Classet Clallam County, Washington
Mapped Location
Classet: The mapped location is an approximation and should not be used for navigation or wayfinding.
Information
General information on Classet
- Feature Type: Place
Official, historical, colloquial and alternative toponyms for Classet
A brief list of names that this geographic feature has been named
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Classet | Official |
Origin Notes and History of Classet
References to Classet that document the origin of its place name
CAPE FLATTERY, in Clallam County, at the southern entrance of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, the northwestern extremity of the state of Washington. The name originated with the English explorer, Captain James Cook, who on Sunday, March 22, 1778, made the following entry in his journal:
"Between this island or rock, and the northern extreme of the land, there appeared to be a small opening which flattered us with the hopes of finding a harbour there. Those hopes lessened as we drew nearer; and, at last, we had some reason to think that the opening was closed by low land. On this account I called the point of land to the north of it Cape Flattery."
One of Captain Cook's crew was George Vancouver, who, in 1792, came to the same coast in command of an expedition. He sought to identify Captain Cook's Cape Flattery, and finally placed it where it has since remained. Reference to the confusion of names has already been made under the item of Cape Alava. In the vicinity of the latter cape, government charts still show Flattery Rocks. Kellett, 1847, and other British charts show Cape Flattery in the place of Cape Alava, and the promontory now known as Cape Flattery is shown as Cape Classet. That name is supposed to be of Indian origin and is sometimes spelled Claaset or Klasset. Rev. Myron Eells is authority for the statement that Makah means "people who live on a point of land projecting into the sea," and Klasset means the same thing in another Indian language. (American Anthropologist, January, 1892.) George Davidson says that in 1852 he found the head chief of the Makahs bearing the name of Clisseet. (United States Coast Survey Report, 1858, page 414.) Captain Vancouver knew about the name of Cape Classet, but he concluded that Captain Cook intended the name of Cape Flattery for that place and so charted it. The Spanish name of "Cape Martinez" did not have much usage except on the Spanish 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: 2017-07-02