore on foot or horseback the many historic sites and natural features of the area. Hikers or bicyclists can cross the Spokane River on the swinging bridge, watch for a blue heron in the marshlands or read petroglyphs (inscriptions on rocks) at the Indian rock paintings area.

 

If you head upriver along the Centennial Trail, it gets very hilly. No motorized vehicles are allowed on the trail, so be ready to walk, run or bike hard. The trail then passes through the city of Spokane and continues through Riverfront Park, which has additional attractions such as the Gondola, a chair-lift that takes passengers on a 2,240-foot round trip to the bottom of the Spokane Falls and into the heart of downtown Spokane.

 

Suquamish Tribe

Can you guess how a boarding school nearly wiped out the traditions of the Suquamish Indians of Washington state?

 

From the 1880s until the 1920s, children from the Suquamish Tribe were sent to boarding school in order to make them "good citizens." The idea was to take them away from tribal life and include them in the modern world.

 

Suquamish children from the ages of 4 to 18 were sent to a boarding school, where they were forbidden to speak their native language, Lushootseed. Because they were missing from the tribe during the winter months, when storytelling, basket making, and songs were taught, these children lost an important link to tribal life. In addition to not being allowed to speak their native language, they could not practice any of their traditions and they were punished if they did.

 

By the 1920s the practice of sending the children to boarding school had ended. And, by the 1980s, the Suquamish were entering a period of new hope for the future. Tribal businesses were created in order to gain financial independence. Cultural centers were established where tribal elders could pass on their knowledge of language, traditional skills, and religious customs. And the Suquamish Museum opened with exhibits on Suquamish culture and way of life, making sure that the tribal life of the Suquamish Indians would be preserved.