Puget Sound region and settled the Puget Sound area. The first non-indigenous settlement was New Market (now known as Tumwater) in 1846. In 1853 Washington Territory was formed from part of Oregon Territory. In 1888 the Northern Pacific railroad line reached Puget Sound, linking the region to eastern states. For a long period Tacoma was noted for its large smelters where gold, silver, copper and lead ores were treated. Seattle was the primary port for trade with Alaska and the rest of the country and for a time possessed a large shipbuilding industry. The region around eastern Puget Sound developed heavy industry during
Electricity in the Puget Sound region are among the lowest in the nation at an average 7.6 cents per kilowatt-hour in 2016. Historically this has been due to the large supply from public utility-owned sources. Three investor-owned electric utilities in Washington (Avista (formerly Washington Water Power), PacifiCorp (formerly Pacific Power and Light Company), and Puget Sound Energy (PSE)) are regulated by the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (WUTC) which sets rates. Of the three only PSE operates in the Puget Sound area. Public utility districts are independent taxation and regulation authorities and are not regulated by WUTC. All Puget Sound counties except Pierce and King have