Biohazard and Crime Scene Remediation in Washington, MO

Washington is a city on the south bank of the Missouri River in Franklin County, about 50 miles west of St. Louis, and it is the largest city in Franklin County.

Washington is named for George Washington and began during Spanish rule as St. John Meyer's Settlement, the site of the Spanish log fort San Juan del Misuri, which stood from 1796 to 1803.

Family and followers of Daniel Boone settled across the river from Washington starting in 1799, a ferry was licensed at the site in 1814, and the town itself was laid out in 1827 with lot sales beginning in 1829 — with the price of land waived for any buyer who built a substantial house within two years.

Anti-slavery German families began moving to Washington in 1833 and soon outnumbered the original slaveholding settlers, and the town became a strong Union supporter during the Civil War even though Confederate General Sterling Price's soldiers ransacked it.

Washington is known as the corncob pipe capital of the world — its nickname is "Pipe City" — because the Missouri Meerschaum company, the famous corncob pipe maker, sits on its riverfront.

Washington has 445 buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and its historic charm fuels a heritage tourism industry alongside the nearby Missouri Rhineland wine country.

The nation's first Walmart Supercenter opened in Washington in 1988.

Washington's population was 14,500 at the 2020 census, and the Census Bureau estimated it had grown to about 15,906 by July 2025.

Washington's 14,500 residents lived in 6,149 households at the 2020 census, with about 6,600 housing units in the city.

Students in Washington attend Washington High School in the School District of Washington or the private St. Francis Borgia High School, and the city's public library is a branch of the Scenic Regional Library system.