OLYMPIA - The Washington State Committee on Geographic Names heard a proposal to rename three features currently named "Jim Crow."
Joseph Budnick submitted proposals at the committee's semi-annual meeting Thursday.
Budnick proposed the following changes to geographic features in Wahkiakum County:
Beare Hill: The name would replace “Jim Crow Hill” and commemorate Georgiana and John Beare, who purchased property in the area in the early 1900s.
Brookfield Point: The name would replace “Jim Crow Point” and commemorate the nearby site of Brookfield, a town established in the 19th century.
Harlows Creek: The name would replace “Jim Crow Creek” and commemorate John and Mary Harlow, who lived on the creek in the 1870s.
The seven-member committee of volunteers advises the State Board on Geographic Names, which is authorized to establish the official names for the lakes, mountains, streams, places, towns, and other geographic features.
Names approved by the committee are sent to the Board of Natural Resources (acting as the Washington State Board on Geographic Names) for final decision. Names approved by the Board are published in the Washington Administrative Code and forwarded to the United States Board on Geographic Names for federal consideration along with the state’s recommendations.
The next committee meeting will be held in October. All meetings take place in Olympia.
