Washington, District of Columbia

Here is a second one from Drennan, this time from our nation's capital, Washington, D.C. I did some research on this, and it seems that Washington, D.C. is a county equivalent. There are three categories of generally recognized county-equivalents: 1) Consolidated city-counties and independent cities; 2) Census areas in sparcely populated Alaksa; and 3) Washington, D.C. (it gets its own bullet point, because it is not a subdivision of any state, which is the textbook definition of a county).

In researching this, I found out why we call it "Washington" D.C. and not just D.C.... there used to be separate cities within the district, but over time it was all consolidated to Washington, and Washington was given control home rule over the District. Ultimately, the US Congress has final say in any laws made for the district. It also seems that it was originally two counties, one on the Maryland side and one on the Virginia side. But the Virginia side was "retroceded" back to Virginia in 1847 and incorporated into Arlington County and the City of Alexandria, and so now only the Maryland-side county-equivalent remains.

Very interesting stuff from a geography-nerd standpoint. Thanks Drennan!