Washington (state) Washington (state) Washington (), officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Named for George Washington, the first president of the United States, the state was made out of the western part of the Washington Territory, which was ceded by Britain in 1846 in accordance with the Oregon Treaty in the settlement of the Oregon boundary dispute. It was admitted to the Union as the 42nd state in 1889. Olympia is the state capital; the state's largest city is Seattle. Washington is sometimes referred to as Washington State, to distinguish it
Washington State Historical Society Washington State Historical Society The Washington State Historical Society is the historical society of the US state of Washington. It is a 501(c)(3) non-profit and is a trustee agency of the state of Washington. It was founded in 1891. The board of trustees of the society includes Washington's governor, secretary of state, and superintendent of public instruction, as well as four state legislators. The society owns and operates the Washington State History Museum. The society's official journal is "Columbia: The Magazine of Northwest History". In 2016 the publication received a Leadership in History Award of Merit from the American Association