1. In 1937, the first bridge connecting Seattle to the eastern suburbs was opened. The Lake Washington Floating Bridge, also known as the Lacey V. Murrow Memorial Bridge, spans 7,578 ft and was the longest of its kind at the time.

2. On August 1, 1972, Washington State University officially became the fifth campus in the University of Washington system, known today as the University of Washington-Bothell.

3. The Washington State Convention Center in Seattle opened on August 1, 1988, featuring a modern design and over 205,700 square feet of exhibit space.

4. In 1914, the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition began in Seattle, celebrating the centennial of the first non-native settlement in the Pacific Northwest. The event spanned 138 days and attracted over three million visitors.

5. August 1, 1873 marked the opening of the Northern Pacific Railroad's Cascade Tunnel, a 2.63-mile-long tunnel through the Cascade Mountains that allowed for year-round transportation between eastern and western Washington.