Washington Harbor Clallam County, Washington
Mapped Location
Washington Harbor: The mapped location is an approximation and should not be used for navigation or wayfinding.
Information
General information on Washington Harbor
- Feature Type: Place
Official, historical, colloquial and alternative toponyms for Washington Harbor
A brief list of names that this geographic feature has been named
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Washington Harbor | Official |
Origin Notes and History of Washington Harbor
References to Washington Harbor that document the origin of its place name
SEQUIM, a town in the northwestern part of Clallam County. Rev. Myron Eells says the Clallam tribe had a village on Washington Harbor, just south of New Dungeness Bay and the village was known in the Clallam language as Such-e-kwai-ing, from which has been derived the word Sequim. (American Anthropologist for January, 1892, and Handbook of American Indians, Volume II., page 510.) Matthew Fleming, a pioneer who lived in that vicinity for more than sixty years, thinks the present word is as near as we can get to a proper spelling of the Clallam word, meaning "quiet water." The Indians applied it to Washington Harbor but the white people have extended it to the prairie and the town. (J. H. McCourt, postmaster at Sequim, in Names MSS. Letter 572.)
WASHINGTON HARBOR, a bay opening on the Strait of Juan de Fuca, in the northeastern part of Clallam County, was known to the Indians as Squim, which name was also used by early settlers. Surveyor General James Tilton mapped it as "Squim Bay" in 1859. ( United States Public Documents, Serial Number 1026.) The Spanish Captain Eliza, in 1791, mapped at as "Ensenado de Bertodano." ( United States Public Documents, Serial Number 1557, chart K.) The Wilkes Expedition, 1841, named it Budd's Harbor. (Hydrography Volume XXIII., Atlas, charts 77 and 78.) See also Budd Inlet. Captain Henry Kellett, in 1847, mapped part of the harbor as Bertodano Cove but did not chart a name for the large harbor. (British Admiralty Charts 1911 and 1917.) However, Captain George Davidson, of the United States Coast Survey, says they rejected the Wilkes Expedition name of "Budd's Harbor" on account of the naming of Budd Inlet and adds "we have adopted Kellett's appellation of Washington Harbor." Pacific Coast Pilot, page 532 and Annual Report of the Superintendent of the United States Coast Survey for 1858, pages 421-422.) It does not appear where Captain Davidson got his information about Captain Kellett's choice of the name. Washington Harbor appears on all recent maps and charts.
Clallam County
- Agnew
- Beaver
- Bell Hill
- Blyn
- Carlsborg
- Clallam Bay
- Classet
- Coville
- Crane
- Crescent
- Disque
- Dungeness
- Elwha
- City of Forks
- Happy Valley
- Jamestown
- Joyce
- King Hill
- La Push
- Little Oklahoma
- Lower Elwha
- Maple Grove
- Midway
- Mora
- Mount Pleasant
- Neah Bay
- Old Royal
- Old Town
- Olympic Hot Springs
- Ovington
- Ozette
- Piedmont
- City of Port Angeles
- Port Crescent
- Port Williams
- Pysht
- Quillayute
- R Corner
- Ramapo
- Rena
- River Road
- Sappho
- Sekiu
- City of Sequim
- Shadow
- Shuwah
- Snug Harbor
- Tsoo-Yess
- Twin
- Waatch
- Washington Harbor
- Whiskey Bend
- Windy Arm
Political Boundaries
Last updated: 2024-06-04