Bellingham, Washington is the county seat of Whatcom County in the U.S. state of Washington. It is the largest city in Whatcom County and tenth largest in Washington. It is situated on Bellingham Bay, which is protected by Lummi Island, Portage Island, and the Lummi Peninsula, and opens onto the Strait of Georgia. It lies west of Mount Baker and Lake Whatcom (from which it gets its drinking water) and north of the Chuckanut Mountains and Skagit Valley. Whatcom Creek runs through the center of the city.
The Census Bureau estimate placed Bellingham's 2003 population at 71,289, and a recent calculation pushes it to 74,770. blank">http://www.world-gazetteer.com/wg.php?x=1122670315&men=gpro&lng=en&gln=xx&dat=32&srt=pnan&col=aohdq&geo=499469753 Bellingham has recently experienced an increase in real estate prices. As of Spring 2007, real estate prices seem to be leveling out as the market decreases.
The boundaries of the city encompass the former towns of _Fairhaven (now home to the southern ferry terminus of the Alaska Marine Highway System), New Whatcom, and others.
