Washington, state, United States: The Interior

Washington's interior is a region of hard volcanic substructure, in many places scoured by glacial and river action, that is left largely dry by the shield the Cascades form against the Pacific winds; in some areas, as in the southeastern Palouse hills, loess deposits provide a basis for irrigated agriculture. The Blue Mts., an offshoot of the Rockies in the state's southeast corner, are one of the interior's few forested sections. The Columbia River enters the state from British Columbia in the northeast. After receiving the Spokane River from the east, it turns westward across the state and swings south at the foot of the Cascades, enclosing the Big Bend country. Near Washington's southern border, it receives the Yakima (from the west) and Snake (from the east), then bends westward again, forming the boundary with Oregon as it cuts through the Cascades on its way to the sea.

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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