Forum Index > Pacific NW History > Favorite books on history of the Olympics
 Reply to topic
Previous :: Next Topic
Author Message
ForbinsAscent
Member
Member


Joined: 29 Jun 2018
Posts: 26 | TRs | Pics
Location: WA
ForbinsAscent
Member
PostSat Dec 12, 2020 8:30 am 
I've been working on my wishlist of books on history of the Olympic Range, or more specifically, humans in the Olympics. My main interest is between the last ice age through the early 20th century. At the top of my list is Men, Mules, and Mountains (which I've gotten from the library in the past), but I am also interested in native culture on the peninsula, particularly anything about inland activities (as opposed to coastal). So if anyone has one or two favorites to recommend, I'd be interested in hearing your opinion. Here are a few I have so far: Men, Mules, and Mountains: Lieutenant O'Neil's Olympic Expeditions (Wood) Footprints in the Olympics: An Autobiography (Morgenroth) Exploring the Olympic Mountains 1878-1890 (Lien) The Last Wilderness (Morgan)

Back to top Reply to topic Reply with quote Send private message
IanB
Vegetable Belayer



Joined: 21 Jul 2010
Posts: 1061 | TRs | Pics
Location: gone whuljin'
IanB
Vegetable Belayer
PostSat Dec 12, 2020 12:06 pm 
Across the Olympic Mountains - The Press Expedition, 1889-90 (Robert L. Wood) The Untamed Olympics (Ruby El Hult) Olympic Battleground (Carsten Lien) An Olympic Mountain Enchantment (Ruby El Hult) Beyond the Trails with Herb and Lois Crisler In Olympic National Park (Francis E. Caldwell) The Iron Man of the Hoh (Elizabeth Huelsdonk Fletcher) The Friendly Mountain (E. B. Webster) The Lure of Tubal Cain (Eva Cook Taylor) Frontier Legacy - History of the Olympic National Forest 1897-1960 (J. R. Rooney) Herb Crisler in the Olympic Mountain Wilds (Ruby El Hult) Mountain in the Clouds - A Search for the Wild Salmon (Bruce Brown) Early Hiking in the Olympics 1922-1942 (Paul B. Crews) Council of Bears (Pete Merrill)

"Forget gaining a little knowledge about a lot and strive to learn a lot about a little." - Harvey Manning
Back to top Reply to topic Reply with quote Send private message
Ski
><((((°>



Joined: 28 May 2005
Posts: 12798 | TRs | Pics
Location: tacoma
Ski
><((((°>
PostSat Dec 12, 2020 12:16 pm 
"The Ozette Prairies of Olympic National Park: Their Former Indigenous Uses and Management" © 2009 M. Kat Anderson - Olympic National Park (You can probably find this online in *.pdf format, or possibly a hard copy from the Park.) "River near the Sea - An Ethnohistory of the Queets River Valley" © October 19, 2014 Jacilee Wray - Olympic National Park (This document is available only in a redacted form in *.pdf format currently. The links are posted here somewhere on this website. Hard copies will be difficult, if not impossible, to find. I saw one sell on Ebay in 2015 for $100.00 + shipping.) "My Queets Story" (Sorry, cannot recall date or author at the moment. I read it in the archive room at a public library. May or may not be available for check-out.) "Olympic Battleground - the Power Politics of Timber Preservation" © Carsten Lien https://www.amazon.com/Olympic-Battleground-Politics-Timber-Preservation/dp/087156646X (I found a copy at the Seattle Public Library and read it 25+ years ago. Very enlightening read. Highly recommended.) "The Olympic Rain Forest - An Ecological Web" © 1992 Ruth Kirk - University of Washington Press (Probably available on Amazon. Very informative book concerning the native flora and manner in which the ecosystems of the west side of the Peninsula have developed over millennia.) "Native Peoples of the Olympic Peninsula - Who We Are" © 2015 Olympic Peninsula Intertribal Cultural Advisory Committee - edited by Jacilee Wray (Probably available from Olympic National Park) "Rivers to Reckon With" "Rivers on the Western Edge of the Olympic Peninsula" © 1985 E.C. Gockerell & Craig Fletcher - Olympic Graphic Arts, Inc., Forks, Washington Margaret Elley Felt (No idea where this first edition, signed by the author copy came from. Believe it was a gift. Might be difficult to find. Loaded with rare archival photo images.) While Wood's narrative of the Press Expedition is certainly an interesting read, it offers little in the way of human history on the Peninsula, and certainly nothing relevant to the native cultures. While there definitely was human activity within the interior core of what is now Olympic National Park, documentation is difficult to find and in most cases is anecdotal stuff passed down and filtered through the European authors who recorded it. Not sure where the map is right now as I lost a lot of material when my previous computer died, but for what it's worth: There was a berry picking patch up near what is now known as "Three Lakes" on the ridge between the North Fork Quinault and Tshletshy Creek. The trail was accessed from the vicinity of Lake Quinault. The original inhabitants of the Peninsula definitely traveled inland for purposes of hunting, fishing, and gathering food crops. To believe they stayed out on the outer perimeter of the Peninsula is fantasy. There's another narrative that was recorded by a father and son team who walked from Port Angeles down to Lake Quinault, looking for a route for a railroad, but I cannot at the moment recall the names. It offers a small glimpse of how the native inhabitants interacted with the first European explorers. Rod may have some other recommendations. I will put feelers out and see if I can get some other recommendations.

"I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon the beach. I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each."
Back to top Reply to topic Reply with quote Send private message
Ski
><((((°>



Joined: 28 May 2005
Posts: 12798 | TRs | Pics
Location: tacoma
Ski
><((((°>
PostSat Dec 12, 2020 12:22 pm 
Thank you very much, Ian, for your recommendations, few of which I've ever heard of. up.gif

"I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon the beach. I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each."
Back to top Reply to topic Reply with quote Send private message
Ski
><((((°>



Joined: 28 May 2005
Posts: 12798 | TRs | Pics
Location: tacoma
Ski
><((((°>
PostSat Dec 12, 2020 12:31 pm 
Just a note: It is difficult to understand the human history of the Peninsula without some understanding of how the ecosystems of the Peninsula evolved over millennia - since the retreat of the Cordilleran and Laurentide Ice Sheets. There's a reason why Michener prefaced his "Hawaii" with a section describing the geological formation of the islands. You might also want to take a look at: "Guide to the Geology of Olympic National Park" © 1975 Rowland W. Tabor - University of Washington Press And then if you are willing to go down the rabbit hole: Search out and download any number of the papers authored by Robert Naiman, Tim Abbe, and Joshua Latterell - University of Washington Fisheries - which concern the evolvement of the ecosystems of west-slope Olympic Peninsula riverine systems. and Check out papers authored by Patti Happe and M. Kat Anderson - Olympic National Park. While their primary focus is on the native flora and fauna, their works include information concerning the native inhabitants of the Peninsula. Almost all of them, as well as the UW Fisheries papers by Naiman et al, can be procured through Academia.edu if not directly from ONP.

"I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon the beach. I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each."
Back to top Reply to topic Reply with quote Send private message
Ski
><((((°>



Joined: 28 May 2005
Posts: 12798 | TRs | Pics
Location: tacoma
Ski
><((((°>
PostSat Dec 12, 2020 12:33 pm 
"Gods and Goblins - A Field Guide to Place Names of Olympic National Park" Second Edition © 2009 Smitty Parratt - Poseidon Peak Publishing Understanding the origin of place names provides greater insight into their history and meaning.

"I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon the beach. I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each."
Back to top Reply to topic Reply with quote Send private message
ForbinsAscent
Member
Member


Joined: 29 Jun 2018
Posts: 26 | TRs | Pics
Location: WA
ForbinsAscent
Member
PostSat Dec 12, 2020 1:48 pm 
Thank you very much for the detailed recommendations, Ski and Ian. That's exactly what I was looking for. I am fortunate in that I work in natural resources and my job sometimes pays me to bushwhack and hike on the peninsula (and then I go back to do the same on my own time on the weekend), so I've become somewhat familiar with the natural history. Peninsula geology is probably my weakest subject, but I'm slowly picking up a little of it. But I am often most interested in seeing and understanding the how people have lived and worked and explored the land over the years, so thanks!

Back to top Reply to topic Reply with quote Send private message
Ski
><((((°>



Joined: 28 May 2005
Posts: 12798 | TRs | Pics
Location: tacoma
Ski
><((((°>
PostSat Dec 12, 2020 2:18 pm 
You might consider walking out the Ozette trail toward Cape Alava and checking out the Roose Homestead. Just being there will give you a visceral understanding of how difficult it must have been for the early homesteaders, and how completely isolated they were from the rest of civilization. I am awaiting responses from a couple contacts who might have further recommendations.

"I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon the beach. I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each."
Back to top Reply to topic Reply with quote Send private message
Seventy2002
Member
Member


Joined: 19 Jul 2008
Posts: 512 | TRs | Pics
Seventy2002
Member
PostSat Dec 12, 2020 4:54 pm 
Ski wrote:
how difficult it must have been for the early homesteaders
Many years ago I visited a friend's cabin at Lake Ozette. I remarked on the rectangular stands of alders on the opposite shore. They, were, he told me, failed homesteads being reclaimed by the forest.

Back to top Reply to topic Reply with quote Send private message
   All times are GMT - 8 Hours
 Reply to topic
Forum Index > Pacific NW History > Favorite books on history of the Olympics
  Happy Birthday speyguy, Bandanabraids!
Jump to:   
Search this topic:

You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum