What Is a Washateria? Meaning, Origin and Where to Find One
A washateria is a self-service laundry. Dictionaries call the word chiefly Southern US; hundreds of Texas stores in our listings use it, and no Florida ones.
Merriam-Webster defines washateria as “a self-service laundry” and labels it “chiefly Southern US”; Dictionary.com’s label is “Chiefly Southern U.S.” In our listings as of October 31, 2026, 526 of 2,434 Texas listings have washateria (any spelling) in their name, and none of our 1,596 Florida listings do. Find one on our Texas pages.
What does washateria mean?
It’s a place where you wash and dry your own clothes in the store’s machines. Merriam-Webster gives washeteria as a less common spelling, and Barry Popik’s word-history blog adds a third, washiteria. Dictionary.com spells out the sound as “[wosh-uh-teer-ee-uh, waw-shuh-].”
The word is wash plus the ending of cafeteria. Merriam-Webster’s etymology reads “wash entry 2 + -ateria or -eteria (as in cafeteria).” A Way with Words says the ending “follows the model of cafeteria, a word English picked up from Spanish speakers,” and that “Washateria also settled in Texas Spanglish alongside Spanish lavandería.”
Where the word washateria comes from
The accounts of the first self-service laundry point to Fort Worth in 1934, but they name different founders, and the dictionaries date the word itself to 1935–40. By date:
- 1934: the US Census Bureau’s Profile America feature says the first public, self-operated laundry in the US opened in Fort Worth in April 1934, and “The first name was ‘Washateria,’ eventually replaced with the now familiar ‘Laundromat.’” It cites Kane’s Famous First Facts and, for the name, brainyhistory.com, and it notes that accounts from non-Census sources “are not attested to by the U.S. Census Bureau.”
- April 18, 1934: FOX 4 Dallas-Fort Worth says the first “washateria” opened in Fort Worth that day, “it is presumed, as created by a man named C.A. Tannahill.” Fort Worth’s The Business Press quotes a Census Bureau item that names John F. Cantrell instead, notes that Wikipedia names Noah Brannen, and asks readers for help: “We need to solve this mystery.”
- January 1936: a Modern Mechanix item, as Popik reproduces it, says C. A. Tannahill of Fort Worth “established the world’s first washeteria, and found he was right.” In a 2007 post to the American Dialect Society’s Ads-l mailing list, Popik asked, “Was this term coined by C. A. Tannahill of Fort Worth, TX in 1936?” The post asks; it doesn’t answer.
- 1937: Merriam-Webster’s first known use of the word. Dictionary.com dates its origin “1935–40.”
- 1940: a Dallas Morning News classified ad, as quoted on Popik’s blog, reads “FOR SALE at a bargain, Washateria, all new equipment, one year old.”
The name was also a brand. A Way with Words says “a Texas chain called Washateria operated hundreds of locations from the 1930s through the 1950s before the name became more general,” and that “Laundromat began as a brand name.”
Our reading: the Census feature says the first Fort Worth laundry’s first name was ‘Washateria’; none of the accounts says who made up the word.
Who says washateria?
Both dictionaries tie the word to the South, as quoted above, and Popik writes, “The washeteria is popular in the South”; in other places, he says, it’s called a laundromat or a launderette. A Way with Words calls it “a Texas word for a self-service laundry,” with a caller who moved from Houston to Indianapolis and “found everyone saying Laundromat.”
Store names in our listings point to Texas, and to Houston most of all. These are Google Maps names as of October 31, 2026, the ones on our city pages:
| City | Listings | Washateria in the name |
|---|---|---|
| Houston | 443 | 284 |
| San Antonio | 150 | 14 |
| Dallas | 178 | 10 |
| Austin | 62 | 7 |
| Fort Worth | 72 | 1 |
| El Paso | 49 | 0 |
Fort Worth, where the histories start, has 1 of 72. Our reading: a store’s name isn’t how people talk, so a Fort Worth laundromat may still be a washateria to the person walking in. Starting with our next monthly refresh, we’ll also search Google Maps for “washateria” in each Texas city, so these counts may change.
Washateria vs. laundromat
Dictionary.com defines a washateria as “a launderette”; Merriam-Webster’s “a self-service laundry” is quoted above.
The first self-service laundries were different, though. The Census Bureau feature says “Early facilities were not necessarily coin-operated, and there was always an attendant on duty.”
Our reading: today a washateria and a laundromat are the same kind of store; the name tells you more about where you are than what’s inside.
What you’ll find in a washateria
Of the 526 Texas stores in our listings with washateria in their name (as of October 31, 2026), by their Google Maps hours or their own websites:
- 40 are open 24 hours;
- 87 offer wash and fold;
- 70 list large washers, the kind for comforters or bedding;
- 66 say staff are on site at least some hours;
- 34 take cards.
A store whose website doesn’t mention something may still offer it; ask the store. For the steps, from loading a washer to folding, see how to use a laundromat. For what a washer and dryer cost, see laundromat prices, and for drop-off, wash and fold prices.
Find a washateria near you in Texas
Our city pages list laundromats under any name, washateria or not, with Google Maps hours where Maps lists them, plus wash and fold, payment and staff where a store’s own website says so, with the date we checked.
- Cities: Houston, San Antonio, Dallas, Austin, Fort Worth, El Paso
- Houston: open 24 hours and wash and fold
- Statewide: open 24 hours, wash and fold and take cards
Or browse every city in Texas. If a listing is out of date, send a correction.