Editing Birch Bay, Washington (section)

==History==
Local indigenous communities named this place ''Say-wak'',<ref>[https://www.historylink.org/File/10995 Tsan-wuch] ([https://www.semiahmoofirstnation.ca Semiahmoo First Nation]) and [https://revisitwa.org/waypoint/birch-bay/ Say-wak] ([https://www.lummi-nsn.gov Lummi Nation / Lhaq'temish])</ref> meaning "people saved from a flood by building a raft."<ref>[https://revisitwa.org/waypoint/birch-bay/#:~:text=The%20birch%20trees%20around%20the,Americans%20called%20it%20Tsan%2Dwuch. "people saved from a flood by building a raft"]</ref>

Captains of Spanish ships from Acapulco and San Blas (Spanish west coast ports in Mexico) were in this area in 1791 and 1792 and named it ''Puerto del Garzon''<ref>[https://www.thenorthernlight.com/stories/spanish-english-and-american-explorers-influence-birch-bay-names,19388 Puerto del Garzon]</ref> in 1791 by captain Jose Maria Narvaez. It was then renamed Birch Bay in 1792 by [[Archibald Menzies]], a member of the [[Vancouver Expedition]]. Vancouver's two ships used Birch Bay as an anchorage for several days. Menzies noted a number of species of birch and gave the name to the bay.<ref>{{cite book |last= Roberts |first= John E. |title= A Discovery Journal: George Vancouver's First Survey Season - 1792 |year= 2005 |publisher= Trafford Publishing |isbn= 978-1-4120-7097-3 |pages= 101}}</ref>

In the 2000s, the development of condominiums and vacation homes became more prominent in Birch Bay due to high demand from wealthier clientele in the United States and Canada.<ref name="NYTimes">{{cite news |last=Hernandez |first=Barbara |date=October 5, 2007 |title=In the Northwest, Hard by Canada, a Secret Is Out |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/05/travel/escapes/05havens.html |work=[[The New York Times]] |accessdate=May 2, 2023}}</ref> A proposal to [[Municipal incorporation|incorporate]] the community as a city was announced in 2023 following earlier attempts and discussion. By 2020, Birch Bay had grown to approximately 10,000 people, making it larger than all but three cities in Whatcom County.<ref>{{cite news |last=McCarthy |first=Grace |date=April 19, 2023 |title=Survey open on Birch Bay incorporation |url=https://www.thenorthernlight.com/stories/survey-open-on-birch-bay-incorporation,25034 |work=[[The Northern Light (Washington)|The Northern Light]] |accessdate=May 2, 2023}}</ref>