Ron Judd: In place names, we tell it like it is

By Diane Hettrick

Shoreline and Lake Forest Park don't really need to explain their names. "Shore to Shore and (county) Line to (city) Line" - and there's a Lake, there's a Forest (complete with deer), there's a Park. Well, maybe no parks in a city where most lot sizes are bigger than the parks, but not much explanation is required.

The rest of western Washington place names do require explanation, which is provided in this entertaining article by Seattle Times writer Ron Judd. Although he left our my personal favorites - Grayland (it rains all the time) and Washaway Beach (it has mostly washed away, along with the road and the houses) - he included many other places that most of us have visited, with the background on their names.

For example, I thought Deception Pass was named because of its treacherous tidal bore, but it actually has to do with the explorers' misconception about whether it was a passage or a bay.

Here's the article in Pacific NW Magazine: Woe be Washington: In place names we tell it like it is.