Washington, state, United States: Postwar Change and New Industry

In the postwar period military spending continued to pour into such facilities as the Hanford nuclear reservation and the Bremerton naval shipyard, as well as into Boeing's bomber production. At the same time, trade with Asia boomed. Since the 1970s, Washington has attracted a large number of firms moving from California to a more favorable business climate. These include computer software manufacturers and other high-technology companies. The increased economic diversification and stepped-up activity in high-tech industries have cushioned the impact of job losses in the 1990s from post–cold war cutbacks, especially in aerospace orders for Boeing. At the same time, industrial and residential growth has brought the state face to face with environmental issues, among them the effects of continued massive logging and the impact of dams on fish populations.

Democrats have held the governor's seat since 1985. Christine O. Gregoire, only the state's second female governor to date, was narrowly elected to the office in 2004 after a hand recount. She had trailed after the first two vote counts, and the final count was challenged in court. Gregoire was reelected in 2008 and succeeded in 2012 by Jay Inslee, who was reelected in 2016 and 2020.

Sections in this article:

• Introduction
• Postwar Change and New Industry
• The Early Twentieth Century
• Gold, Immigration, and Statehood
• Native American Resistance and Territorial Status
• Early Settlement and Boundary Disputes
• European Exploration
• Government and Higher Education
• Economy
• Places of Interest and Cities
• The West and the Pacific Coast
• The Cascades
• The Interior
• Geography
• Facts and Figures
• Bibliography

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