From the desk of Judy Pitchford

Hey kids (and adults)! It’s time for the 3rd Annual Historical Zine Contest!

Washington State Library, a division of the Office of the Secretary of State, is sponsoring the 3rd Annual Historical Zine Contest with co-sponsors Washington State Archives and Timberland Regional Library. Participants are asked to create a Zine about some aspect of Washington History.

Washington residents from 4th grade and up (yes, adults, too!) are asked to participate.

All three sponsors have a multitude of resources that can provide fantastic historical material you can use to create your Zine.

• Washington State Library has many online resources that include books, maps, newspapers and photos. You can also find featured images from these digital collections on their Pinterest and Flickr pages. And don’t forget that you can visit the library to see some resources in person!
• Washington State Archives has an extensive print collection, as well as many images at the Digital Archives.
• And you can visit the Timberland Libraries to explore their NW Reference Collection, Zine Collection and Zine Resource Collection.

One winner from each age category and will receive a $75 prize!

Visit the Zine Contest Webpage for the entry form, a video on how to make a zine, and to see some of our past winners.

Entries will be accepted from September 1, 2017 – December 15, 2017. So grab your pencils, pens, typewriters or computers and start creating!

From the desk of Judy Pitchford

Do you like history? Do you enjoy creative projects? Well, do we have something for you!

Washington State Library, a division of the Office of the Secretary of State, is sponsoring the 2nd Annual Historical Zine Contest with co-sponsors Washington State Archives and Timberland Regional Library. Participants are asked to create a Zine about some aspect of Washington History.

Washington residents from 4th grade and up (yes, adults, too!) are asked to participate.

Don’t know how to make a zine? Visit our Zine webpage and watch a video that shows how.

All three sponsors have a multitude of resources that can provide fantastic material to use in the creations of participants.

• Washington State Library has many online resources that include books, maps, newspapers and photos. You can also find featured images from these digital collections on their Pinterest and Flickr pages. And don’t forget that you can visit the library to see some resources in person!
• Washington State Archives has an extensive print collection, as well as many images at the Digital Archives.
• And you can visit the Timberland Libraries to explore their NW Reference Collection, Zine Collection and Zine Resource Collection.

Entries will be accepted from September 1, 2016 – December 15, 2016. So start creating!

From the desk of Judy Pitchford

Beginning today and running through August 31, 2015, the Washington State Library, Washington State Archives (both divisions of the Office of the Secretary of State) and Timberland Regional Library are sponsoring the 1st Annual Historical Zine Contest!

What is a Zine (which, by the way, rhymes with bean)? Zines are basically self-published magazines that give the creator’s point of view on the subject.

All three sponsors have a multitude of resources that can provide fantastic material to use in the creations of participants.

• Washington State Library has many online resources that include books, maps, newspapers and photos. You can also find featured images from these digital collections on their Pinterest and Flickr pages. And don’t forget that you can visit the library to see some resources in person!
• Washington State Archives has an extensive print collection, as well as many images at the Digital Archives.
• And you can visit the Timberland Libraries to explore their NW Reference Collection, Zine Collection and Zine Resource Collection.

Workshops will be held in July to learn how to make a zine :

• Olympia Timberland Library – Saturday, July 11th from 2-8 pm
• Yelm Timberland Library – Saturday, July 25th from 1-4 pm

This contest is open to 4th graders through adults of all ages that are Washington residents.

For more information, visit our Zine Contest webpage or download the Zine Contest Flyer/Entry Form.

From the desk of Judy Pitchford

Another treasure for Women’s History in the Manuscript Collection of the State Library is the newspaper clipping scrapbook of Josephine Corliss Preston, which has been digitized and added to our Classics in Washington History. Mrs. Preston was the first woman elected to statewide office in Washington state government after women were granted the right to vote in 1910, defeating another female candidate, Mary Monroe. Elected as the 6^th State Superintendent of Public Instruction, she served from 1913 to 1928. Her scrapbook documents her efforts as she became a Republican candidate for office in 1912 and continues through 1920.

Mrs. Preston began her career as a teacher at the age of 14 in Minnesota and taught in Walla Walla from 1896-1903. She served as assistant county superintendent and deputy superintendent of the Walla Walla County schools during the years of 1904-1912. As State superintendent, Mrs. Preston was nationally recognized for obtaining legislation that allowed tax money to be used to cover the cost of building homes for teachers – called teacher’s cottages. This meant teachers would no longer have to be passed around to board with local families or, worse, be essentially homeless.

From the desk of Judy Pitchford

Digital Collections has added 3 more titles to our Classics in Washington History.

Under Native Americans –

Indian myths of the Northwest by William Lyman.

This book attempts to cite original sources for Indian Myths. It also identifies the scholars and investigators of the myths that Mr. Lyman felt were reliable.

Under Natural History –

Some hydroids from Puget Sound by Gary Calkins

A paper from the Proceedings of the Boston society of natural history that examines approximately 30 species of hydroids found in Puget Sound around Port Townsend and Bremerton.

Under Exploration and Early travel / Pioneer Life –

Two studies in the history of the Pacific Northwest by Edmond Meany

A reprint originally published in the Annual report of the American Historical Association of 1909 containing :

1. The towns of the Pacific Northwest were not founded on the fur trade — 2. Morton Matthew McCarver, frontier city builder

Classics in Washington History is a digital collection of full-text books, bringing together rare, out of print titles for easy access by students, teachers, genealogists and historians. Visit Washington’s early years through the lives of the men and women who lived and worked in Washington Territory and State. All items are available in DjVu (Plugin required) and Pdf formats.

From the desk of Judy Pitchford

Digital Collections has added 8 more titles to our Classics in Washington History.

Under Exploration and Early Travel –

From New York to Portland, Oregon, via Straits of Magellan by John Douglas McConkey

Events, sights and scenes of McConkey’s sea voyage via the steamer “Oregon,” from New York to Portland.

Under Geography –

Special reproduction of maps of tide, shore, school and granted lands. Made under the supervision of Alvin Bystrom, state field engineer

It is believed that this is a supplement to the title List of School, Granted and Other Public Lands and Materials thereon, also tide and shore lands of the first and second class to be sold at Public Auction.

Under Native Americans –

The case of Spokane Garry by William S. Lewis

Originally a paper read by William S. Lewis before the Washington State Historical Society in Tacoma, WA, this biography of Spokane Garry, a chief of the Spokane Tribe, attempts to show that he was entitled to a higher recognition in the history of “Old Oregon” Country.

Public documents, Oregon Indian war, 1855-56 by United States. Congress. House

Letters and reports documenting the Oregon Indian War of 1855-56

Removals of Indian agents by Herbert Welsh

A letter from Herbert Welsh to Richard H. Dana of the Board of Editors of the Civil Service Records, expressing his opinion of the reasons behind the removal of various Indian agents from office.

Under Military History –

The history of Base Hospital Fifty : a portrayal of the work done by this unit while serving in the United States and with the American Expeditionary forces in France by by Official Committee of Base Hospital Fifty

The history of American Red Cross Base Hospital No. 50, of the University of Washington, which later became Base Hospital 50, Medical Department, U.S. Army.

Letter from the Secretary of War relative to the occupancy of San Juan Island, number of troops, etc.

A letter pertaining to the cost of occupying the post on San Juan Island.

Under Territorial and State Government –

Letter from the Attorney General to O.B. McFadden relative to the Penitentiary in Washington Territory.

Correspondence regarding the condition of the new territorial prison located on McNeil Island.

Classics in Washington History is a digital collection of full-text books, bringing together rare, out of print titles for easy access by students, teachers, genealogists and historians. Visit Washington’s early years through the lives of the men and women who lived and worked in Washington Territory and State. All items are available in DjVu (Plugin required) and Pdf formats.

From the desk of Judy Pitchford

Digital Collections has been busy adding more titles to our Classics in Washington History. Here’s what we have added this week:

Under Native Americans –

The Indian captive : a narrative of the adventures and sufferings of Matthew Brayton, in his thirty-four years of captivity among the Indians of north-western America by J.H.A. Bone

Brayton’s narrative was recounted to J.H.A. Bone, editor of the Cleveland Daily Herald, who is presumed to have composed the published version

Depredations and massacre by the Snake river Indians : letter of the acting Secretary of the Interior transmitting a report of the Commissioner of Indian affairs relative to the Indian depredations committed in the state of Oregon and Territory of Washington, and the massacre of emigrants by the Snake river Indians by United States. Bureau of Indian Affairs

This volume contains several miscellaneous claims for damages against Indians, plus correspondence concerning an Indian attack against a company of emigrants.

On the Indian tribes inhabiting the northwest coast of America by John Scouler

An early work that describes the major Indian groups. It includes a word list for some basic vocabulary in Shahaptan, Wallawalla and Kleketat.

Report … relative to the Indian disturbances in the Territories of Washington and Oregon by United States. War Dept.

Correspondence between Gov. Isaac Stevens and, various military officers, and the Secretary of War documenting disagreements on how to handle the military campaigns against the Indians in 1855-56.

Under Military History –

Report of an expedition from Fort Colville to Puget Sound by United States. Army. Dept. of the Columbia

This is a narrative by 1st Lieut. Henry Pierce who in 1882 led a small exploring expedition across North Central Washington from Old Fort Colville, in what is now Stevens County, to Puget Sound via Lake Chelan and the Skagit River.

Under 20th Century Events –

Trends in the relocation centers III  by War Relocation Authority, Community Analysis Section

This document addresses the concerns of evacuees about the closing of the relocation centers and how their needs were to be met re-entering society.

Classics in Washington History is a digital collection of full-text books, bringing together rare, out of print titles for easy access by students, teachers, genealogists and historians. Visit Washington’s early years through the lives of the men and women who lived and worked in Washington Territory and State. All items are available in DjVu (Plugin required) and Pdf formats.

From the desk of Judy Pitchford

The Puget Sound Dispatch, published in Seattle from 1871 to 1880, has been added to the Washington State Library’s Historic Washington Newspapers Online.

Published Weekly from 1871 to 1880, the newspaper was launched by Beriah Brown and Charles H. Larrabee in December 1871. Brown, who also served for one term as mayor of Seattle in 1878, was known to be a strongly opinionated editorialist. So much so, that it is sometimes hard to distinguish between his editorials and the articles he wrote about everyday local occurrences. Since the newspaper was published during what is sometimes called the “railroad period” in the Pacific Northwest, he had much to say about the railroads and their officials, a truly hot button issue of the day.  But, as noted by an essay at Historylink.org, he also had strong words for a group of white parents complaining about “colored” children taking classes at the university. Brown wrote in the January 29, 1874 Puget Sound Dispatch that “Every child of African descent born in this country has the same right of access to our public schools as the children of the most privileged of Caucassian [sic] blood. No teacher or school officer has any more legal right to exclude one than the other”. He was opinionated and ahead of his time. Brown was also noted for composing his articles as he set them in type, rather than first writing them down on paper. Financial difficulties forced Brown to sell the paper and it was merged with the Daily Intelligencer, which later became the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

The Historic Washington Newspapers Online  project was purposely designed for students, genealogists, and historians to easily access historical information. It provides viewers with the ability to search by keywords, dates, subjects, and personal names. To view the newspapers, please visit www.sos.wa.gov/history/newspapers.aspx.

From the desk of Judy Pitchford

Volume 5, # 2 –  November 2010

Historical Newspapers in Washington

The Puget Sound Argus of Port Townsend (1882-1883) has been added to Washington State Library’s Online Historic Newspapers, available at http://www.sos.wa.gov/history/newspapers_detail.aspx?t=44. The collection now includes approximately nine years of Port Townsend newspapers, ranging from 1875 to 1883. The collection also contains newspapers from ten other Washington cities.

Additional newspapers will be added as soon as indexing is completed. Our volunteer indexers are currently hard at work on the Walla Walla Statesman (1873-1884) and Seattle’s Puget Sound Dispatch (1871-1880). To see our entire Online Historic Newspaper collection, go to http://www.sos.wa.gov/history/newspapers.aspx.

Read the rest of this entry »

From the desk of Judy Pitchford

Richard D. Gholson was Washington’s 3rd Territorial Governor serving from July 1859  to sometime in 1861, though he reportedly returned to his home state of Kentucky on a six month leave of absence in May 1860, never to return to Washington.

Though he was only in Washington for 11 months, two important events did occur – the “Pig War” of 1859 on San Juan Island and the capture of the schooners Ellen Maria and Blue Wing by northern Indians.

Not much is know about this short-term Governor but the Washington State Library has several items in their Digital Collection that give some insight to his time in office.

Edmond S. Meany’s Governors of Washington, Territorial and State  has a brief biographical article about Governor Gholson. Also in the collection are various correspondence from or to Gholson in Message of the President …in reference to the island of San Juan … and Washington State Library’s collection of Richard D. Gholson’s correspondence.

If you would like to know more about the “Pig War”, see Letter from the Secretary of State, transmitting a report relative to the occupation of the Island of San Juan  in our Classics in Washington History .

There is a little bit of information about the capture of the Ellen Maria and Blue Wing and its aftermath in Lewis and Dryden’s marine history of the Pacific Northwest on page 90 (image 113)  and in The Puget Sound Herald, Steilacoom, W.T., March 18, 1859 (page 2, column 2 – Missing) , July 27, 1860 (page 2, column 5 – The Fate of Mr. Schroter),  Aug. 3, 1860 (page 2, column 4 – The Blue Wing and Ellen Maria).