Anyone who looks at a current map of Puget Sound will spot large cities like Seattle and Tacoma and familiar geographic features like Point Defiance and Elliott Bay. But when you look at old maps of the sound, you realize that some names were different. This 1889 map of Puget Sound and the Olympic Peninsula proves it. What is Elliott Bay today was known as Duwamish Bay in 1889. Alki Point had a different name back then, too — Battery…
(Photo courtesy of Washington State Digital Archives) If you’re seeking cool or classic black-and-white photos of Washington’s people and places, look no further than our State Digital Archives, which has thousands of shots just a few clicks away. This photo, taken between 1890 and 1920, shows a woman with the Makah tribe on the Olympic Peninsula weaving a basket. The photo is part of the State Library Photograph Collection, 1851-1990. Go here to see the many different photo collections in…
(Photo courtesy of Holly Harris.) The rugged Olympic Peninsula is full of challenging yet beautiful trails for hikers. One of them leads to the top of Mount Ellinor, which sits next to Lake Cushman, just miles from Hood Canal. This photo shows the Olympic Mountains to the northwest. We invite you to e-mail your photos and stories to us as part of an ongoing feature called “From Your Corner of Washington” – we want to gather images of landscapes, homes,…
Ozette Potatoes Not long ago as the WSL tribal library consultant I facilitated the annual meeting of the Washington State tribal librarians. One of the topics up for discussion was the native foods. The tribes are making a concerted effort to reintroduce them into tribal members diets both as a way to preserve tribal culture and to promote healthy eating habits. Tracy Hosselkuss, Lower Elwha tribe, talked about Ozette potatoes. She said lots of folks in her area were growing this fingerling potatoes which have…
Photos by Patrick McDonald Did you know that Washington possesses the most northwestern point of the Lower 48 states of the U.S.? It’s Cape Flattery, where the Pacific Ocean meets the Strait of Juan de Fuca. It’s located in Clallam County, on the northwestern tip of the Olympic Peninsula. The cape is part of the Makah Reservation. The photo above gives a view of the cape just above the shoreline. The photo below is taken from a nearby hill. It…
Written by Shirley Lewis and Leslie Boyter. The Quinault Rain Barrel, one of Washington State Library’s newest microfilm additions, is now available for perusal. Is it a humble newsletter? Is it a full-fledged newspaper? Is a little raincloud going to follow you around as soon as you put one of the nine rolls of microfilm in your hand? These questions, and more, can only be answered by taking a chance by going over the rain barrel. No, we’re not in Kansas…
Photo by Patrick McDonald Enjoy this view of the Pacific off Highway 101 near Queets on the Olympic Peninsula.
From Salt Creek looking north across the strait to Vancouver Island. Photo courtesy of Russ Veenema. Nearly 100 miles long, this waterway forms the international boundary between Canada’s Vancouver Island and the Olympic Peninsula on the American side. The strait connects Puget Sound with the Pacific Ocean. Port Angeles is among the handful of towns located along its southern shore. According to “Washington State Place Names,” the strait was named in 1787 by English maritime fur trader Charles William Barkley…