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Eastern Washington | |
---|---|
Geographic region | |
Nickname: Eastside | |
Country | United States |
State | Washington |
Area | |
• Total | 46,620 sq mi (120,700 km2) |
Highest elevation | 12,276 ft (3,742 m) |
Lowest elevation | 79 ft (24 m) |
Population (2019) | 1,641,900 |
Eastern Washington is the region of the U.S. state of Washington located east of the Cascade Range. It contains the city of Spokane (the second largest city in the state), the Tri-Cities, the Columbia River and the Grand Coulee Dam, the Hanford Nuclear Reservation and the fertile farmlands of the Yakima Valley and the Palouse. Unlike in Western Washington, the climate is dry, including some desert environments.
Other terms used for Eastern Washington or large parts of it include:
The following cities and towns in Eastern Washington have over 10,000 inhabitants. [4]
Eastern Washington is composed of Adams, Asotin, Benton, Chelan, Columbia, Douglas, Ferry, Franklin, Garfield, Grant, Kittitas, Klickitat, Lincoln, Okanogan, Pend Oreille, Spokane, Stevens, Walla Walla, Whitman, and Yakima counties. Some definitions also include part of Skamania County that lies east of the ridge line of the Cascade Mountains. [5]
A significant difference between Eastern Washington and the western half of the state is its climate. While the west half of the state is located in a rainy oceanic climate, the eastern half receives little rainfall due to the rainshadow created by the Cascade Mountains. Also, due to being farther from the sea, the east side has both hotter summers and colder winters than the west. Most communities in Eastern Washington, for example, have significant yearly snowfall, while in the west snowfall is minimal and not seen every year. The east and west do still have some climatic traits in common, though: more rainfall in winter than summer, a lack of severe storms, and milder temperature ranges than more inland locations.
There is some variation in both temperature and rainfall throughout Eastern Washington. Generally, lower elevations are both hotter and drier than higher elevations. This is easily seen in the comparison between low-elevation Richland with higher elevation Spokane.
Climate data for Tri-Cities, Washington (combined average of 3 cities) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °F (°C) | 74 (23) | 74 (23) | 87 (31) | 95 (35) | 105 (41) | 111 (44) | 115 (46) | 115 (46) | 106 (41) | 89 (32) | 79 (26) | 71 (22) | 115 (46) |
Mean maximum °F (°C) | 58.3 (14.6) | 62.6 (17.0) | 72.7 (22.6) | 83.4 (28.6) | 93.0 (33.9) | 99.7 (37.6) | 105.7 (40.9) | 102.7 (39.3) | 93.8 (34.3) | 80.8 (27.1) | 68.3 (20.2) | 59.6 (15.3) | 106.4 (41.3) |
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 41.1 (5.1) | 48.8 (9.3) | 58.5 (14.7) | 66.5 (19.2) | 75.2 (24.0) | 82.4 (28.0) | 91.0 (32.8) | 89.7 (32.1) | 80.3 (26.8) | 66.4 (19.1) | 50.5 (10.3) | 41.2 (5.1) | 66.1 (18.9) |
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 27.7 (−2.4) | 30.2 (−1.0) | 35.1 (1.7) | 40.0 (4.4) | 47.8 (8.8) | 54.4 (12.4) | 59.4 (15.2) | 58.4 (14.7) | 49.9 (9.9) | 40.6 (4.8) | 33.6 (0.9) | 28.1 (−2.2) | 42.2 (5.7) |
Mean minimum °F (°C) | 8.5 (−13.1) | 14.4 (−9.8) | 21.5 (−5.8) | 25.7 (−3.5) | 32.2 (0.1) | 41.8 (5.4) | 47.0 (8.3) | 45.5 (7.5) | 35.2 (1.8) | 24.0 (−4.4) | 16.6 (−8.6) | 9.3 (−12.6) | 3.4 (−15.9) |
Record low °F (°C) | −27 (−33) | −23 (−31) | 10 (−12) | 18 (−8) | 26 (−3) | 35 (2) | 38 (3) | 37 (3) | 21 (−6) | 9 (−13) | −12 (−24) | −22 (−30) | −27 (−33) |
Average precipitation inches (mm) | 1.00 (25) | 0.66 (17) | 0.63 (16) | 0.48 (12) | 0.63 (16) | 0.57 (14) | 0.17 (4.3) | 0.22 (5.6) | 0.31 (7.9) | 0.56 (14) | 0.90 (23) | 1.08 (27) | 7.24 (184) |
Average snowfall inches (cm) | 3.2 (8.1) | 1.6 (4.1) | 0.2 (0.51) | trace | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | trace | 1.5 (3.8) | 2.2 (5.6) | 8.5 (22) |
Source 1: WRCC [6] [7] | |||||||||||||
Source 2: NOAA [8] |
Climate data for Spokane (combined average of 3 stations) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °F (°C) | 62 (17) | 64 (18) | 75 (24) | 90 (32) | 97 (36) | 108 (42) | 112 (44) | 112 (44) | 102 (39) | 87 (31) | 70 (21) | 63 (17) | 112 (44) |
Mean maximum °F (°C) | 51.5 (10.8) | 54.3 (12.4) | 64.9 (18.3) | 76.2 (24.6) | 86.6 (30.3) | 93.5 (34.2) | 100.3 (37.9) | 99.2 (37.3) | 90.6 (32.6) | 76.6 (24.8) | 59.6 (15.3) | 51.6 (10.9) | 101.9 (38.8) |
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 35.3 (1.8) | 41.5 (5.3) | 49.8 (9.9) | 58.5 (14.7) | 67.9 (19.9) | 75.3 (24.1) | 85.4 (29.7) | 84.3 (29.1) | 74.3 (23.5) | 59.5 (15.3) | 43.5 (6.4) | 35.3 (1.8) | 59.2 (15.1) |
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 24.9 (−3.9) | 27.5 (−2.5) | 31.5 (−0.3) | 36.6 (2.6) | 43.8 (6.6) | 50.6 (10.3) | 56.2 (13.4) | 55.1 (12.8) | 47.1 (8.4) | 37.8 (3.2) | 30.6 (−0.8) | 25.1 (−3.8) | 38.9 (3.8) |
Mean minimum °F (°C) | 0.7 (−17.4) | 7.0 (−13.9) | 17.8 (−7.9) | 26.8 (−2.9) | 32.0 (0.0) | 40.2 (4.6) | 45.5 (7.5) | 44.2 (6.8) | 34.5 (1.4) | 25.3 (−3.7) | 15.1 (−9.4) | 5.82 (−14.54) | −6.4 (−21.3) |
Record low °F (°C) | −30 (−34) | −24 (−31) | −10 (−23) | 14 (−10) | 24 (−4) | 33 (1) | 37 (3) | 30 (−1) | 22 (−6) | 7 (−14) | −13 (−25) | −25 (−32) | −30 (−34) |
Average precipitation inches (mm) | 1.98 (50) | 1.37 (35) | 1.69 (43) | 1.25 (32) | 1.55 (39) | 1.41 (36) | 0.53 (13) | 0.63 (16) | 0.71 (18) | 1.14 (29) | 2.13 (54) | 2.40 (61) | 16.81 (427) |
Average snowfall inches (cm) | 9.9 (25) | 4.1 (10) | 1.8 (4.6) | 0.5 (1.3) | trace | trace | trace | 0.0 (0.0) | trace | 0.1 (0.25) | 4.2 (11) | 12.7 (32) | 33.2 (84) |
Source 1: WRCC [9] [10] | |||||||||||||
Source 2: NOAA [11] |
Compared to Western Washington, Eastern Washington has roughly twice the land area and one-fourth the population. As of the 2020 census, Eastern Washington was home to 1,667,593 of the state's total 7,705,281 residents, making its population comparable to that of West Virginia. [12] The population growth rate between the two is roughly the same. Of Washington's ten Congressional districts, Eastern Washington exactly encompasses two (the 4th and 5th), aside from a small portion of the 8th in Chelan, Douglas, and Kittitas Counties. [13]
Eastern Washington hosts a number of universities including three of the state's five public universities.
There have been sporadic movements to create a 51st state out of Eastern Washington by splitting the current state down the Cascades, but proposals have rarely progressed out of the state legislature's committees. Bills in the Washington State Legislature which would have requested the United States Congress to take up the question were proposed in 1996, 1999, 2005, and 2017. [14] Proposed names for the new state have included Lincoln, Columbia, Liberty, [15] or simply Eastern Washington. Many of these proposals would include the Idaho Panhandle as part of the proposed state of Lincoln.
Eastern Washington tends to vote Republican, whereas Western Washington usually votes Democratic. However, Spokane, the proposed capital and largest city, tends to have a higher democratic vote than other Eastern Washington cities. Additionally, Whitman County votes Democratic.
The Yakima River is a tributary of the Columbia River in south central and eastern Washington state, named for the indigenous Yakama people. Lewis and Clark mention in their journals that the Chin-nâm pam called the river Tâpe têtt, possibly from the French tape-tête, meaning "head hit". The length of the river from headwaters to mouth is 214 miles (344 km), with an average drop of 9.85 feet per mile (1.866 m/km). It is the longest river entirely in Washington state.
Benton County is a county in the south-central portion of the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2020 census, its population was 206,873. The county seat is Prosser, and its most populous city is Kennewick. The Columbia River demarcates the county's north, south, and east boundaries.
Scouting in the US state of Washington officially began in the 1910s.
The Yakama are a [and they are slowly losing population|Native American tribe]] with nearly 0 members, based primarily in eastern Washington state.
The Inland Northwest, historically and alternatively known as the Inland Empire, is a region of the American Northwest centered on the Greater Spokane, Washington Area, encompassing all of Eastern Washington and North Idaho. Under broader definitions, Northeastern Oregon and Western Montana may be included in the Inland Northwest. Alternatively, stricter definitions may exclude Central Washington and Idaho County, Idaho.
Central Washington is a region of the U.S. state of Washington between the western and eastern parts of the state extending from the border with the Canadian province of British Columbia in the north to the border with the U.S. state of Oregon in the south. Generally, the western edge is the Cascade Range and the eastern edge is in the vicinity of the 119th meridian west.
The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Washington is the federal district court whose jurisdiction comprises the following counties of the state of Washington: Adams, Asotin, Benton, Chelan, Columbia, Douglas, Ferry, Franklin, Garfield, Grant, Kittitas, Klickitat, Lincoln, Okanogan, Pend Oreille, Spokane, Stevens, Walla Walla, Whitman, and Yakima.
Northwest Public Broadcasting is the public radio and public television service of Washington State University. It is an affiliate of National Public Radio, Public Radio Exchange and American Public Media. It operates 19 radio stations and 13 translators across Washington state, Oregon, and Idaho, and provides coverage to parts of British Columbia. The network broadcasts public radio news, talk, entertainment, classical music, jazz, and folk music. Station programming is separated into two main program streams, "NPR News" and "NPR & Classical Music", with simulcast periods during Morning Edition, All Things Considered, Weekend Edition and Weekend All Things Considered. Since November 2013, Northwest Public Broadcasting also operates a 24-hour jazz station, KJEM 89.9, broadcasting in the Pullman and Moscow area.
The Alpine Lakes Wilderness is a large wilderness area spanning the Central Cascades of Washington state in the United States. The wilderness is located in parts of Wenatchee National Forest and Snoqualmie National Forest, and is approximately bounded by Interstate 90 and Snoqualmie Pass to the south and U.S. Route 2 and Stevens Pass to the north. The Alpine Lakes is the largest wilderness area near the population centers of Puget Sound, counted at 414,161 acres (167,605 ha) following the 2014 expansion.
This is a list of properties and historic districts in Washington that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. There are at least three listings in each of Washington's 39 counties.
Area code 509 is the telephone area code in the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) for the eastern part of the U.S. state of Washington. The numbering plan area (NPA) roughly comprises the state east of the Cascade Mountains, and includes Spokane, the Tri-Cities, Ellensburg, Yakima, Walla Walla, and Wenatchee. The area code was assigned in a split of area code 206 in 1956.
Washington, officially 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. 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 the north. Olympia is the state capital, and the most populous city is Seattle.
Washington is the northwesternmost state of the contiguous United States. It borders Idaho to the east, 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. 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, 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.
The 2021 Washington wildfire season officially began in March 2021. By late April, all of Eastern Washington had been classified by the United States Drought Monitor as "abnormally dry" with moderate to severe drought conditions. The state had more than 630 wildfires by the first week of July, on par with the state's record 2015 wildfire season.
William Denison Lyman was an author, professor, and historian.