Catalog of British Columbiana and Pacific Northwest Americana

Delivered by pioneer physician and politician Anson G. Henry, Rogue River War Speech captures a fiery public address given in Corvallis, Oregon, in December 1855 to rally support for military action against Indigenous tribes during the height of the Rogue River Wars. The speech plays upon frontier anxieties, detailing alleged atrocities and framing the violent subjugation of local native populations as an urgent, righteous defense of American settlers. Through contemporary rhetorical appeals, the text preserves the raw, unmasked political panic and racial animosity that drove territorial policy during the Pacific Northwest's Indian wars. A keen insight drawn from the work is how wartime rhetoric deliberately inverted the roles of aggressor and victim; by casting preemptive military campaigns of displacement as defensive humanitarian rescue missions, pro-war leaders successfully mobilized civilian volunteers and legitimized state-sanctioned violence under the banner of civic protection.

41 pages : illustrations ; 19 cm

Working with Roche Harbor archivists as well as owners of private photo collections, Walker has selected more than 200 images and written text to illustrate the visual history of Roche Harbor and the people who have lived there

127 pages : chiefly illustrations ; 24 cm.

Robert Newell (1807-1868) was an American Mountain Man and 'Doctor' who settled in Oregon and was involved in Indian Affairs of the Oregon Territory. He served as a peace commissioner in the Cayuse War keeping the Nez Perce neutral during the conflict. He settled in Oregon after 1840 and had 3 wives with 16 children and served in the Territorial Government and later the State Government.

159 pages, 2 unnumbered leaves of plates (1 folded) : illustrations, maps ; 27 cm

Robert Brown, a twenty-one-year-old Scotsman, arrived on Vancouver Island in 1863 for the purpose of collecting seeds, roots, and plants for the Botanical Association of Edinburgh. Relations with his employer quickly deteriorated, however, and when the opportunity arose in 1864 to head the Vancouver Island Exploring Expedition, Brown eagerly accepted the position as its commander. During the four and a half months of the expedition, Brown kept a journal which is published here for the first time. It is remarkable for its record of life on Vancouver Island over a century ago and its description of the island's pristine wilderness as well as for its proposals for future economic development. The accounts of agricultural settlements at Cowichan, Chemainus, and Comox and of the coal-mining town of Nanaimo are among the earliest available. The Vancouver Island Exploring Expedition did not venture north of Comox, but it crossed the island at several points, often by new routes, and in the process left its mark by giving place names to several locations. The expedition's most celebrated achievement was the discovery of gold at Leech River, named after the second-in-command, which resulted in a short but sensational gold rush. Robert Brown was exceptionally interested in the way of life of the native people. His entries on land reserve policies and on the failure to settle land claims are especially pertinent today. Excerpts from his related writings, among them one of the earliest records of a potlatch (at Alberni) and a collection of Indian myths and legends display an appreciation unusual at that time. Most of the known drawings of the expedition by Frederick Whymper, the travelling artist, are included in the book and give a contemporary view of many of the sites the expedition encountered. A checklist of Brown's other writings on the northwest coast completes the book.

xiii, 211 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm

In the 1890s, the name of Rossland was on every investor’s lips. Known at one time as the new Johannesburg, this small town in southeastern British Columbia was the most important mining centre in the region. Apparently possessed of vast quantities of ore, the town’s mines seemed to promise wealth for all, and Rossland grew dramatically throughout the decade. By the early 1900s, it was the province’s fourth largest centre. During that time, hard rock mining changed from a loosely structured pioneer activity to a fully fledged industry that relied on sophisticated technology, a complex corporate infrastructure, and economies of scale. Despite these advances, Rossland’s success was shortlived. A bitter strike in 1901 signalled the beginning of the Golden City’s slow decline. Nearby Trail, originally a subsidiary of Rossland’s mining industry, soon surpassed its neighbour in size and importance.. Roaring Days explores the history of the mining industry in British Columbia. Mouat examines the many different aspects of mining, from work underground to corporate strategies, and he also brings to life the unique individuals who were a part of this history--the miners who toiled long hours in semi-darkness, the hardy citizens who built a bustling town out of the wilderness, and the wealthy mine owners and corporate entrepreneurs whose wealth exceeded all expectations. --From publisher's description

xviii, 236 pages : illustrations, maps ; 23 cm

A historical guide of Oregon that includes information on historic sites, notable people, significant events, and places to visit along its highways

xi, 430 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm.

The best way to enjoy Idaho's rich heritage is to visit the sites where history happened. Roadside History of Idaho makes you feel like you've got a native guide at hand as it transports you to those places through well-researched, well-told stories and vivid historical photographs

xx, 362 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm.

The Olympic Peninsula is more than just big trees and scenic coastlines. Layered on this rich landscape are unique animals and plants, extraordinary geology, histories of Native Americans that go back thousands of years, exploits of famed European explorers, and the hard work of the early pioneers. Roadside Guide to the Olympic Peninsula is your complete guidebook as it weaves all this together while escorting you around the Peninsula.“Indispensable in the car for your next Peninsula road trip. "I learned tons and couldn’t wait to get to the next stop in Chapman’s journey. Will make anyone’s travels on the Peninsula richer and more rewarding.” —Lynda V. Mapes, author of A River Reborn and Breaking The Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe and the Unearthing of Tse-whit-zen Village."This book, with its wealth of history, geology and nature, is the must have resource for the Olympic peninsula. Whether you spend a day, or a lifetime, this is the book you will refer to over and over again." —Rob Sandelin, Naturalist, teacher and author of Field Guide to the Cascades and Olympics."Christopher Chapman’s Roadside Guide to the Olympic Peninsula brings the geography, geology, and natural and human history -- as well as some of the mystery and magic -- of the Olympic Peninsula into clear and immediate focus. It is a “must-have” roadside reference for visitors to this lovely and dynamic landscape." —Tim McNulty, author of Olympic National A Natural History Book.The Book contains a complete listing of phone numbers and addresses of Ranger Stations, Government Information Centers, Visitor and Chambers of Commerce, Campground Managers, Museums and Tribes. Along with all the Audubon Society resources, the list of the most prevalent bird species and where to find them and the complete list of the National and State Registered Historic Landmarks for the Peninsula.

xiii, 318 pages : illustrations, maps ; 23 cm

Southern British Columbia, from the northern tip of Vancouver Island to the Alberta border east of Golden, spans the Canadian Cordillera, a mountainous region with a tumultuous geologic history that continues to evolve with every volcanic eruption, landslide, and earthquake. Introductory sections of this guidebook interpret the geologic complexity of four regions-Vancouver Island, the Coast, the Interior Plateaus, and the Columbia and Rocky Mountains-and thirty-one road guides describe the

xi, 403 pages : illustrations, maps ; 23 cm.

"Learn about the remarkable geologic diversity of the Gem State with the completely revised, full-color edition of Roadside Geology of Idaho. Excellent graphics, spectacular photographs, and straightforward writing describe and interpret the rocks and landscapes visible outside your car window, whether you're speeding across the Snake River Plain or following a narrow canyon enroute to a weekend getaway. The authors, a trio of experienced field geologists, guide you to outcrops and roadcuts where you can stretch your legs and expand your minds. The rocks of Idaho span a vast chunk of Earth's long-lived history and tell stories with many plot twists. Time and time again, geologic processes transformed the landscape-mountains grew to towering heights only to be leveled by erosion, vast lakes drained in massive floods when ice and sediment dams failed, and lava poured into river valleys, creating new dams. With this book as their travel companion, residents and visitors alike are sure to understand and appreciate Idaho's sprawling plains, forested hills, and deep canyons in a completely new"-- Provided by publisher

xiii, 384 pages : illustrations (chiefly color), color maps ; 23 cm.

From the clear water of Crater Lake to the desolate desert valleys near the California and Nevada borders, South-Central Oregon is a region of cinder cones, ancient forests and rugged living. Roads Less Traveled in South-Central Oregon leads modern explorers on nearly 900 miles of routes and explains what they'll find along the way.

vi, 103 pages : illustrations, maps ; 28 cm

Riverside Remembers: Books I, II & III by the Greater Riverside Organization is a multi-volume grassroots historical compilation, originally published in the mid-1980s, that chronicles the robust working-class heritage of Everett, Washington's historic Riverside neighborhood. The comprehensive collection gathers rich oral histories, archival photographs, and pioneer anecdotes to vividly detail daily life in the community, profiling the resilient mill workers, local labor organizers, families, and neighborhood characters who defined this industrial waterfront hub along the Snohomish River. Ultimately, it serves as an invaluable, community-driven repository that preserves the distinct grit, cultural identity, and enduring civic spirit of one of Everett's oldest and most historically significant neighborhoods.

ix, 111 pages : illustrations ; 21 cm

“Rivers are the essence of Oregon,” writes award-winning author and photographer Tim Palmer. In over 140 brilliant photos and evocative, informative text, Rivers of Oregon captures the life, the beauty, and the magic of Oregon’s remarkable array of waterways. The book’s engaging essays address the nature and ecology of flowing waters, the joy of travel on these lifelines of the planet, and the historic saga of Oregonians’ commitment to preserve, protect, and restore the best of their state for future generations. Rivers of Oregon captures the beauty and the intrinsic qualities of the state’s irresistible riverscapes like no other book has done. From the underwater view and from the refuge of riparian forests, from the seat of a canoe or raft and from distant mountain summits, readers will gain new perspectives on the extraordinary features that provide us with water, with life, and with scenes whose loss would leave us deeply impoverished. Join this celebrated photographer, author, conservationist, and river guide on a journey of discovery that will change the way you think about flowing water and the alluring paths it makes across our land.

162 pages : color illustrations ; 24 cm

With calm elegance and precise language, Rivers in My Veins is a work of lyric courage celebrating the connection we all share to the earth. Kara Briggs' poems sing her people, Sauk-Suiattle and Yakama, onto the pages. "Land we live on land," she writes, calling us to embrace our kinship with the earth. As a career journalist, Briggs uses documentary poetry to expose the false settler-colonial narratives while innovating rhythms from the social dances of her tribes in poems that take the reader to the dance circle. She received the 2024 James Welch Prize for Indigenous Poetry for "Acknowledgement Two," a poem in this collection about her uncle who fought for fishing rights. Her fierce love of lands, waters, and stories of her peoples are carried in familiar poetic forms-sonnet, pantoum, and haiku-as vehicles to carry the readers on a journey through our shared world of literary - and deeply alive - landscapes. In groundbreaking forms of her ancestors and for future generations, Briggs introduces profiles of a Yakama treaty fisherman, a great-great-grandmother basket maker, and a Sauk-Suiattle leader calling for accountability, sharing the humanity and modernity of Native peoples. She uses sonnets, pantoums, and haiku as familiar vehicles for readers as she carries them into unfamiliar history and perspectives. She questions our relationship with words about Indigenous peoples by exploring their etymologies. She engages literary ancestors, poets Carolyn Kizer and Janice Gould, re-examining their poetics in her own. Kara Briggs works on environmental issues with tribes on the West Coast and has a background in journalism and higher education. She is a former president of the Native American Journalists Association. She graduated in 2024 with a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from the Institute of American Indian Arts. This is her first poetry collection and her first publication with St. Julian Press.

59 pages ; 26 cm

Idaho's history centers, in many regards, on its rivers. Idaho has more free flowing water than any other state in the continental US. Idaho rivers have played an important role in the state's history, travel and commerce. River Tales of Idaho includes fifty eight stories that illustrate the importance of the state's streams to Native Americans, explorers, settlers, industry and recreationists.

xi, 342 pages : illustrations, maps ; 23 cm

River reflections Snohomish City, 1859 to 1910 : a popular narrative history of Snohomish City chronicles the grueling timber extraction and early pioneer settlement situated within the flood-prone alluvial floodplain and dense lowland forests of western Washington's Snohomish River valley. The Snohomish Historical Society details how the region's formidable physical barriers—specifically the towering, impenetrable stands of old-growth coastal timber, the unpredictable, violent winter flooding of the meandering Snohomish River, and the heavily waterlogged, root-choked riparian soils—strictly dictated the margins of early human survival, agrarian expansion, and commercial logging. By mapping the immense physical labor required to painstakingly extract massive cedar and fir stumps from the damp earth, construct precarious logging booms and early mills along the muddy banks, and forcibly carve a commercial grid from the dense coastal wilderness, the narrative highlights the monumental cooperative effort necessary to anchor a permanent riverine boomtown in this demanding riparian environment. The profound geographic isolation from deeper marine anchorages initially forced these remote loggers, merchants, and homesteaders into a strict reliance on the precise topography of the Snohomish River for transportation, completely anchoring their physical survival and early timber economy to the precarious navigation of shallow-draft sternwheelers and the severe hydrological realities of the basin. Ultimately, this local historical record serves as a deeply localized spatial history, demonstrating how the extreme riverine geography, heavy maritime precipitation, and immense physical labor of this Pacific Northwest frontier fundamentally shaped the fiercely resilient, tightly knit, and strictly riverine-dependent character of early Snohomish City.

2 volumes : illustrations ; 28 cm

x, 190 pages : illustrations ; 28 cm

Ron Strickland’s oral histories recover a part of the original Northwest character that is rapidly disappearing. In River Pigs and Cayuses, he gathers stories from old-timers in Washington, Idaho, and Montana. Brimming with lively accounts both humorous and poignant, the book illuminates cadences and traditions that Strickland hopes will survive long after the storytellers are gone. Here a moonshiner, a fish pirate, a timber cruiser, a branding iron maker, a smoke jumper, a frontier bride, and 25 other fascinating individuals speak vividly, revealing their personal histories in their own words. Strickland introduces each story, providing information on the teller and placing the story in context. In telling their own stories, his subjects speak to the diversity of life and labor in the Northwest. A short glossary enhances the “listening” experience, as do Strickland's own photographs of the storytellers. In a new introduction, William Kittredge notes that Strickland’s interviewees are most passionate when speaking of their survival in the work-a-day world, sustained both by their livelihoods and by the solace of companionship. “What we hear echoing over and again in these voices,” Kittredge writes, “is pride, at having managed difficult lives, and having along the way earned independence, all the individuality they could manage, and an unapologetic sense of self.”

xx, 155 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm.

The mighty Columbia River encompasses not only the full range of American history but a geography of myth, hope, and tragedy. With the intricate detail of a scholar and the art of a storyteller, author Robert Clark captures the impact of Manifest Destiny, the conquest of native peoples, emigrants from the drought-ridden Midwest, and hydropowered New Deal dreams

x, 406 pages ; 21 cm

"River of Renewal tells the remarkable story of the Klamath Basin, a region of the Pacific Northwest spanning the Oregon-California border. Indian reservations are at the headwaters, along the estuary, and across the major tributary of the Klamath River. In this place that has witnessed, since the Gold Rush, genocide, war, and conflicts over resources, myths of the West loom large, amplifying differences among inhabitants of a land united by water and divided by people. Yet when faced with ecological catastrophe, farmers, tribes, and other regional stakeholders forged a consensus that led to the largest dam removal and watershed restoration project in history. The only history of the entire Klamath Basin, River of Renewal tells the stories of the region's diverse communities and stakeholders, including the government agencies that manage most of its land. Based on author Stephen Most's original research and interviews with tribal leaders, ranchers, farmers, fishermen, forest managers, and others, River of Renewal is a political as well as an environmental history, one that underscores the power of commitment to a place and the vital importance of traditional knowledge in ecological stewardship. It offers an indispensable resource for anyone who wishes to better understand the peoples of the Klamath Basin and their extraordinary accomplishment of bringing about the removal of the four hydroelectric dams that harmed their cultures, economies, and environment for a century"-- Provided by publisher

xxiii, 342 pages : illustrations, maps ; 23 cm

Robert G. Bailey’s River of no return chronicles the relentless pioneer colonization, violent martial pacification, and massive terrestrial subjugation of the profoundly fractured, impassable alpine wilderness defining central Idaho’s deep riverine trenches. The narrative maps how the severe environmental realities of this untamed inland topography—defined by the plunging, sheer-granite chasms of the Salmon River, its violently volatile, unnavigable kinetic hydrology, and the towering barricades of the Bitterroot Range—initially completely paralyzed terrestrial transit and dictated a highly precarious, isolated pioneer existence. By detailing the grueling transition from vulnerable, disconnected gold camps reliant on fragile pack-mule trails to the aggressive deployment of heavy, one-way timber scows, mechanized mineral extraction, and the relentless projection of military force to physically displace the Nez Perce, the text illustrates how the economic and geopolitical mastery of the basin was strictly governed by the urgent necessity of artificially conquering this hostile geographic labyrinth. Ultimately, the account demonstrates that systematically attempting to domesticate the violent aquatic energy of the canyon and violently imposing a rigid, fortified commercial grid over an impenetrable mountain frontier were the absolute prerequisites for shattering the region's severe geographical detachment and anchoring the remote Idaho hinterland to the broader industrial machinery of the inland empire.

xxix, 754 pages : illustrations, portraits, maps ; 24 cm

The Columbia River of today bears little resemblance to the river Native Americans, First Nations, and settlers knew in the early twentieth century. Engineering has transformed much of the river into a series of large reservoirs contained by fourteen hydroelectric dams. While many grieved the loss of the free-flowing river, others embraced a newly tamed waterway that could control floods, irrigate desert lands, and supply electrical power for the growing region. River of Memory honours a place and time now gone from view. It restores an unfettered Columbia through more than ninety historical photographs that capture the river as it once appeared. This extraordinary visual record is accompanied by the words of early explorers, surveyors, and naturalists who wrote about specific places along the river and by the work of contemporary Canadian and American writers and poets. Organized to carry the reader from the mouth of the Columbia where it enters the ocean to its source in eastern British Columbia, the narrative introduces the natural history of the river through the archetypal journey of salmon returning to the river’s headwaters in Columbia Lake. Introducing each section are colour illustrations of salmon and other indigenous fish by noted artist Joseph Tomelleri. River of Memory fosters connections between the river’s natural and human histories by encouraging readers to linger along the river’s shores and spend time reflecting on its dramatic mountain and plateau landscapes.

xv, 150 pages : illustrations (some color), maps (some color) ; 24 x 29 cm

In the words of the author, "this book is the story of how people came to settle this region and demand river alterations--and how some eventually came to oppose them… It is also the chronicle, yet unfolding, of the conflict between native wildlife and dams. In microcosm it is, in many ways, the story of the American West." This history of the four Lower Snake River dams and their impact on Northwest salmon was named "Book of the Year" by the Idaho Library Association. River of Life, Channel of Death tells the story of the long struggle to bring navigation to Lewiston and hydro-power to a region; of the influence of powerful congressional representatives and booster organizations; of a clash of cultures, first between Indians and whites and later between environmentalists and developers; and of the role of the federal government in Western settlement. While the dams made Lewiston into the farthermost inland seaport in the western United States, they continue to be a subject of controversy in the continuing national debate over the fate of Northwest salmon. In a new preface written for this edition, Petersen comments on information that has become available and events that have occurred since his book was first published in 1995.

xiv, 321 pages : map ; 23 cm

Campbell River, stretching along the benchland of Discovery Passage on the east Coast of Vancouver Island, is the hub of the island's north and the surrounding islands and inlets. Internationally renown as a sports fishing destination acclaimed for the size and quality of its salmon and for the wild beauty of its surroundings, the area draws tens of thousands of tourists each year. The modern Campbell River, with a population of 30,000, carries only faint hints of its rustic beginnings as logging and fishing village, and even fewer traces of its ancient roots as a First Nations fishing community. Jeanette Taylor, a longtime resident and local historian, delves deeply into the area's history to deliver a fascinating insider's account of the people who have melded their skills and souls with the bold, brash, richly endowed landscape of Campbell River and the Discovery Islands. Taylor follows the Lekwiltok peoples from their migration south to Campbell River's fishing grounds, through to "first contact" and the ensuing struggle for cultural and economic survival. She documents the indomitable first settlers of the area, whose vision and determination set the tone for the area's future growth, including Fred Nunns, who paddled up the coast from Comox with a piano straddling two canoes; businessman W.E. Anderson who made his fortune in the Yukon Gold Rush and expanded it by investing in the Quathiaski Canning Company; and a host of other Native people, loggers, fishermen, daredevils and pioneering men, women and children. They left their indelible stamp on Campbell River through the Great Depression, two World Wars and the astounding postwar boom in traditional industries, sport fishing and tourism. The vision and vigour of the area's first settlers can be seen in Campbell River citizens of the nineties. The resource industries that generated its first wave of expansion have declined, but Campbell River is standing firm, looking to the new millennium with optimism as the ecotourism trade develops and restoration and revitalization breathe new life into the community. A riveting saga as well as an important historical record, River City comes from a writer who knows and loves the area's history, and who brings fresh insights into life and work along the Discovery Coast.

239 pages : illustrations, map ; 29 cm

On a hot summer night in 1963, a teenager named Walt Crowley hopped off a bus in Seattle’s University District, and began his own personal journey through the 1960s. Four years later at age 19, he was installed as “rapidograph in residence” at the Helix, the region’s leading underground newspaper. His cartoons, cover art, and political essays helped define his generation’s experience during that tumultuous decade. Rites of Passage: A Memoir of the Sixties in Seattle weaves Crowley’s personal experience with the strands of international, intellectual, and political history that shaped the decade. As both a member and in-house critic of the New Left and counter-culture, the author offers a unique perspective in explaining why the experiments and excess of the period “made sense at the time.” Anti-war marches, human be-ins, rock festivals, psychedelic drugs, underground newspapers, free universities, light shows, inner-city riots, radical skirmishes, and hippie antics are chronicled with personal anecdotes, contemporary accounts, and historical insights. In the pages of Rites of Passage, the reader will encounter Black (and White) Panthers, the Seattle and Chicago Seven, Weathermen and Radical Women, and many more remarkable characters. As an engaging blend of history and personal reminiscence, Rites of Passage places the sixties in a context unavailable to its participants at the time. In addition to his text, Crowley has assembled a chronology of the decade beginning with its harbingers in the forties and fifties and continuing through its aftermath. This compilation covers political, social, and cultural events, and provides the most complete synopsis of sixties history now in print.

xiv, 351 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm