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Tag: Washington Territory

Profiles of Washington Territorial Librarians – James Clark Head, 1860 – 1861, 1863, 1865

Profiles of Washington Territorial Librarians – James Clark Head, 1860 – 1861, 1863, 1865

From the Desks of the Central Library Staff (Head served three nonconsecutive terms as Territorial Librarian.) J.C. Head was born in Washington County, Ky. in 1810. His family apparently lived in Illinois before their arrival in Olympia, Aug. 18, 1853. A carpenter by trade, Head also was made a Justice of the Peace and in 1856 presided over the case of the accused murderer of Leschi’s brother, Quiemuth. Bion Kendall was the attorney for the defense, Elwood Evans the prosecutor….

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Profiles of Washington Territorial Librarians – Urban East Hicks, 1858

Profiles of Washington Territorial Librarians – Urban East Hicks, 1858

From the Desks of the Central Library Staff Urban Hicks, the man with the paradoxical name, was born May 14, 1828 in Missouri where he learned the printing trade in the towns of Paris and Hannibal. Coming to Oregon Territory in 1851 as part of the Ruddell Party, he lived in several places before settling in Olympia. Hicks held a variety of local offices, including County Clerk and Assessor. Served with distinction during the Indian War of 1855-1856, rising to…

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Spirit Telegraphy in Puyallup

Spirit Telegraphy in Puyallup

From the desk of Steve Willis, Central Library Services Program Manager of the Washington State Library Yes, I would agree that the telegraph operator profiled in the following article didn’t get out much. A very unusual story found in The Tacoma Herald, July 21, 1877: Spirit Telegraphy “PUYALLUP, July 16, 1877.–It was my privilege to visit the office of a telegraph operator a few days ago, and witness some rather novel performances. It was the old story of ‘Spirit manifestation’ repeated….

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Profiles in Washington Territorial Librarians- Bion Freeman Kendall

Profiles in Washington Territorial Librarians- Bion Freeman Kendall

[The Territorial Librarian profiles were compiled by Sean Lanksbury, Mary Schaff, Kim Smeenk, and Steve Willis] Bion (Benjamin) Freeman Kendall, 1853 – 1857 Born Oct. 1827 in Bethel, Maine. Fresh out of Bowdoin College in 1852, Kendall found employment as a government clerk in the Survey Land Office in Washington, D.C. He served as an aide (along with future Territorial Librarian Elwood Evans) on the 1853 Isaac Stevens survey team when the first Territorial Governor made his way to Olympia….

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WSL 160 celebration – Law Library

WSL 160 celebration – Law Library

[Not all the surviving books of the original Territorial Collection reside in the Washington State Library. A good portion of them went with the Washington State Law Library when they split from WSL. The current State Law Librarian, Kay Newman, tells the story]: The Territorial Library originated March 2, 1853, when Congress passed the Organic Act of the Territory of Washington. Section 17 provided $5,000 to be spent by the Governor of the new Territory to purchase a library. On…

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Territorial Collection Trivia

Territorial Collection Trivia

From the desk of Steve Willis, Central Library Services Program Manager of the Washington State Library: In the summer of 2002 I was given an assignment that turned out to be a career highlight for me as a cataloger to use my vast powers for Good. The task was to make the Washington State Library Territorial Collection the subject of a recon project, i.e., adding the 400+ titles (800+ volumes) to the online catalog. Providing bibliographic access to the oldest library…

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Invincible!

Invincible!

From the desk of Steve Willis, Central Library Services Program Manager of the Washington State Library: Last week we asked if any Between the Lines readers could help us in identifying the first of two ships that brought the Territorial Library collection from New York to San Francisco in 1853. The story of the second ship, the Tarquinia, which delivered the books in the final leg of the journey is well known, but the first ship has been a mystery to…

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The Voyage of the “Unknown Steamer”

The Voyage of the “Unknown Steamer”

From the desk of Steve Willis, Central Library Services Program Manager of the Washington State Library: 160 years! And our flame continues to illuminate the world around us. The Washington State Library is celebrating its 160th birthday in 2013. Why is this an important number? First, no other public cultural or educational institution in Washington can make this claim. And second, not only are we are still here but WSL staff continue to provide excellent access to the information needs of…

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160 Years of Libraries in Washington – A Good Reason to Celebrate!

160 Years of Libraries in Washington – A Good Reason to Celebrate!

This year marks the 160th anniversary of the Washington State Library, the first U.S. library north of the Columbia River. But this is only the beginning of the story of people and their libraries in Washington. State Library staff will be blogging, tweeting, and posting on Facebook to remember the past and celebrate the present, but they also want to hear from all the libraries in Washington about their beginnings. Please consider sharing some part of your history with us…

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So, what DO you buy for a 160th anniversary?

So, what DO you buy for a 160th anniversary?

(Map courtesy of Washington State Library) Unless you really excel at Washington history, you probably didn’t know that this Saturday marks the 160th anniversary of the creation of Washington Territory. (Believe it or not, there is a word – tetracentennial – for such a rare occasion.) Before 1853, the land north of the Columbia River was part of Oregon Territory, established in 1848. But settlers north of the Columbia soon were demanding their own territory. On Feb. 8, 1853, Congress…

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