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Territory of Washington
Organized incorporated territory of the United States
← 1853–1889 →   →   →
Seal of Washington Territory
Capital		Olympia
Government		Organized incorporated territory
Governor		List
History
•	Split from Oregon Territory	March 2, 1853
•	Idaho Territory split off	March 4, 1863
•	Statehood	November 11, 1889

The Territory of Washington was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1853, until November 11, 1889, when the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Washington. It was created from the portion of the Oregon Territory north of the lower Columbia River and north of the 46th parallel east of the Columbia. At its largest extent, it also included the entirety of modern Idaho and parts of Montana and Wyoming, before attaining its final boundaries in 1863.

History

Agitation in favor of self-government developed in the regions of the Oregon Territory north of the Columbia River in 1851–1852.^[1] A group of prominent settlers from the Cowlitz and Puget Sound regions met on November 25, 1852, at the "Monticello Convention" in present-day Longview, to draft a petition to the United States Congress calling for a separate territory north of the Columbia River. After gaining approval from the Oregon territorial government, the proposal was sent to the federal government.^[2]

The bill to establish the territory, H.R. 348, was reported in the U.S. House of Representatives by Representative Charles E. Stuart on January 25, 1853.^[3] Representative Richard H. Stanton argued that the proposed name—the "Territory of Columbia"—might be confused for the District of Columbia, and suggested a name honoring George Washington instead.^[4] The bill was thus amended with the name "Washington", though not without some debate,^[5] and passed in the House on February 10, passed in the Senate on March 2, and signed by President Millard Fillmore on the same day.^[6] The argument against naming the territory Washington came from senator Alexander Evans of Maryland; he countered that while there were no states named Washington, multiple counties, cities, and towns were named such and could be the source of confusion itself. Evans felt that the proposed new territory's name should reflect local native terminology. He stated it would be more appropriate to give the territory "some beautiful Indian name".^[7] The decision was contrary to the wishes of residents, and local papers reported mixed feeling from citizens,^[8] though the general reception of the renaming was positive

Isaac Stevens, who was appointed the territory's first governor, declared Olympia to be the territorial capital. Stevens was also integral in the drafting and negotiation of treaties with native bands in the Washington Territory.^[9] A territorial legislature was elected and first met in February 1854,^[10] and the territorial supreme court issued its first decision later in the year.^[11]Columbia Lancaster was elected as the first delegate to U.S. Congress.

The original boundaries of the territory included all of the present day State of Washington, as well as northern Idaho and Montana west of the continental divide. On the admission of the State of Oregon to the union in 1859, the eastern portions of the Oregon Territory, including southern Idaho, portions of Wyoming west of the continental divide, and a small portion of present-day Ravalli County, Montana were annexed to the Washington Territory.^[12] The southeastern tip of the territory (in present-day Wyoming) was sent to Nebraska Territory on March 2, 1861.^[13][14]

In 1863, the area of Washington Territory east of the Snake River and the 117th meridian was reorganized as part of the newly created Idaho Territory, leaving the territory within the current boundaries of Washington State, which was admitted to the Union on November 11, 1889 as the 42nd US state.

On choosing capitol: When choosing the location of a state's capitol multiple factors must be accounted for, including but not limited to, population growth and density, and accounting for other cities and towns in the area.^[15] Prior to statehood, multiple townships in the Washington Territory were contending against each other for the place of capitol, in the case of that eventuality. Among the top contenders for the title, besides Olympia, were Steilacoom, Vancouver, and Port Townsend. Even after Olympia was chosen as the capitol, contention for the location of the capitol never truly ended until completion of construction of the capitol building.^[16]

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  Washington Territory (green) and Oregon Territory (blue) in 1853.
  

  
  

  
  


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  Washington Territory (green) and State of Oregon in 1859.
  

  
  

  
  


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  Portions ceded to the Nebraska and Idaho Territories in 1861 and 1863.
  

  
  

  
  

See also

• Washington Territory's At-large congressional district


• Historic regions of the United States


• History of Washington


• 
  Oregon Treaty, 1846


• 
  Territorial evolution of the United States
  
  • International territory that would later become part of the Territory of Washington:
    
    • 
      Oregon Country, 1818–1846
  
  
  • 
    U.S. territory that would later become part of the Territory of Washington:
    
    • 
      Provisional Government of Oregon, 1843–1849 (extralegal)
    
    
    • 
      Territory of Oregon, 1848–1859
    
    
    • 
      State of Deseret, 1849–1850 (extralegal)
    
    
  
  
  • 
    U.S. territories that encompassed land that was previously part of the Territory of Washington:
    
    • 
      Territory of Jefferson, 1859–1861 (extralegal)
    
    
    • 
      Territory of Nebraska, 1854–1867
    
    
    • 
      Territory of Dakota, 1861–1889
    
    
    • 
      Territory of Idaho, 1863–1890
    
    
    • 
      Territory of Montana, 1864–1889
    
    
    • 
      Territory of Wyoming, 1868–1890
    
    
  
  
  • US states that encompass land that was once part of the Territory of Washington:
    
    • 
      State of Montana, 1889
    
    
    • 
      State of Washington, 1889
    
    
    • 
      State of Idaho, 1890
    
    
    • 
      State of Wyoming, 1890
    
    
  
  

References

External links

Wikisource has the text of an Encyclopaedia Britannica (9th ed.) article about Washington Territory.

• 
  Historical Timeline of Events Leading to the formation of Washington State, from Washington State University


• 
  Early Washington Maps, more than 925 maps hosted by WSU


• "The Long Wait for Statehood, Why it took Washington 36 years and Idaho 26 years to achieve their goals", Columbia: Fall 1988; Vol. 2, No. 3


• 
  Map of Oregon, Washington, and part of British Columbia, 1860, David Rumsey Collection. Oregon, Washington Territory, western Nebraska Territory, southern British Columbia, in 1860. Showing political divisions, counties and Emigrant Trail.


• 
  General Map of the North Pacific States and Territories Belonging to the United States and of British Columbia, Extending from Lake Superior to the Pacific Ocean, 1865, David Rumsey Collection


• 
   Hawes, J. W. (1879). "Washington, a territory of the United States". The American Cyclopædia.