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- Washington State Colleges & Universities

Washington State Library

University of Washington Digital Collections
"...a growing number of collections from the University of Washington Libraries and faculty in such diverse areas as the humanities, the natural sciences, and the regional cultures of the Pacific Northwest and Alaska. The site includes the award-winning project American Indians of the Pacific Northwest. These collections are especially strong in Seattle history, architecture, labor and industry, the Klondike Gold Rush, and our natural environment."

  • Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition Photographs
    "The 655 photographs from the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition document the fair held on the campus of the University of Washington during the summer of 1909. Images include depictions of the buildings, grounds, entertainment, and exotic attractions at the fair."
  • History of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge
    "The following images and text detail the story of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge from the inception to the reopening of a reconstructed bridge in 1950. Links to further pages on the Construction, Opening, Collapse, Aftermath, and Reconstruction are available at the bottom of the page."
  • John N. Cobb Photographs
    "...founder of the University of Washington College of Fisheries, was a photographer in his own right. He specialized in the documentation of fisheries in the United States, especially those in Alaska and the Pacific Coast. Among the photographs included in this digital collection are images of salmon, halibut and cod fisheries along the West Coast, whaling activities in Alaska, clamming and oystering industries in Washington, and images reflecting the first 6 or 7 years of the University of Washington College of Fisheries."
  • King County Snapshots: A Photographic Heritage
    "...presents King County, Washington, through 12,000 historical images carefully chosen from twelve organizations' collections. These cataloged 19th and 20th century images portray people, places, and events in the county's urban, suburban, and rural communities."
  • Northwest of the West: The Frontier Experience on the Northwest Coast
    "This exhibit looks at the Pacific Northwest, especially the Puget Sound country, and asks, What kind of Euro-American settlers came here? Why did they come? Were their motives similar to those who settled in the trans-Missouri West? Why did the Pacific Coast develop as a basically urban society, when the West was rural? Did settlers here think of themselves as being on a frontier? When they thought of the West, did they actually look east of the Cascades and the Sierras, rather than at themselves?
  • Washington State Pioneer Life Database
    "The Washington State Pioneers database is a collection of writings, diaries, letters, and reminiscences drawn from various sources within the Special Collections Division collections that recount the early settlement of Washington, the establishment of homesteads and towns and the hardships faced by many of the early pioneers."

Washington State Historical Society
Includes the online exhibits Golden Dreams: The Quest for the Klondike and Northwest Imagery: The Photography of Edward & Asahel Curtis

Washington State History Museum

Washington State University - Digital Collections

  • Early Washington Maps: A Digital Collection
    "Spanning three hundred years, Early Washington Maps: A Digital Collection includes maps of both sea and land faring explorersófrom David Thompson, the successful navigator of the Columbia River, to the exploits of William Clark and Merriwether Lewis. It documents the struggle between Britain and America for the ownership of the region, and the further development of one of the last frontiers on the continent. Some of the digital collection's maps delineate the boundaries under dispute within the years 1818 and 1846, culminating in a peaceful compromise and the decision of the 49th parallel as the northern border of the United States. The digital collection also shows the efforts of the U.S. government to survey the land, for both federal and private use, under the watchful, trained eye of the General Land Office and the Corps of Topographical Engineers."
  • Frank Fuller Avery Image Collection
    "The collection consists of 800 images selected from 894 5x7 inch glass negatives taken by Avery during the period 1901 to 1916 when Avery was assigned to the Colville Indian Agency."
  • Frank S. Matsura Image Collection [1907-1913]
    "He photographed both the profound and minor changes taking place in and around Okanogan [Washington]; from the construction of the Conconully Dam that provided for the irrigation of thousands of acres of farmland, to the installation of a city street sprinkler in Okanogan to keep the dust settled on downtown dirt streets."

HistoryLink.org
The Online Encyclopedia of Washington State History

  • Klondike Gold Rush Historical Database
    "This database contains photographs, newspaper clippings, documents, contemporary Seattle business names and locations, vessel sailing dates and passenger lists related to the 1897-1898 Klondike Gold Rush, which Seattle served as a major gateway for supplies and prospectors."

Black Heritage Society of Washington State

Center for Columbia River History

  • Columbia Basin Native Fisheries
    "...you can retrieve profiles of the indigenous groups in the Columbia Basin that were included in the Northwest Power Planning Council Act passed by the U.S. Congress in 1980. This list does not represent all of the indigenous groups of the basin, past or present...takes you the documents that provide the foundation for Indian fishing rights such as treaties and court cases in both the U.S. and Canada."
  • Boldt Decision (1974)
    Allocated 50 percent of the annual catch to treaty tribes.

Columbia River History
A Changing Columbia Basin, 1770-Present"
Sections include: The Columbia Basin in 1770 ; The Columbia Basin in 1940 ; The Columbia Basin Now ; Other Salmon Links.
"This information is available as a free Oregon Sea Grant publication"

Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR)
"The Cayuse, Umatilla and Walla Walla people make up the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation. Since time immemorial, we have lived on the Columbia River Plateau. Specifically, our homeland is the area now known as northeastern Oregon and southeastern Washington."

[Green River Killer - Gary Ridgway] CNN.com Law Center - Ridgway Case
"Ridgway Confesses to 48 Killings in Green River Case" - Nov. 5, 2003
Includes: Video of Prosecutor Jeff Baird reading statement in court by Ridgway confessing to killing 48 women ; Legal Documents ; Ridgway's Statement.

[Green River Killer - Gary Ridgway] Green River Killings
"The Green River Killer is blamed for the slaying of 49 women between 1982 and 1984 in the greater Seattle area...On Friday, Nov. 30, 2001, Gary Leon Ridgway was arrested as a suspect in four of the killings..."
Sections include: Background Information ; Map ; Green River Victims ; Related Cases ; Suspect ; Charges ; Probable Cause ; The Victims [four women linked to Ridgway] ; DNA Evidence.
- Seattle Post-Intelligencer Special Report

[Green River Killer - Gary Ridgway] Seattle Times - Green River Killings
"Green River killer Gary Ridgway pleaded guilty Nov. 5, 2003, to the murders of 48 women from 1982 to 1998, bringing to an end the largest unsolved murder case in the country."
Sections include: About the Case: The Victims ; Timeline ; Digging for Evidence ; Where Victims were Found ; Area of Disappearances ; Legal Documents: Summary ; Plea Agreement ; Second Amendment ; Statement of Defendant.

[Green River Killer - Gary Ridgway] - TIME.com - River of Death
"The Green River Killer may be the worst serial murderer in U.S. history. It's one cop's mission to stop him."
By Terry McCarthy
From the January 03, 2002 issues of Time Magazine

Interior Columbia Basin Ecosystem Management Project
Sections include: What's New ; Environmental Impact Statement ; Implementation ; Science ; Spatial Data ; List of Acronyms.

Kennewick Man - See Anthropology - Kennewick Man

King County - Salmon and Trout Topics

  • King Country Technical Reports

The Makah Nation

[Makah] NativeReligion.org
"Under the auspices of the Pluralism Project at Harvard University, to which Michael McNally is a Research Affiliate, this site explores the intersection between law, religion, and Native American traditions in historic and recent cases -- many of them pending -- where Native American communities have sought protection for 'sacred' lands, practices, objects, and human remains that are arguably, if not solely or plainly, matters of religious freedom."

Mount Rainer National Park
"Established in 1899. 235,625 acres (97% is designated Wilderness). Includes Mount Rainier (14,410'), an active volcano encased in over 35 square miles of snow and ice. The park contains outstanding examples of old growth forests and subalpine meadows."

National Academy Press (free downloads)

  • 2002
  • 2001

National Wildlife Magazine
Publication of the National Wildlife Federation

  • Orcas on the Edge
    "A brutal combination of pollution, global warming, declining prey and heavy boat traffic is sending the Puget Sound orca population to new lows."
    By Ken Olsen, Oct/Nov 2006.

PBS American Field Guide - Teacher Resources
"American Field Guide is a tremendous resource for you and your students. Embedded within this site you will find lesson plans that weave segments of video together into units of inquiry around specific topics. The lessons in the units of inquiry were all written by high school teachers and draw upon national and state standards for science learning."

  • Salmon vs. Dams: The Dam Removal Debate on the Elwha River
    "This lesson is derived from real testimony given to Congress regarding two small dams in the pristine Olympic National Park in Washington. In this lesson, students will use roll playing to discuss the merits of tearing down these dams so that the Elwha River can run free."

PBS - Searching For Asian America
"Take a Journey to Discover the Richness and Diversity of the Asian American Experience"
Companion website to the TV broadcast.
Sections include: The Governor [Gov. Gary Locke, Washington] ; Oklahoma Home ; Angry Little Asian Girl ; Asian American Field Reports ; Quiz Yourself ; Take a Poll.

Seattle Art Museum

Seattle Post-Intelligencer Special Report - The Sound of Broken Promises (October 2006)
"This six-part special report both chronicles the long life of Granny, the respected elder in her Northwest orca pod, and examines the weak regulations, spotty enforcement and political foot-dragging that have put local orcas in jeopardy. Whale lovers and marine advocates wonder if the recent adoption of Endangered Species Act protections for orcas and a pending plan to restore our inland sea will finally reverse the decline. Or will Granny and her pod continue swimming in a sea of broken promises?"

Seattle Times - Unearthing Tse-whit-zen
4-Part Special Report, May 22 - May 25, 2005.
"The [Washington] state Department of Transportation uncovered Tse-whit-zen in August 2003, while building a dry dock on the Port Angeles waterfront. After spending about $60 million ó and finding 335 intact skeletons ó the state abandoned the project. The future of the site is unknown."
Part 1: A Culture Emerges ; Part 2: Spirit of Pestilence ; Part 3: A Costly Mistake ; Part 4: Rebirth of a Culture. Sections include: Introduction ; Epilogue ; Study Guide ; Resources ; Multimedia.
Free registration may be required.

Tacoma Public Library - Northwest Room
Sections include: Washington Place Names ; The Genealogy Collection ; The Photography Collection ; Tacoma Building Index ; The Murray Morgan Prize ; Murray's People ; Ships & Shipping Database ; Unsettling Events ; Tacoma Obituary Index.

  • Magnificent Views & Vistas
    Mountaineers Climbs 1912-1916
  • Photography Collection & Archive
    "The Tacoma Public Library's extensive photograph collection conveys a rich sense of Northwest history by documenting the social, industrial, commercial, and agricultural growth and development of Washington and the Pacific Northwest...More than 40,000 images are currently available online in a searchable database."
  • Ships and Shipping
    "This database contains a searchable index of more than 13,000 ships. It provides full text information on 1,000 ships built on the Pacific Coast and ships with a connection to the Pacific Northwest. The database includes the names (and former names) of vessels, their builders, careers, and disposition."

Washington Forest Law Center
"...is a nonprofit corporation providing legal services for forest cases of statewide significance and specializes in cases involving timber harvest and public resource issues on state and private lands."

Wild Olympic Salmon
The focus of this conservation organization from Jefferson Country, Washington is restoration, celebration, and education.
Sections include: Chimacum Creek Chum ; Newsletters ; Salmon Facts ; Fin: The Migrating Salmon ; Links.

Seattle
HistoryLink
History of Seattle and King County
Maybe the best local history sites on the Internet.
Includes over 1000 essays online, searchable archive, including extensive coverage of the WTO meetings, marches, and riots. Additional sections include a 10 minute history of Seattle, This Week in Seattle, Milestones in King County History, King County Community History Newsletter, and Rosters of Local War Dead.

Camp Harmony Exhibit
"This exhibit tells the story of Seattle's Japanese American community in the spring and summer of 1942 and their four month sojourn at the Puyallup Assembly Center known as "Camp Harmony."
- University of Washington Libraries

Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle
"As many of you have heard through the news media and eyewitness reports, five staff members from our Federation -- Cheryl Stumbo, Dayna Klein, Carol Goldman, Layla Bush and Christina Rexroad -- were shot [July 2006] and taken to Harborview Medical Center. We are hopeful that ongoing reports of their improving conditions continues."

Pacific Northwest Quarterly
"...is the leading scholarly journal devoted to the history and culture of the northwestern United States, Alaska, and western Canada."
Selected articles available online.

Pacific Science Center

Seattle Anarchism and Revolution Page
Includes a nice collection of Seattle area history links, including the nation's only successful city wide general strike - The Seattle General Strike of 1919, The Centralia Massacre, 1919, and the Everett Massacre, 1916.
By Greg Alt

Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels Executive Order (March 8, 2004)
Mayor Signs Executive Order, Will Send Ordinance to Council Recognizing Homosexual Marriage.

The Seattle Mountaineers
"The Northwest's Premier Outdoor Recreation Organization"

Seattle PI Special Report - Our Troubled Sound (November 2002)
"Read all about it in this five-part special report from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer...Originally published over five days in November 2002, each part addresses a different aspect of the problem, from the marked decline of local marine life to current efforts to restore the Sound to health."
Parts include: Polluted Waters ; Extinction or Bust ; Ruinous Runoff ; Maritime Mess ; Turning Things Around ; Further Developments.
Also includes a database to find out who's violating federal water pollution laws.

Seattle's Black History
"This is a four-part series that explores some of the major personalities and events in the history of blacks in Seattle over the past 150 years. Join us as we journey from the earliest pioneers, through the decades, to civil rights pioneers and todayís leaders."
Seattle Post-Intelligencer: Black History Month

Suquamish Tribe - Chief Seattle

Suquamish Tribe
Port Madison Indian Reservation, Washington
"...Reservation is located on the Kitsap Peninsula in Washington State. Situated on the waterfront across the Puget Sound from Seattle, the reservation is home to the Suquamish people, a fishing tribe whose leader was Chief Seattle, after whom the city took its name."

Chief Seattle and Chief Joseph: From Indians to Icons
University of Washington Libraries Digital Collections

"Chief Seattle's 1854 Oration" - ver. 1
"There is a great deal of controversy surrounding Chief Seattle's speech of 1854. There are many sources of information, various versions of the speech, and debates over its very existence. Please see the links at the end of the speech. Version 1 (below) appeared in the Seattle Sunday Star on Oct. 29, 1887, in a column by Dr. Henry A. Smith."

"Thus Spoke Chief Seattle: The Story of An Undocumented Speech"
Prologue: Quarterly of the National Archives and Records Administration, Spring 1985, vol. 18, no. 1. By Jerry L. Clark.

To Requestors of Chief Seattle's "Ecology" Speech
A brief description of the four versions of the famous speech
"From Washington/Northwest Collections, Washington State Library"
Washington State Library, Olympia, Washington letterhead (1993) ; Nancy Zussy, State Library

World Trade Organization (WTO) in Seattle, 11/29/99 - 12/04/99
AFL-CIO on the WTO

History Link
Includes essays, images, context and don't forget to view the WTO-CAM.

National Council for Science and the Environment

Seattle Post-Intelligencer WTO Archive

Seattle Times WTO Archive

WTO History Project
University of Washington Center for Labor Studies

See also Non-governmental Agencies - WTO

The Nisqually Quake 2001 (Seattle Quake)

University of Washington Geophysics Program Seismology Page

February 28, 2001 Nisqually Earthquake

University of Washington Earthquake Information Clearinghouse - (dead link)
Includes photo galleries, geotechnical information, engineering reports and more.

Earthquake (02/28/01) Damage to Washington Libraries (let me know if you know of other online photo galleries showing library damage)

  • University of Washington

Pacific Northwest Earthquake Information (PNSN)

Pacific Northwest Seismic Network ShakeMaps

Nisqually Quake ShakeMap

U.S. Dept. of Energy Hanford Site
"Hanford Site was established during World War II as part of the Manhattan Project and played a pivotal role in the nationís defense for more than 50 years. Currently, the Hanford Site is engaged in the worldís largest environmental cleanup with many challenges to be resolved in the face of overlapping, technical, political, regulatory, and cultural interests."

U.S. Geological Survey


Media Reports and Photo Galleries
- (dead link) Lehrer News Hour Interview on Nisqually Earthquake

The Olympian: Earthquake Extra
Photos by the Olympian, Olympia, Washington (11 miles from epicenter)

Seattle Post-Intelligencer: Northwest Earthquake

Seattle Times: Earthquake

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