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Welcome to AboutWashington.info
Washington is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. The state is named after George Washington, the first President of the United States. It is the only U.S. state named after a president.
Washington was carved out of the western part of Washington Territory and admitted to the Union as the 42nd state in 1889. In 2006, the Census Bureau estimated the state's population at 6,395,798. Residents are called "Washingtonians" (emphasis on the third syllable, pronounced as tone). Washington is sometimes called Washington state or The state of Washington to distinguish it from Washington, D.C., the U.S. capital.
Washington is the northwestern-most state of the contiguous United States. Its northern border lies mainly along the 49th parallel, with the Canadian province of British Columbia to the north. Washington borders Oregon to the south, with the Columbia River forming most of the boundary and the 46th parallel forming the eastern part of the southern boundary. To the east Washington borders Idaho, bounded mostly by the meridian running north from the confluence of the Snake River and Clearwater River, except for the southernmost section where the border follows the Snake River. To the west of Washington lies the Pacific Ocean. |