The Pacific Northwest (PNW), sometimes referred to as Cascadia, is a geographic region in western
North America bounded by its coastal waters of the
Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the
Rocky Mountains to the east. Though no official boundary exists, the most common conception includes the U.S. states of
Oregon,
Washington,
Idaho, and the Canadian province of
British Columbia. Some broader conceptions reach north into
Alaska and
Yukon, south into
northern California, and east into western
Montana. Other conceptions may be limited to the coastal areas west of the
Cascade and
Coast mountains. The variety of definitions can be attributed to partially overlapping commonalities of the region's history, culture, geography, society, ecosystems, and other factors.
The Northwest Coast is the coastal region of the Pacific Northwest, and the Northwest Plateau (also commonly known as "
the Interior" in British Columbia, is the inland region. The term "Pacific Northwest" should not be confused with the
Northwest Territory (also known as the Great Northwest, a historical term in the United States) or the
Northwest Territories of
Canada. The region is sometimes referred to as Cascadia, which, depending on the borders, may or may not be the same thing as the Pacific Northwest.
The region's largest metropolitan areas are
Greater Seattle, Washington, with 4 million people;
Metro Vancouver, British Columbia, with 2.84 million people; and
Greater Portland, Oregon, with 2.5 million people.
The culture of the Pacific Northwest is influenced by the
Canada–United States border, which the United States and the
United Kingdom established at a time when the region's inhabitants were composed mostly of
indigenous peoples. Two sections of the border—one along the
49th parallel south of British Columbia and one between the
Alaska Panhandle and northern British Columbia—have left a great impact on the region. According to Canadian historian
Ken Coates, the border has not merely influenced the Pacific Northwest—rather, "the region's history and character have been determined by the boundary". (Full article...)
Bridges crossing over waterways towards downtown Seattle
The city of
Seattle, Washington, United States, has multiple
bridges that are significant due to their function, historical status, or engineering. Bridges are needed to cross the city's waterways and hilly topography. Twelve bridges have been granted historical status by the city, federal government, or both. Seattle also has some of the only permanent
floating pontoon bridges in the world.
Original crossings over Seattle's
mudflats were typically supported by
timber piles.
Lake Washington and
Puget Sound are to the east and west of the city, respectively. They connect via a series of canals and
Lake Union that are collectively known as the
Lake Washington Ship Canal. The four double-leaf
bascule bridges crossing the Ship Canal are the oldest still used in the city, having opened between 1917 and 1930. The easternmost—the
Montlake and
University bridges—connect neighborhoods south of the canal to the
University District. The
Fremont Bridge crosses the center of the canal and is one of the most often raised drawbridges in the world due to its clearance over the water of only 30 feet (9.1 m). The westernmost crossing of the ship canal is the
Ballard Bridge. (Full article...)
Dixy Lee Ray (September 3, 1914 – January 2, 1994) was an American politician who served as the
17th governor of Washington from 1977 to 1981. Variously described as idiosyncratic and "ridiculously smart," she was the state's first female governor and was in office during the
1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens. She was a supporter of
atomic energy.
Image 17Magnetic anomalies around the Juan de Fuca and Gorda Ridges, off the west coast of North America, color coded by age. (from Geology of the Pacific Northwest)
Image 20Map of "
megacity", showing population density (shades of yellow/brown), highways (red), and major railways (black). Public land shown in shades of green. (from Pacific Northwest)
Image 21Map of the Cascade Range showing major volcanic peaks (from Cascade Range)
Image 22The Coast Mountains are heavily eroded by glaciers, including Mount Waddington (far background, center). (from Geology of the Pacific Northwest)
Image 32None of the multiple possible definitions of the Pacific Northwest is universally accepted. This map shows three possibilities: (1) The shaded area shows the historical
Oregon Country. (2) The green line shows the
Cascadia bioregion. (3) The labeled states and provinces include Washington, Idaho, Oregon and British Columbia. (from Pacific Northwest)
Image 36Geology of the Cascade Range-related plate tectonics. (from Cascade Range)
Image 37Public transportation is utilized in the Pacific Northwest region. Vancouver's
SkyTrain rapid transit system achieves daily ridership of over 500,000 passengers per day on weekdays and the overall transit ridership levels in the
Metro Vancouver area rank third in North America per capita. (from Pacific Northwest)
Image 38The immense floods created channels that are presently dry, such as the Drumheller Channels (from Geology of the Pacific Northwest)
... that Gus C. Moser served five 4-year terms in the
Oregon State Senate, including two non-consecutive 2-year periods as senate president, to which post he was elected unanimously in 1917?
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