wˈʌn ʌvðə fˈɜːst tˈæsks tˈeɪkən ˌʌp baɪ wˈɑːʃɪŋtən tˈɛɹɪtˌoːɹi wɛn ɪt wʌz sˈɛpɚɹˌeɪɾᵻd fɹʌm ˈɔːɹɪɡən tˈɛɹɪtˌoːɹi wʌz tə bˈɪld ɐ wˈæɡən ɹˈoʊd ˌoʊvɚ ðə kɐskˈeɪdz ðæt ˈeɪmd tə daɪvˈɜːt ˈɛmɪɡɹənts hˈɛdɪŋ tə ðə wˌɪlɐmˈɛt vˈæli tə pjˈuːɡɪt sˈaʊnd ɪnstˈɛd.
One of the first tasks taken up by Washington Territory when it was separated from Oregon Territory was to build a wagon road over the Cascades that aimed to divert emigrants heading to the Willamette valley to Puget Sound instead.