It Came to Pass in the San Juan Islands captures the pioneer history and unique maritime culture of the sprawling, rugged archipelago situated at the turbulent junction of the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Strait of Georgia in northwestern Washington. Olzendam and Keith detail how the isolated, rocky, and heavily timbered topography of these landmasses—ranging from the steep, mountainous slopes of Orcas Island to the more pastoral valleys of Lopez and San Juan—dictated a fiercely independent settler lifestyle reliant on small-scale farming, fishing, and the exploitation of the nearby water boundary with Canada. By highlighting the early communities' complete dependence on the Mosquito Fleet and emerging regional ferry networks to navigate the treacherous tidal currents of the Salish Sea, the narrative underscores the profound physical barriers that separated these remote outposts from the mainland. Ultimately, the book serves as a deeply localized spatial history, demonstrating how the formidable marine geography of this Pacific Northwest archipelago fundamentally forged the enduring self-reliance of its island inhabitants.

Emmanuel Episcopal Church (Eastsound, Wash.), Emmanuel Episcopal Church (Eastsound, Wash.) History, History

Includes index

Includes index