1. In 1976, the Seattle Mariners played their first game at the newly built Kingdome, beating the California Angels 7-0 in front of a crowd of more than 57,000 fans.

2. On April 25, 1901, the state of Washington became the first state in the United States to institute a minimum wage law, requiring employers to pay their workers at least $0.25 per hour.

3. In 1984, the first Starbucks coffee shop outside of Seattle opened in Vancouver, Washington.

4. On April 25, 1995, a massive explosion at the Alderwood Mall in Lynnwood, Washington, caused extensive damage to the mall and surrounding buildings, but no one was killed or seriously injured in the blast.

5. In 2007, the Spokane River, which runs through the city of Spokane, was added to the EPA's list of the most polluted waterways in the United States, due to high levels of PCBs and other toxic chemicals.