Amy Jones, Ensemble Contributor
All your friends know you’re caring, fun, and a fabulous dresser. But do they know you’re also brilliant? When you inform them that the Seattle General Strike of 1919 was the first general strike in the country they will. Trot out that fact and 16 more to dazzle them at your next dinner party and test how much they really know about where they live.
Washington grows the most apples in the U.S. and exports them to 60 countries worldwide. If you lined up all the Washington apples harvested in a year, they’d circle the earth 29 times.
Seattleites buy more sunglasses per capita than any other U.S. city. One scientific theory for this odd statistic is that our far-north location means the sun is at a lower position and thus level with our eyes.
There are 29 federally recognized Native tribes in Washington State. [Bonus points for naming at least 10: Chehalis, Colville, Cowlitz, Hoh, Jamestown S’Klallam, Kalispel, Elwha Klallam, Lummi, Makah, Muckleshoot, Nisqually, Nooksack, Port Gamble S’Klallam, Puyallup, Quileute, Quinault, Samish, Sauk-Suiattle, Shoalwater Bay, Skokomish, Snoqualmie, Spokane, Squaxin Island, Stillaguamish, Suquamish, Swinomish, Tulalip Tribes, Upper Skagit, Yakama]
Washington’s state flag is the only green state flag. And being the only state named after a president, it’s also the only one that pictures a president. It was created by a jeweler in 1889 with an ink bottle, a silver dollar to draw the rings, and a postage stamp of George Washington.
Washington operates the largest ferry fleet in the United States, and the second-largest auto-carrying system in the world.
Seattle was the first city to put police on bicycles. Around 1987, SPD put cops on bikes and thousands of other cities have followed suit, possibly because the silent approach allows police to ride up undetected to criminals mid-crime.
There are more cats and dogs than children in Seattle – that’s second only to San Francisco in scarcity. And Seattle cat households exceed kid households by a colossal 50%, which is 17% more than dogs.
Washington also rains animals, with numerous occurrences of small frogs, fish and salamanders falling from the sky during rainstorms in certain parts of the state in a rare but documented phenomenon known as "animal rain".
Seattle is home to the world’s longest floating bridge. The Rosellini Bridge (aka SR 520) is 7,710 feet long (and somehow, longer during rush hour).
Long Beach, Washington is home to the world's largest frying pan. Spanning 14 feet in diameter, the roadside attraction was built for the town's annual Razor Clam Festival and can fry up to 350 pounds of clams at once.
The world's first gas station was opened in Seattle in 1907 by John McLean, head of sales in Washington for the Standard Oil Company. With engineer Henry Harris, he built a pipe that connected their main storage tank to a 30-gallon galvanized tank on site, and then added a store to the property, and Payne Service Station was born. Bonus fact: Some motorists bought gas in wooden boxes.
Washington State speed round. Quick:
State Bird? The American Goldfinch. Look for their bright yellow feathers and listen for their long, high, sweet song near dandelions, bird feeders and thistles.
State Flower? The Coast Rhododendron. Found mainly along the Olympic Peninsula, it received the designation in 1892 by the women of Washington State (before their right to vote) at the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago.
State Insect? The Green Darner dragonfly’s life lasts just one summer, but it predates dinosaurs by millions of years.
State dance? The square dance was brought west by pioneers but has its origins in the French dance of the quadrille, or square. The square dance received the honor in 1979.
State waterfall? (Yes, there is one.) Palouse Falls has a drop of 189 feet and is one of the world’s most spectacular falls. It’s well worth an Eastern Washington road trip on the Palouse Scenic Byway.
Yes, it’s nerdy stuff, but we love it!
