Editing Washington, Pennsylvania (section)

==History==
[[File:Washington PA City Hall.jpg|thumb|City Hall in Washington]]
[[File:George Washington Hotel Pa.jpg|thumb|[[George Washington Hotel (Pennsylvania)|George Washington Hotel]]]] 
[[Delaware Indian]] [[tribal chief|chief]] Tangooqua, commonly known as "Catfish", had a camp on a branch of [[Chartiers Creek]], in what is now part of the city of Washington.<ref name="Walkinshaw">Walkinshaw, Lewis Clark (c. 1939). ''Annals of southwestern Pennsylvania, Vol. 1''. New York. Lewis Historical Publishing Company, Inc, p. 16.</ref> The [[French people|French]] labeled the area "Wissameking", meaning "catfish place", as early as 1757.<ref name="Walkinshaw"/>

===18th century===
The area of Washington was settled by many immigrants from [[Scotland]] and the north of [[Ireland]] along with settlers from eastern and central parts of the [[Colony of Virginia]], first settled around 1768.

The [[Pennsylvania General Assembly]] passed an act on March 28, 1781, establishing the County of Washington and naming "Catfish Camp" as the place for holding the first election. It was the first county in the U.S. to be named in honor of [[George Washington]], commander of the [[Continental Army]] during the [[American Revolutionary War]] and the nation's first [[President of the United States|president]].{{cn|date=March 2025}}

David Hoge laid out a plan of lots immediately after the legislature's action. His original plot carried the name "Bassett, alias Dandridge Town," but before the plot was recorded, lines were drawn through "Bassett, alias Dandridge Town" with ink, and the word "Washington" was written above. There have long been rumors among locals that the town was named ''Washington'' because George Washington spent the night in the region once. This is not true however; Washington had never been to the area.

The original plot dedicated a tract of ground to the people for recreational purposes. A lot was given for a [[courthouse]] where the [[Washington County Courthouse (Pennsylvania)|current building]] now stands, and Lots 43 and 102, according to the plan, were presented by Hoge to "His Excellency, General Washington, and Mrs. Washington."

Washington, Pennsylvania, was the center for the [[Whiskey Rebellion]] of 1791, which was one of the first open rebellions against the new U.S. government and Constitution. The rebellion was centered on a [[tax]] being imposed on [[whiskey]] distillation in the region. The house of [[David Bradford (lawyer)|David Bradford]], one of the leaders of the rebellion, is now a museum devoted to the Whiskey Rebellion, the [[David Bradford House]], located on South Main Street of the city.

===19th century===
The town was incorporated as a borough on February 13, 1810, and became a class three-sized city in 1924.<ref>[http://www.washingtonpa.us/general_info-history.html City of Washington home page] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100517062036/http://www.washingtonpa.us/general_info-history.html |date=May 17, 2010 }}</ref>

In August 1875, construction began of the {{RailGauge|3ft}} [[Waynesburg and Washington Railroad]], conceived by John Day in 1874 and chartered in 1875.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.narrowtracks.com/wwrr/ArronWW.htm |title=The Waynesburg and Washington RR |year=2003 |access-date=December 30, 2011}}</ref> Passenger services ended in 1929, conversion to [[standard gauge]] followed in 1944, when it was renamed the Waynesburg Secondary. Freight services ended in 1976, although part of the line still survives for access to a coal mine.

The discovery of oil and natural gas at the [[Washington oil field]] caused a boom period from the 1880s to the early 1900s.

James B. Wilson chartered the Washington Electric Street Railways in 1889 with construction beginning in November 1890. The first line was built from the Waynesburg and Washington Narrow Gauge station to Wilson Orchard, just north of the present day site of the [[UPMC Washington]] hospital.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Opferman |first1=Kathie |date=August 13, 1983 |title=Street Cars Ceased Running Here More Than 30 Years Ago |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=HHxiAAAAIBAJ&pg=3197,2582361 |newspaper=Observer-Reporter |via=Google News Archive Search |issue=83190 |edition=Greene |location=Washington, Pennsylvania |publisher=Observer Publishing |page=24 |access-date=June 19, 2020}}</ref>

===20th century===
In 1903, the Washington and Canonsburg Railway Company linked Washington to [[Canonsburg, Pennsylvania]], with a trolley line. The company was bought by the ''Philadelphia Company'' in 1906, later becoming part of the [[Pittsburgh Railways|Pittsburgh Railway Company]], linking through to Pittsburgh as part of their [[interurban]] service in 1909.<ref>{{cite book |title=Canonsburg – Images of America |last=Grefenstette |first=Jerry |year=2009 |publisher=Arcadia Publishing |isbn=978-0-7385-6533-0 |page=46 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vr31Qfo34g0C |access-date=October 18, 2009}}</ref> The line closed on August 29, 1953. A short section of the line and a number of trolley cars are preserved at the [[Pennsylvania Trolley Museum]] north of the city.