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Local History

Washington State

Pacific Northwest

Sanborn Maps (Washington State) | Paid for by KCLS
Large scale maps of Washington cities and towns detailing street blocks and building numbers.

Washington State Newsstand | Paid for by KCLS Accessible with KCLS Library Card
Articles from Washington newspapers, including the Seattle PI and the Tacoma News Tribune.

Washington State - General

Washington Place Names Database
The Tacoma Public Library provides background on how places in Washington were named and then provides searching capabilities and brief entries about each resulting place.

Washington State Facts 
Includes general information, census data, city & county information, geography and much more – from Access Washington and the Washington State Dept. of Information Services.

 

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Biographies

About the Governor
This brief biography from the Governor’s home page gives background information on Christine Gregoire’s career and family. It also includes links to the First Gentleman’s website and other information released from the Governor’s office.

George Washington Bush - WA State Pioneer
A biography, essays, timeline, and background information from Olympia News, The Olympian and other sources on Washington State pioneer, George Washington Bush and his family.

Lewis and Clark. Inside the Corps. The Corps.
PBS provides this list of links to biographies on all members of the Corps of Discovery. Included are biographies on Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, Sacajawea, and others on this famous expedition.

PBS-The West-Marcus and Narcissa Whitman
The PBS website gives this short biography and Marcus and Narcissa Whitman, which describes their personal backgrounds as well as their work on missions in the West and Oregon Territory.

 

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Washington State - Government. City & County

About King County 
The official King County government web page includes a map, county leaders, budget, census data, statistical profile and more.

King County Snapshots
Presents King County, Washington, through more than 12,000 historical images carefully chosen from thirteen organizations' collections. These cataloged 19th and 20th century images portray people, places, and events in the county's urban, suburban, and rural communities.

Washington State City and Town Profiles
This list of cities and towns includes population estimates, officials for each city and town, and links to E-mail addresses and Web sites.  Maintained by the Municipal Research and Services Center of Washington.

Washington State Counties
Alphabetical links to the Web sites of the counties of Washington State, from Access Washington.

Washington State- Government, State

Access Washington
Quick starting point for Washington State government information.

Washington State Capitol Building Virtual Tour
This virtual tour of the Washington State Capitol includes photos, primary sources, and research material.

Washington State Constitution
The full text of the Washington State Constitution from the Washington Courts.

Washington State Data Book
Statistics about Washington State updated every other year and divided into eleven major sections: population, economy, state government finance, human services, criminal justice, education, natural resources, environment, energy, transportation, and local government. Provided by the Washington State Office of Financial Management.

Washington State Legislature
House and Senate information, bills and laws, elected officials, and more.

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Washington State- History & Explorers

Explorers | History  

Explorers

A History of Fort Vancouver 
The story of the Hudson’s Bay Company, exploration, Dr. John McLoughlin, Fort Vancouver and the fur trade industry in Washington and the Pacific Northwest from the National Park Service.

Marcus Whitman (1802-1847) and Narcissa Whitman (1808-1847) 
An overview of the Whitmans, among the first American settlers in Washington who played an important role in opening the Oregon Trail and left a tragic legacy that would haunt relations between whites and Native Americans for decades after their deaths, from PBS. Includes the Letters and Journals of Narcissa Whitman 1836-1847.

Peter Puget on Puget’s Sound 
An excerpt from Murray Morgan’s book, Puget’s Sound, provided by the Tacoma Public Library. Describes the discovery of Puget Sound attributed to the British lieutenant.

Washington Territorial Timeline
The Washington State Archives has developed a timeline of the Washington Territory to 1889.

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History

100 Years in the Pacific Northwest
Every Sunday throughout 1996, The Seattle Times published a page looking at the history of Seattle through the eyes of the newspaper. These pages are indexed on the Web.

Camp Harmony Exhibit
An online exhibit about the 1942 detention in Puyallup of Japanese Americans,based on materials located in the University of Washington Libraries including newspapers, photographs, correspondence, books, and documents.

A History Bursting With Telling: Asian Americans in Washington State
Developed at the University of Washington as a curriculum project for Washington State schools, this site is mostly text but includes some photographs, a timeline and many links to related information.

HistoryLink
HistoryLink, created by a team of local historians, writers, editors, designers, and Internet experts, is an evolving online encyclopedia of Seattle and King County history, but provides many links to events in state history--rosters of the local war dead, the WTO archives, baseball memories, and much more.

In Memory: Washington State Veterans Memorials
A guide to the veterans memorials located on the capitol campus in Olympia, Washington, from the Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs.

MOHAI Historical Photo Database
The Museum of History and Industry (MOHAI) has compiled a searchable database of historical photographs. You'll find images of Seattle, King County, and other areas of Washington State.

Murray's People
Essays about early Washington people and places by Northwest historian, Murray Morgan, from the Tacoma Public Library's Northwest Room /Special Collections.

Washington
University of Washington Libraries’ state section of Pacific Northwest History lists links including "100 Years in the Pacific Northwest" from the Seattle Times and Tacoma Public Library’s NW History Databases.

Washington State Historical Society
Homepage for the Washington State Historical Society, with links to permanent and changing exhibits, educational resources, special publications, History Lab, and more.

Women’s Votes, Women’s Voices
Learn how women in Washington State campaigned for women’s suffrage.  This website was designed to accompany the exhibit touring museums in Washington in 2009 and 2010.

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Washington State- Native Peoples

American Indians of the Pacific Northwest
Provides an extensive digital collection of original photographs and documents about the Northwest Coast and Plateau Indian cultures, complemented by essays written by anthropologists, historians and teachers about both particular tribes and cross-cultural topics. From the University of Washington Libraries Digital Collections.

Assimilation Through Education: Indian Boarding Schools in the Pacific Northwest
This digital collection from the University of Washington Library has photographs of Indian boarding schools and information about what daily life was like for the students. Includes study questions and a bibliography.

See Also Two Other Topics at Homework Help:

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Washington State - Natural Washington

The Best Apples on Earth
Web pages with detailed information about apples and the apple industry in Washington State, from the Washington Apple Education Foundation.

Burke Museum of Natural History and Culturehttp://www.previewshots.com/images/v1.3/t.gif
The home page of the Burke Museum features online exhibits, publications, field guides, and more.

Perry Castaneda Library Map Collection: Washington Maps
Washington state, city and historical maps; maps of National Parks, Monuments and Historic Sites, and links to maps on other web sites.

Washington County Data 
This site, from the Washington Agricultural Statistics Service, provides facts about agriculture in Washington along with a few general details, such as population and area statistics. Select a county, a commodity or a demographic and find details about crops, livestock and the farming industry. One concern: some statistics are from the mid-1990s.

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Washington State - State Symbols

The Symbols of Washington State
From the Washington State Legislature, this site includes many state symbols, from bird to tree.

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Last Updated: May 22, 2012