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89-653: CalPortland's subsidiary in Washington state , Glacier Northwest, was a party to a 2023 Supreme Court decision, Glacier Northwest, Inc. v. Teamsters , that found that the right to strike under the National Labor Relations Act does not preclude lawsuits against the union for actions related to the strike. The company's history can be traced from its founding in 1891 through its growth and merger in 1984 to its purchase by its current Japanese parent, Taiheiyo Cement, in 1990. The California Portland Cement Company

178-616: A temperate rainforest . Weeks may pass without a clear day. The western slopes of the Cascade Range receive some of the heaviest annual snowfall (in some places more than 200 inches or 5,100 millimeters water equivalent) in the country. In the rain shadow area east of the Cascades, the annual precipitation is only 6 inches (150 mm). Precipitation then increases again eastward toward the Rocky Mountains (about 120 miles (190 km) east of

267-827: A 1980 lawsuit, along with about 50 other defendants. The company denied any illegal activity, but paid a $ 6.5 million settlement for the claims, which related to the years 1968 to 1976. The company reached an agreement with the Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Justice in December 2011 to resolve allegations it violated the Clean Air Act at its plant in Mojave. CalPortland paid $ 1.425 million in penalties and agreed to spend another $ 1.3 million to reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides and sulfur oxides . Washington (state) Washington , officially

356-732: A 54% stake in a petroleum exploration company called State Exploration in 1969. The company further diversified in 1971 by founding the Soldier Creek Coal Company to mine coal in Utah, some of which California Portland Cement used in its own cement plants. In 1984, California Portland Cement merged with Consolidated Rock Company, also based in Los Angeles, to form CalMat Company . Consolidated Rock (also known as Conrock) manufactured sand, gravel, and crushed rock. California Portland Cement shareholders owned 57% of CalMat, and Conrock shareholders

445-590: A Japanese cement company. It was formed in 1998 with the merger of Chichibu Onoda (itself a merger of Chichibu Cement and Onoda Cement) and Nihon Cement (formerly Asano Cement). In July 2024, Secretary Alfredo Pascual and Mayor Mytha Ann B. Canoy graced Taiheiyo Cement Philippines, Inc.'s inauguration of a PHP12.8 billion (US$ 220) production line in San Fernando, Cebu . It has a capacity of 3 Mt annually, or 6000 tons per day of cement clinker and features advanced cement kiln renewal technology. Taiheiyo Cement

534-592: A dispute over a right of way through their properties. Another company, Glacier Sand & Gravel, began mining on the south side of the Steilacoom site in 1910. The company grew, and by 1927 had six storage bunkers in Seattle , as well as in Bremerton , Olympia , Tacoma , Everett , Bellingham , Raymond , and Longview . Pioneer Sand & Gravel supplied sand and gravel for area projects such as Seattle Civic Auditorium ,

623-470: A large part of the top of the volcano. The eruption flattened the forest up to 20 km north of the volcano , killed 57 people, flooded the Columbia River and its tributaries with ash and mud, and blanketed large parts of Washington eastward and other surrounding states in ash, making day look like night. Washington is the northwesternmost state of the contiguous United States . It borders Idaho to

712-631: A large region experiences strong rain shadow effects. Semi-arid conditions occur in much of Eastern Washington with the strongest rain shadow effects at the relatively low elevations of the central Columbia Plateau —especially the region just east of the Columbia River from about the Snake River to the Okanagan Highland . Thus, instead of rain forests, much of Eastern Washington is covered with dry grassland , shrub-steppe , and dunes . The average annual temperature ranges from 51 °F (11 °C) on

801-425: A low-pressure cyclone system takes over in the north Pacific Ocean. The air spiraling inward in a counter-clockwise fashion causes Washington's prevailing winds to come from the southwest, and bring cool and overcast weather and a predictably wet season . The term " Pineapple Express " is used colloquially to describe atmospheric river events, where repeated storm systems are directed by this persistent cyclone from

890-455: A preliminary assessment of the risks and opportunities presented given the possibility of a rise in global temperatures and their effects on Washington state. Rainfall in Washington varies dramatically going from east to west. The Olympic Peninsula's western side receives as much as 160 inches (4,100 mm) of precipitation annually, making it the wettest area of the 48 conterminous states and

979-466: A proposal to use the name "State of Washington, Douglass Commonwealth", which would conflict with the current state of Washington. Residents of Washington (known as "Washingtonians") and the Pacific Northwest simply refer to the state as "Washington", and the nation's capital "Washington, D.C.", "the other Washington", or simply "D.C." The 9,300-year-old skeletal remains of Kennewick Man , one of

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1068-504: A state; the creation of Idaho Territory in 1863 established the final eastern border. A Washington state constitution was drafted and ratified in 1878, but it was never officially adopted. Although never approved by the United States Congress, the 1878 constitution is an important historical document that shows the political thinking of the time; it was used extensively during the drafting of Washington state's 1889 constitution,

1157-583: A three-man commission ruling in favor of the United States in 1872. The border established by the Oregon Treaty and finalized by the arbitration in 1872 remains the boundary between Washington and British Columbia . The growing population of Oregon Territory north of the Columbia River formally requested a new territory. As a result of the Monticello Convention , held in present-day Cowlitz County ,

1246-439: A varied range of bird species. This range includes raptors, shorebirds, woodland birds, grassland birds, ducks, and others. There have also been a large number of species introduced to Washington, dating back to the early 18th century, including horses and burros. The channel catfish , lamprey , and sturgeon are among the 400 known freshwater fishes . Along with the Cascades frog, there are several forms of snakes that define

1335-482: Is an extremely important business throughout much of Eastern Washington, as the soil is highly productive and irrigation , aided by dams along the Columbia River, is fairly widespread. The spread of population in Eastern Washington is dominated by access to water, especially rivers. The main cities are all located alongside rivers or lakes; most of them are named after the river or lake they adjoin. Farther east,

1424-405: Is the only U.S. state named after a president. Confusion between the state of Washington and the city of Washington, D.C., led to renaming proposals during the statehood process for Washington in 1889, including David Dudley Field II 's suggestion to name the new state "Tacoma"; these proposals failed to garner support. Washington, D.C.'s, own statehood movement in the 21st century has included

1513-499: The Blue Mountains and the eastern sides of the Cascades. Mammals native to the state include the bat , black bear , bobcat , cougar , coyote , deer , elk , gray wolf , hare , moose , mountain beaver , muskrat , opossum , pocket gopher , rabbit , raccoon , river otter , skunk , and tree squirrel . Because of the wide range of geography, the state of Washington is home to several different ecoregions, which allow for

1602-435: The Blue Mountains . The state of Washington has a temperate climate. The eastern half of Washington has a semi-arid to warm-summer mediterranean climate , while the western side of Washington as well as the coastal areas of the state have a cool oceanic climate or warm-summer mediterranean climate. Major factors determining Washington's climate include the large semi-permanent low pressure and high pressure systems of

1691-532: The Canadian province of British Columbia to the north. Washington is part of a region known as the Pacific Northwest , a term which always refers to at least Washington and Oregon, and may or may not include some or all the following, depending on the user's intent: Idaho, western Montana , northern California , British Columbia, and Alaska . The high mountains of the Cascade Range run north-south, bisecting

1780-559: The Cascade Mountains westward, Western Washington has a mostly Mediterranean climate , with mild temperatures and wet winters, autumns and springs, and relatively dry summers. The Cascade Range has several volcanoes , which reach altitudes significantly higher than the rest of the mountains. From north to south, these major volcanoes are Mount Baker , Glacier Peak , Mount Rainier , Mount St. Helens , and Mount Adams . All are active volcanoes. Mount Rainier—the tallest mountain in

1869-675: The Columbia District . Fur trapper James Sinclair , on orders from Sir George Simpson , Governor of the Hudson's Bay Company, led some 200 settlers from the Red River Colony west in 1841 to settle on Hudson Bay Company farms near Fort Vancouver . The party crossed the Rockies into the Columbia Valley , near present-day Radium Hot Springs , British Columbia, then traveled south-west down

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1958-784: The Continental Divide to the Pacific Ocean as part of the Anglo–American Convention of 1818 , which established the 49th parallel as the international boundary west from Lake of the Woods to the Rocky Mountains . Resolution of the territorial and treaty issues west to the Pacific was deferred until a later time. In 1819, Spain ceded its rights north of the 42nd parallel to the United States. Negotiations with Great Britain over

2047-528: The Kootenai River and Columbia River. Despite such efforts, Britain eventually ceded all claims to land south of the 49th parallel to the United States in the Oregon Treaty on June 15, 1846. In 1836, a group of missionaries, including Marcus Whitman , established several missions and Whitman's own settlement Waiilatpu, in what is now southeastern Washington state, near present-day Walla Walla County , in

2136-529: The Lake Washington Floating Bridge , the Aurora Bridge , Husky Stadium , and the dry docks at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard , and also offered structural steel and other building materials. In 1959, Pioneer Sand & Gravel Company had net income of $ 201,342 ($ 2.1 million in 2023) on sales of $ 5.9 million ($ 61.7 million in 2023) and its mine at Steilacoom had grown to become one of

2225-595: The San Juan Islands is heavily inhabited by killer , gray, and humpback whales. In Eastern Washington, the flora is vastly different. Tumbleweeds and sagebrush dominate the landscape throughout large parts of the countryside. Russian olives and other trees are common alongside riverbanks; however, apart from the riversides, large swaths of Eastern Washington have no naturally existing trees at all (though many trees have been planted and are irrigated by people, of course). A wider variety of flora can be found in both

2314-792: The Santiago , part of a two-ship flotilla with the Sonora . He claimed the coastal lands up to Prince William Sound for Spain as part of their claimed rights under the Treaty of Tordesillas , which they maintained made the Pacific a "Spanish lake" and all its shores part of the Spanish Empire. Soon thereafter, the smallpox epidemic of the 1770s devastated the Native American population. In 1778, British explorer Captain James Cook sighted Cape Flattery , at

2403-547: The State of Washington , is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is often referred to as Washington state to distinguish it from the national capital , both named after George Washington (the first U.S. president ). Washington borders the Pacific Ocean to the west, Oregon to the south, Idaho to the east, and shares an international border with the Canadian province of British Columbia to

2492-463: The U.S. Congress passed legislation to create Washington Territory . It was signed into law by President Millard Fillmore on March 2, 1853. The boundary of Washington Territory initially extended farther east than the present state, including what is now the Idaho Panhandle and parts of western Montana, and picked up more land to the southeast that was left behind when Oregon was admitted as

2581-601: The United States Congress during the creation of Washington Territory in 1853; the territory was to be named "Columbia", for the Columbia River and the Columbia District , but Kentucky representative Richard H. Stanton found the name too similar to the District of Columbia (the national capital, itself containing the city of Washington), and proposed naming the new territory after President Washington. Washington

2670-585: The "deep freeze" winters of 1883–1884, 1915–1916, 1949–1950, and 1955–1956, among others. During these events, Western Washington experienced up to 6 feet (1.8 m) of snow, sub-zero (−18 °C) temperatures, three months with snow on the ground, and lakes and rivers frozen over for weeks. Seattle's lowest officially recorded temperature is 0 °F (−18 °C) set on January 31, 1950, but low-altitude areas approximately three hours away from Seattle have recorded lows as cold as −48 °F (−44 °C). The Southern Oscillation greatly influences weather during

2759-544: The 1890s, the U.S. Government was building three new forts to protect the entrance to Puget Sound : Fort Worden , Fort Flagler , and Fort Casey . One of the main contractors, the Pacific Bridge Company , needed high-quality gravel to produce large quantities of concrete. After investigating a number of unsuitable sites, the company found a large quantity of suitable gravel on the waterfront near Steilacoom, Washington , and began to mine there. Once construction of

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2848-723: The August 11 incident. Both parties petitioned the Washington Supreme Court to review the case, and on December 16, 2021, it dismissed all of the damage claims by the company. Glacier Northwest appealed to the Supreme Court of the United States , which on June 1, 2023, reversed and remanded the judgment of the Washington Supreme Court in an 8–1 vote, finding that the National Labor Relations Act does not preempt claims for intentional destruction of property. In addition to

2937-644: The CalMat Company in 1990 for $ 316 million. Onoda Cement merged with Chichibu Cement Company in 1994, then with Nihon Cement Company in 1998 to form CalPortland's current parent company, Taiheiyo Cement . Taiheiyo Cement owns CalPortland through its Taiheiyo Cement USA subsidiary. The rest of CalMat was later acquired by Vulcan Materials Company in 1998. California Portland Cement changed its name to CalPortland Company on June 20, 2008. CalPortland's original plant in Colton stopped production on November 20, 2009, as

3026-641: The Chichibu Onoda Cement Corporation. The cement plant that later became the Nihon Cement Company was leased from the government in 1883. Nihon Cement merged with Chichibu Onoda in 1998 to form Taiheiyo Cement. Taiheiyo Cement has a number of subsidiaries in countries around the world. In the United States , its subsidiary Taiheiyo Cement USA, Inc., serves as the parent company of CalPortland Company . This article about

3115-604: The Idaho border). The Olympic mountains and Cascades compound this climatic pattern by causing orographic lift of the air masses blown inland from the Pacific Ocean, resulting in the windward side of the mountains receiving high levels of precipitation and the leeward side receiving low levels. This occurs most dramatically around the Olympic Mountains and the Cascade Range. In both cases, the windward slopes facing southwest receive high precipitation and mild, cool temperatures. While

3204-644: The Interior had a different subsistence-based culture based on hunting, food-gathering and some forms of agriculture, as well as a dependency on salmon from the Columbia and its tributaries. The area has been known to host megathrust earthquakes in the past, the last being the Cascadia earthquake of 1700 . The first recorded European landing on the Washington coast was by Spanish Captain Don Bruno de Heceta in 1775, on board

3293-579: The Northwest Coast to explorers and traders from other nations, most notably Britain and Russia as well as the fledgling United States. American captain Robert Gray (for whom Grays Harbor County is named) then discovered the mouth of the Columbia River. He named the river after his ship, the Columbia . Beginning in 1792, Gray established trade in sea otter pelts. The Lewis and Clark Expedition entered

3382-768: The Oregon Trail, wandered north to settle in the Puget Sound area. Spanish and Russian claims to the region were ceded in the early 19th century through a series of treaties. The Spanish signed the Adams–Onís Treaty of 1819, and the Russians the Russo-American Treaty of 1824 and 1825 . The Oregon Question remained contested between the United Kingdom and the United States until the 1846 Oregon Treaty established

3471-468: The Pacific Ocean consisting of numerous islands, deep fjords and bays carved out by glaciers. The remainder of the state consists of deep temperate rainforests in the west; mountain ranges in the west, center, northeast, and far southeast; and a semi-arid basin region in the east, center, and south, given over to intensive agriculture. Washington is the second most populous state on the West Coast and in

3560-481: The Pacific coast to 40 °F (4 °C) in the northeast. The lowest temperature recorded in the state was −48 °F (−44 °C) in Winthrop and Mazama . The highest recorded temperature in the state was 120 °F (49 °C) at Hanford on June 29, 2021. Both records were set east of the Cascades. Western Washington is known for its mild climate, considerable fog, frequent cloud cover, long-lasting drizzles in

3649-411: The Puget Sound lowlands are known for clouds and rain in the winter, the western slopes of the Cascades receive larger amounts of precipitation, often falling as snow at higher elevations. Mount Baker , near the state's northern border, is one of the snowiest places in the world. In 1999, it set the world record for snowfall in a single season—1,140 inches (95 ft; 29 m). East of the Cascades,

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3738-600: The Supreme Court case Glacier Northwest, Inc. v. Teamsters , the company has faced other allegations and legal proceedings. In 1912, the company was the subject of a grand jury investigation along with a competitor, the Riverside Portland Cement Company (now Riverside Cement ). An official with the San Bernardino Water Board accused the companies of price fixing after learning San Bernardino

3827-464: The Western United States, after California . Mount Rainier , an active stratovolcano , is the state's highest elevation at 14,411 feet (4,392 meters), and is the most topographically prominent mountain in the contiguous U.S. Washington is a leading lumber producer, the largest producer of apples, hops, pears, blueberries, spearmint oil, and sweet cherries in the U.S., and ranks high in

3916-503: The border between British North America and the United States along the 49th parallel until the Strait of Georgia . Vague wording in the treaty left the ownership of the San Juan Islands in doubt; during the so-called Pig War , both nations agreed to a joint military occupation of the islands. Kaiser Wilhelm I of the German Empire was selected as an arbitrator to end the dispute, with

4005-518: The climate becomes less arid, with annual rainfall increasing as one goes east to 21.2 inches (540 mm) in Pullman, near the Washington–Idaho border. The Okanogan Highlands and the rugged Kettle River Range and Selkirk Mountains cover much of the state's northeastern quadrant. The Palouse southeast region of Washington was grassland that has been mostly converted into farmland, and extends to

4094-680: The cold season. During the El Niño phase, the jet stream enters the U.S. farther south through California, therefore late fall and winter are drier than normal with less snowpack. The La Niña phase reinforces the jet stream through the Pacific Northwest, causing Washington to have more rain and snow than average. In 2006, the Climate Impacts Group at the University of Washington published The Impacts of Climate change in Washington's Economy ,

4183-459: The company restructured to deal with decreased demand during the Great Recession . CalPortland does business both in its own name and through subsidiaries. Glacier Northwest, Inc. , is a subsidiary of CalPortland incorporated in Washington state . It also does business as CalPortland. Its history can be traced back to the 1890s and some of the early building projects around Puget Sound. In

4272-693: The contiguous 48 states. Western Washington also is home of the Olympic Mountains , far west on the Olympic Peninsula , which support dense forests of conifers and areas of temperate rainforest . These deep forests, such as the Hoh Rainforest , are among the only rainforests in the continental United States. While Western Washington does not always experience a high amount of rainfall as measured in total inches of rain per year, it does consistently have more rainy days per year than most other places in

4361-419: The country. Eastern Washington —the part of the state east of the Cascades—has a relatively dry climate, in distinct contrast to the west side. It includes large areas of semiarid steppe and a few truly arid deserts in the rain shadow of the Cascades; the Hanford reservation receives an average annual precipitation of 6 to 7 inches (150 to 180 mm). Despite the limited amount of rainfall, agriculture

4450-430: The deal, believing that CalMat had priced the cement business too low in order to fend off Brierley. Economics commentator Ben Stein wrote in Barron's , "It is difficult to escape the conclusion that CalMat's management sold a valuable asset at far below full value primarily to get a worrisome corporate raider and greenmailer off its back." Onoda Cement exercised its option and purchased California Portland Cement from

4539-409: The drivers did not complete their deliveries and returned their trucks with concrete still in the mixing drums. Concrete begins to harden 20 to 30 minutes after mixing stops, and the trucks would have been damaged if the concrete hardened inside. The company took emergency measures to clean out the trucks, but lost the value of the undelivered concrete. A new contract between the company and the Teamsters

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4628-417: The east, bounded mostly by the meridian running north from the confluence of the Snake River and Clearwater River (about 117°02'23" west), except for the southernmost section where the border follows the Snake River. Oregon is to the south, with the Columbia River forming the western part and the 46th parallel forming the eastern part of the Oregon–Washington border. During Washington's partition from Oregon,

4717-563: The entire company. He announced he would offer $ 40 a share, though one analyst thought the price could go as high as $ 50 a share if other bidders emerged. The CalMat board was not receptive to the idea, and Brierly never actually made the offer. In the end, he sold his 19% stake to Onoda Cement , a Japanese company, for $ 41.75 a share ($ 242 million). As part of the deal, Onoda Cement obtained the right to purchase California Portland Cement and 13 Los Angeles-area ready-mix concrete plants for around $ 310 million. Some CalMat shareholders were angry at

4806-467: The entrance to the Strait of Juan de Fuca , but Cook did not realize the strait existed. It was not discovered until Charles William Barkley , captain of the Imperial Eagle , sighted it in 1787. The straits were further explored by Spanish explorers Manuel Quimper in 1790 and Francisco de Eliza in 1791, and British explorer George Vancouver in 1792. The British–Spanish Nootka Convention of 1790 ended Spanish claims of exclusivity and opened

4895-434: The forts was completed, Martin Sand & Gravel Company acquired the mine; sources differ on whether this occurred in 1899 or 1905. By 1907, two more mines had opened near Martin's property, operated by the Seattle Sand & Gravel Company and Independent Asphalt Paving Company. The three companies united to form the Pioneer Sand & Gravel Company in either 1907 or 1910, in order to push back against railroad companies in

4984-437: The largest in the world. Lone Star Cement of New York , the largest producer of cement in the U.S. at the time, acquired the company on December 1 of that year. The purchase price was $ 3,920,000 ($ 41 million in 2023). On August 11, 2017, in the midst of contract negotiations between Glacier Northwest and Teamsters Local 174, which represented the company's 80 to 90 truck drivers, the truck drivers went on strike. Some of

5073-418: The manufacture of warships. Seattle was the point of departure for many soldiers in the Pacific, several of whom were quartered at Fort Lawton, which later became Discovery Park . In Eastern Washington, the Hanford Works atomic energy plant was opened in 1943 and played a major role in the construction of atomic bombs . After the end of World War II, and with the beginning of the civil rights movement ,

5162-401: The most prominent reptiles and amphibians. Coastal bays and islands are often inhabited by plentiful amounts of shellfish and whales. There are five species of salmon that ascend the Western Washington area, from streams to spawn. Chichibu Cement Company Taiheiyo Cement Corporation ("Pacific Ocean Cement Corporation") ( 太平洋セメント株式会社 , Taiheiyō Semento Kabushiki-gaisha ) is

5251-700: The name Arizona Portland Cement. A third cement plant, in Mojave, California , began production in 1956. In 1960, California Portland Cement reported net income of $ 7.3 million ($ 75.2 million in 2023). The following year, it formed a new subsidiary in Phoenix, Arizona Sand & Rock Company, to manufacture prestressed and ready-mixed concrete. By the late 1960s, profits had fallen, and the company expanded into new areas. It founded new subsidiaries such as Spancrete (hollow-core slabs and rectangular beams) in 1966, Colton Industrial Park Company (property development) in 1969, and Calport Financial Corporation (low-cost housing development and financing) in 1970. It also acquired

5340-466: The next few decades failed to settle upon a compromise boundary and the Oregon boundary dispute was highly contested between Britain and the United States. Disputed joint occupancy by Britain and the U.S. lasted for several decades. With American settlers pouring into Oregon Country , Hudson's Bay Company , which had previously discouraged settlement because it conflicted with the fur trade, reversed its position in an attempt to maintain British control of

5429-409: The north Pacific Ocean, the continental air masses of North America, and the Olympic and Cascade mountains. In the spring and summer, a high-pressure anticyclone system dominates the north Pacific Ocean, causing air to spiral out in a clockwise fashion. For Washington, this means prevailing winds from the northwest bring relatively cool air and a predictably dry season . In the autumn and winter,

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5518-420: The north. Olympia is the state capital , and the most populous city is Seattle . Washington is the 18th-largest state , with an area of 71,362 square miles (184,830 km ), and the 13th-most populous state, with more than 7.8 million people. The majority of Washington's residents live in the Seattle metropolitan area , the center of transportation, business, and industry on Puget Sound , an inlet of

5607-419: The oldest and most complete human remains found in North America, were discovered in Washington in the 1990s. The region has been home to many established tribes of indigenous peoples for thousands of years. They are notable for their ornately carved welcome figures, canoes, long houses and masks. Prominent among their industries were salmon fishing and, notably among the Makah , whale hunting. The peoples of

5696-418: The one and only official Constitution of the State of Washington. Washington became the 42nd state of the United States on November 11, 1889. Early prominent industries in the new state included agriculture and lumber. In Eastern Washington, the Yakima River Valley became known for its apple orchards, while the growth of wheat using dry farming techniques became particularly productive. Heavy rainfall to

5785-452: The original plan for the border followed the Columbia River east until the confluence with the Snake, and then would have followed the Snake River east; this was changed to keep Walla Walla 's fertile farmland in Washington. To the west of Washington lies the Pacific Ocean. Its northern border lies mostly along the 49th parallel , and then via marine boundaries through the Strait of Georgia , Haro Strait , and Strait of Juan de Fuca , with

5874-462: The other 43%. CalMat sold two subsidiaries in 1985: State Exploration (by then renamed Statex Petroleum) for $ 19.3 million and Soldier Creek Coal for $ 22 million. It acquired Coast Asphalt, Inc., in 1986. The company was the target of a nearly $ 1 billion hostile takeover attempt by New Zealand investor Ron Brierley in March 1988. Brierley owned 19% of the company at the time, and had previously agreed not to purchase more than 20% unless he bought

5963-533: The production of apricots, asparagus, dry edible peas, grapes, lentils, peppermint oil, and potatoes. Livestock, livestock products, and commercial fishing—particularly of salmon, halibut, and bottomfish —are also significant contributors to the state's economy. Washington ranks second only to California in wine production. Manufacturing industries in Washington include aircraft, missiles, shipbuilding, and other transportation equipment, food processing, metals, and metal products, chemicals, and machinery. The state

6052-406: The production of electricity. This culminated in 1941 with the completion of the Grand Coulee Dam , the largest concrete structure in the United States and the largest dam in the world at its construction. During World War II, the state became a focus for war industries. While the Boeing Company produced many heavy bombers , ports in Seattle, Bremerton , Vancouver , and Tacoma were available for

6141-416: The rest of the country, and for a time, it possessed a large shipbuilding industry. The region around eastern Puget Sound developed heavy industry during the period including World War I and World War II , and the Boeing company became an established icon in the area. During the Great Depression , a series of hydroelectric dams were constructed along the Columbia River as part of a project to increase

6230-412: The same time many white patients recovered, they held "medicine man" Marcus Whitman personally responsible, and executed Whitman and twelve other white settlers. This was called the Whitman massacre in 1847. This event triggered the Cayuse War between settlers and Indians. Fort Nisqually , a farm and trading post of the Hudson's Bay Company and the first European settlement in the Puget Sound area,

6319-437: The state on October 10, 1805. Explorer David Thompson , on his voyage down the Columbia River, camped at the confluence with the Snake River on July 9, 1811, and erected a pole and a notice claiming the territory for Great Britain and stating the intention of the North West Company to build a trading post at the site. Britain and the United States agreed to what has since been described as "joint occupancy" of lands west of

6408-457: The state's growing Black or African American population's wages were 53% above the national average. The early diversification of Washington through the Great Migration led to successful efforts at reducing discrimination in the workplace. In 1950, Seattle's first black representative for the state's legislature was elected. At the 1970 U.S. census , the black population grew to 7.13% of

6497-485: The state's land area, mostly west of the northern Cascades. Approximately two-thirds of Washington's forested area is publicly owned, including 64 percent of federal land. Common trees and plants in the region are camassia , Douglas fir, hemlock, penstemon , ponderosa pine, western red cedar , and many species of ferns. The state's various areas of wilderness offer sanctuary, with substantially large populations of shorebirds and marine mammals. The Pacific shore surrounding

6586-407: The state. In addition to Western Washington and Eastern Washington , residents call the two parts of the state the "Westside" and the "Eastside", "Wet side" and "Dry side", or "Timberland" and "Wheatland", the latter pair more commonly in the names of region-specific businesses and institutions. These terms reflect the geography, climate, and industry of the land on both sides of the Cascades. From

6675-505: The state— is 50 miles (80 km) south of the city of Seattle, from which it is prominently visible. The U.S. Geological Survey considers 14,411-foot-tall (4,392 m) Mount Rainier the most dangerous volcano in the Cascade Range, due to its proximity to the Seattle metropolitan area , and most dangerous in the continental U.S. according to the Decade Volcanoes list. It is also covered with more glacial ice than any other peak in

6764-622: The territory of both the Cayuse and the Nez Perce Indian tribes. Whitman's settlement would in 1843 help the Oregon Trail , the overland emigration route to the west, get established for thousands of emigrants in the following decades. Whitman provided medical care for the Native Americans, but when Indian patients—lacking immunity to new, "European" diseases—died in striking numbers, while at

6853-469: The total population. In 1970, the state was one of only four U.S. states to have been providing legal abortions before the 1973 Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade which loosened abortion laws nationwide. On May 18, 1980, following a period of heavy tremors and small eruptions, the north face of Mount St. Helens slid off in the largest landslide in recorded history before erupting violently , destroying

6942-415: The tropical Pacific regions a great distance into the Pacific Northwest. Western Washington is very cloudy during much of fall, winter, and early spring. Seattle averages the least sunshine hours of any major city in the United States. Despite Western Washington's marine climate similar to many coastal cities of Europe, there are exceptions such as the "Big Snow" events of 1880, 1881, 1893, and 1916, and

7031-562: The union misrepresented the workers' willingness to respond. The company sued Local 174 for damages due to both property damage and misrepresentation in King County Superior Court ; the court dismissed all of the claims against the union. Glacier Northwest appealed to the Washington Court of Appeals , which affirmed the dismissal of the misrepresentation claims but reversed the dismissal of the property damage claims related to

7120-487: The west of the Cascade Range produced dense forests, and the ports along Puget Sound prospered from the manufacturing and shipping of lumber products, particularly the Douglas fir . Other industries that developed in the state included fishing, salmon canning and mining. For a long period, Tacoma had large smelters where gold, silver, copper, and lead ores were treated. Seattle was the primary port for trade with Alaska and

7209-771: The winter and warm, temperate summers. The eastern region, which does not benefit from the general moderating effect of the Pacific Ocean, occasionally experiences extreme climate. Arctic cold fronts in the winter and heat waves in the summer are not uncommon. In the Western region, temperatures have reached as high as 118 °F (48 °C) in Maple Valley during the June 2021 heat wave , and as low as −6 °F (−21 °C) in Longview , and even -8 F (-22 C) in Sammamish . Forests cover about half

7298-412: Was among the first states to introduce same-sex marriage , and was one of only four states to have provided legal abortions on request before Roe v. Wade in 1973. Washington voters also approved a 2008 referendum on the legalization of physician-assisted suicide , making it one of 10 states to have legalized the practice. Washington was named after President George Washington by an act of

7387-427: Was being charged $ 2.45 per barrel ($ 77.00 in 2023) while the price was only $ 2 per barrel in Los Angeles, despite the companies' plants being closer to San Bernardino. The companies denied the claim, saying competition had actually brought prices down from $ 4 to $ 5 a barrel a few years earlier, when most cement was imported from elsewhere. California Portland Cement was again accused of conspiring to fix cement prices in

7476-682: Was created through a series of mergers and acquisitions dating back to the establishment of the Cement Manufacturing Company (later renamed the Onoda Cement Company) in 1881. Onoda Cement purchased California Portland Cement Company from the CalMat Company in 1990 for $ 316 million, after having acquired a 19% stake in CalMat in 1988. The Chichibu Cement Company was founded in 1923, and it merged with Onoda Cement in 1994 to form

7565-643: Was formed from the western part of the Washington Territory , which was ceded by the British Empire in the Oregon Treaty of 1846. It was admitted to the Union as the 42nd state in 1889. One of the wealthiest and most socially liberal states in the country, Washington consistently ranks among the top states for highest life expectancy and employment rates. It was one of the first states (alongside Colorado ) to legalize medicinal and recreational cannabis ,

7654-483: Was founded in 1833. Black pioneer George Washington Bush and his Caucasian wife, Isabella James Bush, from Missouri and Tennessee , respectively, led four white families into the territory and founded New Market, now Tumwater , in 1846. They settled in Washington to avoid Oregon 's black exclusion law , which prohibited African Americans from entering the territory while simultaneously prohibiting slavery . After them, many more settlers, migrating overland along

7743-540: Was incorporated on September 18, 1891, in Los Angeles County, California , with a capital stock of $ 500,000 ($ 17 million in 2023). Its first board of directors consisted of Los Angeles residents John P. Culver and Frank H. Jackson, and San Bernardino, California , residents Ernest Waycott, Harry R. O'Bryan, and R. H. Waycott. The company's first cement plant was at Mount Slover in Colton, California , where cement

7832-465: Was packed in wood barrels and shipped via mule trains . By 1896, the plant was producing 400 barrels of cement per day, in addition to marble dust, lime , and other materials. A warehouse was completed in 1897 to provide storage for up to 10,000 barrels of cement, and by this time the plant had a monthly payroll of $ 2,000 ($ 73,248 in 2023). In 1949, the company opened a plant in Rillito, Arizona , under

7921-405: Was ratified on August 18, and a large concrete pour was scheduled for the following morning in Seattle 's South Lake Union neighborhood. Only 11 of the estimated 40 to 50 drivers needed showed up in time to perform the pour, contrary to assurances from a union official that the workers would respond to the work dispatch. Canceling the job incurred $ 100,000 in penalties for the company, which claims

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