Wikijunior:North America/United States/Washington

The location of Washington

Washington is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Washington was carved out of the western part of Washington Territory and admitted to the Union as the 42nd state in 1889. The state is named after George Washington, the first President of the United States. Washington is often called Washington state or the State of Washington to distinguish it from the District of Columbia (which is usually called Washington, D.C.).

The Flag of Washington

Geography

The Pacific coast is relatively flat, but it soon rises up into rainy coastal mountains. Further east, there are the even higher and rainier Cascades, but the eastern part of the state is mostly high and relatively dry plains with a few deep and impressive river canyons.