Junius Rochester

Junius Rochester, whose family has shaped the city for many generations, is an award-winning Northwest historian and author of numerous books about Seattle and other places.

Washington is Home to Some of the Nation’s Largest Trees

Although rain-soaked Western Washington boasts the most impressive collection of tall trees, other regions are in the running.

Explaining Curious Washington Names

The name Mazama is Spanish for mountain goat, a likely improvement to its first designation as Goat Creek.

Richard Beyer: The Characters He Left Behind

About the famous "Waiting for the Interurban" in Fremont, Rich suggested that his somber, patiently-waiting passengers represent a kind of protest "of what automobiles have done to our urban scene."

The Ghosts of Port Ludlow

Yesterday's Port Ludlow was an important Chemakum Native village and burial site.  Later it became one of the Pacific Northwest's largest sawmills. Today it has evolved into a luxury resort.

Columbia River Country through the Eyes of Lewis and Clark

After leaving the confluence of the Snake and Columbia Rivers in October 1805, near today's Pasco, Washington, the intrepid explorers marveled at "the number of dead salmon on the shores and floating in the river."

Lonely, Abandoned Fort Simcoe Near Yakima

There is an abandoned U.S. Army fort, one of two in our state (the other is Fort Walla Walla) that were constructed to "protect" white settlers in the 1850s and 1860s.  Its name is Fort Simcoe.

Islamic Roots in the Pacific Northwest

In the 1940s and 50s a significant number of Middle Eastern immigrants found their way to the Pacific Northwest, including many students with professional skills.  Muslim influence thereafter grew within local colleges and universities.

Old Seattle: It’s All in the Pronunciation

"New York" was the first settler name of "Smaquamox" for the Denny, Low, Boren, Terry, and Bell families.  John Low and Lee Terry, native New Yorkers, believed that ambitious name would augur a bright future for their little encampment.

Father F.X. Prefontaine – An Original

Upon Father Prefontaine's death he left a bequest of $5,000 to the city for the construction of a public fountain.  Today that blue-tiled pool rests at the junction of Yesler and Third, not far from the site of the young priest's $6 a month clapboard room and chapel.

Settler Amenities in the Early Seattle Days

Our lives are soothed by an array of service attendants and a flock of mechanical conveniences.  Foods "appear" at market stalls as if from a garden or bakery in...

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