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Viveros Avendaño (Iris) interview
No full textIris Viveros Avendaño, who received her PhD in Feminist Studies from the University of Washington, reflects on her childhood in Mexico City and Xalapa, contrasting the two cities and recounting her and her mother's involvement in Indigenous protest movements, including the Zapatista Movement. She emphasizes how her parents shaped her commitment to dignifying forms of knowledge that are not traditionally recognized within academia. Viveros Avenda o traces her path to the PhD program through her involvement in the Seattle Fandango Project and mentorship from Michelle Habell-Pallán, as well as influential courses and scholars in the department. Her research focuses on dance as a healing space, decolonization, and women of color feminisms. She describes the diversity of the GWSS department, its emphasis on transnational feminism and women of color feminisms, and the activist framework of Feminist Studies. Offering advice to young scholars, she shares her experiences as a student and a mother, as well as her insights into navigating the job market.Student; Feminist Studies; Academia and activism; Interdepartmental comparisons; Indigenous feminism; Transnational feminism; Women of color feminisms; Student-Professor dynamics; Decolonizing methodologies; Ar
About Eldridge Morse, Jr.’s Notes of the History and Resources of Washington Territory 1880-1881 Manuscript Prepared for H. H. Bancroft’s Pacific States History Series
No full textThis report originated from the tireless historical research of James D. (Jim) Mattila, a fisheries biologist interested in the past distributions of various fish species. While following numerous historical leads, Jim encountered Snohomish, Washington Pioneer, Eldridge Morse’s manuscript, Notes of the History and Resources of Washington Territory, archived in the Bancroft Library at the University of California, Berkeley. Borrowing microfilms, he discovered that while the manuscript contained some natural history information, its early accounts about Washington could be of great interest to historians.About Eldridge Morse, Jr.’s
Notes of the History and Resources of Washington Territory
1880-1881 Manuscript
Prepared for H. H. Bancroft’s
Pacific States History Series
Type-scripters
Gail Thompson, Ph.D.
James D. Mattila
July 2024
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Table of Contents
Preface .......................................................................................................................................... 1
1. Introduction .............................................................................................................................. 1
2. Life of Eldridge Morse ............................................................................................................... 3
2.1 Early Life ............................................................................................................................. 4
2.2 At Snohomish...................................................................................................................... 4
2.3 Preparation of the Notes .................................................................................................... 5
2.4 Morse’s Monthly ................................................................................................................. 6
2.5 Later Life ............................................................................................................................. 6
3.0 Morse’s Research .................................................................................................................... 6
3.1 Gathering Information ........................................................................................................ 7
3.2 The First-Described Trip ...................................................................................................... 7
3.3 The Second-Described Trip ............................................................................................... 11
3.4 Indian Traditions and Legends .......................................................................................... 12
4.0 Preparation of the Notes ....................................................................................................... 13
4.1 Morse’s Aims in the Notes ................................................................................................ 13
4.2 Sending the Notebooks to Bancroft .................................................................................. 14
5.0 Importance of Morse’s Work to Washington History ............................................................ 15
5.1 Education, Broad Interests, and Professional Work .......................................................... 15
5.2 Vision for the Development of the Puget Sound Area ...................................................... 16
5.3 First-Person Research Methods ........................................................................................ 16
5.4 Recognition for Morse’s Work ........................................................................................... 16
5.5 Much of Morse’s Research is Not Currently Available ....................................................... 17
5.6 Some Cautions .................................................................................................................. 18
6.0 Type-Scripting Morse’s Notebooks ........................................................................................ 18
6.1 Working with Morse’s Cursive Handwriting ...................................................................... 18
6.2 Use of Pejorative Language ............................................................................................... 19
7.0 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................. 19
8.0 References ............................................................................................................................. 20
9.0 Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................... 21
10.0 The Type-scripters ............................................................................................................... 22
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Preface
This report originated from the tireless historical research of James D. (Jim) Mattila, a fisheries biologist interested in the past distributions of various fish species. While following numerous historical leads, Jim encountered Snohomish, Washington Pioneer, Eldridge Morse’s manuscript, Notes of the History and Resources of Washington Territory, archived in the Bancroft Library at the University of California, Berkeley. Borrowing microfilms, he discovered that while the manuscript contained some natural history information, its early accounts about Washington could be of great interest to historians.
Jim, always enthusiastic about research, had previously assisted Gail Thompson in documenting early fishing practices as part of her research. He mentioned his interest in the Notes, leading Gail to purchase PDF (portable document format) files of them from the Bancroft Library as a thank-you gift. Recognizing the cursive handwriting was slow to read and not searchable, Jim persuaded her to typescript the Notes.
For 18 months, we worked through the notebooks in number order, with Gail type-scripting a few pages most days, and Jim proofreading and researching confusing names and terms. Jim consistently maintained that the information in the notebooks was crucial to early Washington history and should be made accessible to researchers, the public, libraries, and historical societies.
As the project neared completion, we found that Morse’s 24 notebooks total over 270,000 words, far more than a typical book. We explored potential publication options to bring the typescripts from the Bancroft Library archive into public use in a readable and searchable format. Ultimately, we decided to post the typescript PDF files along with a report on Eldridge Morse’s life and work. Special Collections of the University of Washington Suzzallo-Allen Libraries agreed to accept the typescript PDF files and this report as a digital collection and to post a finding aid in the Archives West online catalog.
1. Introduction
Eldridge Morse loved Washington Territory, especially Western Washington where he resided from 1872 to 1914. He researched its history, interviewed early settlers, and collected information on the environment, resources, and their uses. An optimist about the area’s future development, Morse tirelessly promoted it. In the 1870s and 1880s, he visited many parts of Western Washington to conduct interviews and gather descriptive and statistical information. He wrote articles on his research for the Northern Star, a newspaper he published in Snohomish City from January 1876 until May 1879, and later contributed pieces to the Snohomish Eye and other early newspapers.
In 1880-1881, Morse prepared 24 handwritten notebooks, totaling over 2,000 pages, detailing early settlement, aspects of the Indian War of 1855-56, and descriptions of resources and 2
development in parts of Western Washington. Morse sent these notebooks to H. H. Bancroft, a publisher who was compiling histories of the Pacific states. The Bancroft Library archive includes the Notes of the History and Resources of Washington Territory (Notes) and a Correspondence File of letters about the notebooks: three from Morse to Bancroft and one from E.C. Ferguson, an early Snohomish pioneer, to Bancroft. In addition to type-scripting the Notes, we also type-scripted the four letters, which provide valuable information about Morse’s intentions and work.
Frances Fuller Victor, Bancroft’s co-author, cited the Notes several times in writing the History of Washington, Idaho and Montana, 1845-1889 (Bancroft and Victor 1890, Morris 1908:295). The notebooks later became part of the Bancroft Library archives at the University of California, Berkeley, with a microfilm copy (through Notebook No. 21, Microforms A-4280, 3 rolls) deposited in the Suzzallo-Allen Libraries, University of Washington, Seattle. However, the information in the notebooks has not been published or widely cited in Washington’s historical literature.
Although titled Notes of the History and Resources of Washington Territory, the notebooks primarily focus on northwestern Washington. They include information on the region and the wider area involved in the Indian War of 1855-56. Likely because this area was part of Washington Territory when Morse conducted his research, the term “Territory” is used in the title of his notebooks. Morse also interviewed Native Americans to collect their traditions and legends, though much of this information has not been found.
In January 1883, Morse published the first and only issue of Morse’s Monthly magazine, intending in part to share information from the Notes (Morse 1883:31). The first article in the Monthly detailed two extensive trips Morse took to gather information between May 1879 and January 1882. Other articles reported Morse’s work on Indian traditions, including the Indians’ legendary trickster S’Be-ow and cultural differences in a meeting between Chief Bonaparte and U.S. General McDowell at the Tulalip Reservation as well as information about Morse’s plans for the Monthly, which unfortunately never materialized. At that time, Morse had lived in the area for more than 10 years, and while he was interested in the Territory’s laws and government institutions, he also traveled extensively to learn about the resources and interests of the citizens (Morse 1883:30).
While producing the Northern Star newspaper, he visited most of the settlements around Puget Sound to describe local resources, and people generally found his descriptions to be accurate. After the newspaper folded in 1879, Morse increased his research in northwest Washington and the greater Northwest, saying that he had once traveled “almost continuously for fourteen months, either afoot or in an open boat . . . . over twenty-five thousand miles and has visited three-fourths of the families living around the Sound, on the Ocean coast and in the Chehalis river valley; besides traveling over much of Western Washington” (Morse 1883:30). 3
Morse collected statistics about agricultural production for communities on the east side of Puget Sound such that he could recount what was grown, by year since 1878, on farms stretching from the Puyallup valley to the Canadian border. Beyond the settled lands, Morse said he had traveled to describe wild places not previously written about, and he concluded that most people in the region would agree his information about it was fuller than anyone else’s (Morse 1883:30).
Why aren’t the Notes more widely known, used, and published by researchers? Despite Morse’s intent to publish parts of them in Morse’s Monthly, the magazine ceased publication after the first issue. Frances Fuller Victor referenced and apparently used some information from the Notes in the History of Washington, Idaho, and Montana, Vol. XXXI (Bancroft and Victor 1890), but ultimately, the Notes were archived at the University of California, Berkeley. Researchers may not have come across them in the University of Washington and UC Berkeley library catalogs, believed the Notes to have been fully published by Bancroft and Victor, or found the microfilm of Morse’s cursive writing formidable to read and research.
In type-scripting the Notes, we hope they will interest descendants of historical figures mentioned and those with an avocational interest in Washington history, as well as professional historians and researchers. This report relies heavily on two of Morse’s other works: the single 1883 edition of Morse’s Monthly (available in Special Collections, University of Washington Suzzallo-Allen Libraries) and his Memoir dating to 1892 (available in Snohomish Historical Society Archives). The Monthly includes details two of Morse’s research trips, while the Memoir describes his life to age 45. The latter document is a typescript that may have been produced from a handwritten original, preventing researchers from evaluating its accuracy.
The rest of this report introduces the Notes and is intended to accompany our typescripts of them. We provide a short biography of Morse (Section 2), focusing on his time in Snohomish City and his work in the region. Section 3 discusses Morse’s research for the Notes, including the two trips described in the Monthly. Preparation of the manuscript and sending the notebooks to Bancroft are the subject of Section 4., while Section 5 discusses the importance of the Notes. Section 6 addresses our type-scripting and Section 7 provides a short conclusion. References are listed in Section 8. Section 9 acknowledges the institutions and persons who assisted our work, and Section 10 gives some information on the type-scripters.
2. Life of Eldridge Morse
Several sources provide information on the life of Eldridge Morse, Jr. (e.g., Blake 2023; Bourasaw 2003; Morse 1892; WHQ 1928), while our focus begins in the early 1870s in Snohomish City. From there, Morse embarked on the lifelong effort of gathering, reporting on, and promoting the resources, people, communities, and economics of parts of Washington Territory. His notes also reflect his interest in history, geology, the landscape, and Indian traditions and legends. 4
2.1 Early Life
Morse was born in April 1847 on the family farm in Wallingford, Connecticut. He enlisted in the Union Army Battalion of Engineers near the end of the Civil War, spending his first two years at Willet’s Point in New York harbor (Morse 1880-81, Notebook 21:19-20; Morse 1892:14). His unit of engineers transferred to Fort Point at the Golden Gate of San Francisco in 1867. During his service, Morse studied many books, stating that his “early ambition was to qualify myself in science, especially geology. . . .” and related subjects to become “an explorer and scientific writer” (Morse 1892:16).
Morse left the Army the following year, returned briefly to his parents’ farm, and then went on to Iowa to become a “book agent, school teacher, and law student” (Morse 1892:16). He attended law school at the University of Michigan, graduating in 1870. Morse practiced law in Iowa for two years, married his first wife there, and fathered a son. In addition to the law, he had broad interests in the natural sciences, art, literature, and agriculture.
Morse became interested in the Washington Territory when introduced by his brother to Civil War Union Army soldiers who were from Washington Territory or later moved there (e.g., T. T. Minor, Benson Northup; Morse 1892:13). In his Memoir, Morse states that a tent mate named Norton had been in the Indian War of 1855-56 in Eastern Washington and that Spokane resident J.S. Brown, a member of Washington State’s first legislature, was a companion and friend (Morse 1892:15-16). In one of his notebooks, Morse said, “The first I heard of the Pacific Northwest; the country and its people, was from regular army soldiers, who served there twenty-five years ago” (Morse 1880-1881, Notebook 7:6), indicating that Army relationships apparently attracted him to Western Washington.
2.2 At Snohomish
In 1872, Morse moved his family to San Francisco by rail and then by ship to Seattle, where he met early pioneer Emory C. Ferguson, who persuaded him to go to Snohomish, “then a center for logging camp men and a frontier trading post” (Morse 1892:17). Morse brought the first professional library to Snohomish County (Morse 1880-1881, Notebook 21:20). He filed a homestead claim for a farm and also had a home in town. He and others founded the Atheneum Society in 1874, the first literary and scientific organization in Snohomish County, completing a building in 1876 for meetings and to hold the society’s library and scientific collections (www.SnohomishStories.org/category/snohomish-wa-history/, accessed May 25, 2024).
In 1876, Morse started the Northern Star, Snohomish City’s first newspaper, published weekly. For some of his articles, Morse traveled frequently and widely in Western Washington, through the Cascade Mountains, and to Eastern Washington, mostly alone, on foot, in an open boat, on horseback, and sometimes by steamer. He visited many communities, interviewed inhabitants, learned about local resources, and gathered statistics about logging, milling, agriculture, and mining. 5
Morse described himself as five feet seven inches tall and weighing 165 pounds (Morse 1892:18). He attributed his ability to travel over rough country to traits he inherited and what he learned as a child from the stories of his father and uncles, who had visited many places in the United States before the construction of railroads when travel was much more arduous (Morse 1892:12).
He adopted the trade jargon, Chinook, and visited Indian communities and individuals, sometimes with interpreters, to hear and record Indian traditions and legends. He was proud of the nickname bestowed on him by Indians near Snohomish, ‘S’be-ow,’ referring to the shapeshifting legendary old man trickster, in which Morse’s ability to remove and replace his dentures mimicked that figure. He sometimes employed the jargon when writing about Indian people in the Northern Star. He said the Indians always liked to “hire me as a lawyer, because, according to their philosophy, S’Be-ow aum tux hyn (knew a great deal)” (Morse 1892:22, italics added).
2.3 Preparation of the Notes
After the Northern Star ceased publication in mid-1879, “he traveled over the territory almost continuously until Feb. 1881, gathering information in reference to the history, resources, &c. of W.T. Since then, chiefly employed in writing up these notes” (Morse 1880-81, Notebook 21:20). Morse practiced law during the 1880s and continued to gather information and write articles for the Eye, another early newspaper in Snohomish, as well as the better-known papers of Seattle.
He prepared more than 2,000 handwritten pages of historical and economic information, which he sent to H.H. Bancroft of San Francisco for use in the latter’s history series on the Pacific States. He titled his materials Notes of the History and Resources of Washington Territory, consisting of 24 small notebooks, continuing topically from one notebook to the next as a single work. Several of the notebooks, especially the later ones, contain statistical information dating to 1880-1881, indicating that he sent notebooks well into 1881.
Morse frequently needed money. In November 1880, he told Bancroft that he needed a few months to have the Notes written or ready to write, “but a succession of domestic misfortunes has stripped me of my property, and made it impossible for me at present to complete my enterprise” (E. Morse to H. Bancroft, letter 18 November 1880, Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley). Again in 1881, he wrote Bancroft, “If you could remit something on what is already sent, it would aid me materially just now. I have taken most of my time for three months past, selecting, arranging and writing up these notes, and for two years past my time has been occupied gathering such matter almost exclusively, so that I have been all that time under expense, with no considerable income” (E. Morse to H. Bancroft, letter 18 April 1881, Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley). We don’t know whether Bancroft paid Morse. 6
2.4 Morse’s Monthly
While Morse included his first-hand information in his newspaper articles and the notebooks, he also stated in Morse’s Monthly magazine (which had only one issue, published in January 1883) his intention to publish more of his unique research in the magazine. Unfortunately, after the Monthly failed, most of the information Morse obtained in his travels was never made public. Morse stated that he ceased traveling extensively after 1885 (Morse 1892:18).
2.5 Later Life
As his finances declined, Morse and his growing family devoted themselves to horticultural pursuits and selling fruits and vegetables from the farm to customers in Snohomish, Everett, and Mukilteo.1 They also made wine to sell during the winter months.
In addition to experimenting with various plants in his garden and selling produce, Morse continued to publish informative news pieces throughout the rest of his life. His later works, found in the Snohomish County Tribune, included a series of insightful articles on education in the early 1900s and a fictional series about the outbreak of civil unrest with “The Battle of Cathcart”, which presaged actual events like the Everett Massacre and the Centralia Massacre.
Morse wrote a short autobiographical Memoir in 1892 about his life to age 45. He died at age 67 in January 1914 and was buried in the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) cemetery in Snohomish. His obituaries lauded him as a civic-minded visionary, cultured intellectual, and devoted historic figure in his own lifetime.
3.0 Morse’s Research
Morse enjoyed researching and promoting the Puget Sound area’s history, resources, and development. He traveled extensively to interview residents, gathering information on
Blaser (Brianna) interview
No full textBrianna Blaser, who received her PhD from the GWSS Department in 2008, shares stories of how her upbringing led her to where she is today. She discusses her time at Carnegie Mellon University and how the shock of being one of the few women in her math classes influenced her to take gender studies courses. She recounts memorable stories of her time at the University of Washington, including her search for funding, constant bi-coastal traveling, and trying to print her dissertation. Blaser goes on to share details about her work at the University of Washington's DO-IT Center where she manages complex programs, delivers presentations, and writes grant proposals.Student; Math; Comparative History of Ideas; Name chang
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No full textTo inquire about permissions contact Philip Mayer, Secretary of the ACS Puget Sound Section at:[email protected]
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No full textTo inquire about permissions contact Philip Mayer, Secretary of the ACS Puget Sound Section at:[email protected]
Stunt card from Megan Rapinoe's last home game, October 6, 2023
No full textMegan Rapinoe (b. 1985) is a former professional soccer player who played for the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) team Seattle OL Reign (originally Seattle Reign FC) for 10 years before retiring at the end of the 2023 season. Her last regular season home game, on October 6, 2023, featured a celebration called "Forever Reign: A Celebration of Megan Rapinoe" for the NWSL record 34,130 fans in attendance. Before the game, stunt cards were placed on each seat in certain sections with instructions to hold them up at a specific time to create the message "Thank You Megan." This blue stunt card formed part of the background for the message.Caption information source: "Megan Rapinoe honored in front of record crowd as she nears retirement" by Issy Ronald, October 7, 2023, on CNN website.1 sheet: 18 x 2
Pink platform pumps, from Nordstrom "Be Proud" line, 2022
No full textPart of Nordstrom’s “Be Proud” line in 2022, these shoes are described online as “Pride Gender Inclusive Fynn Ankle Strap Platform Pump,” and promise “a fit true to size for all gender identities.” This pair represents the largest size offered, which corresponds to a size 15 in women’s shoes, size 13 in men’s. “B.P.” is the name of a longtime Nordstrom in-house brand, with the initials standing for different words depending on the context. The “Be Proud” line included clothing and accessories for adults and children. Ten percent of sales from the line went to Trans Lifeline, an organization “dedicated to providing peer support and financial resources directly to transgender people across the US and Canada.” Nordstrom was founded in Seattle in 1901.1 Shoe; Materials: plastic; Dimensions: 8 in.H x 3.75 in.W x 12 in.
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No full textTo inquire about permissions contact Philip Mayer, Secretary of the ACS Puget Sound Section at:[email protected]
Kids' rainbow stripe bike shorts, from Nordstrom "Be Proud" line, 2022
No full textThese shorts, from Seattle-based retailer Nordstrom, are part of their 2022 “Be Proud” line. The designs included clothing and accessories for adults and children, made for wearers of many gender identities. The online description for these shorts read “Rainbow-splashed stripes bring a full spectrum of pride to bike shorts.” Ten percent of sales from the collection went to Trans Lifeline, an organization dedicated to providing peer support and financial resources directly to transgender people across the US and Canada. “B.P.” is the name of a longtime Nordstrom in-house brand, with the initials standing for different words depending on the context. Nordstrom was founded in Seattle in 1901.1 Shorts; Materials: polyester --Spandex; Dimensions: 6.5 in.H x 12 in.
Jessica Sylvia interview
No full textInterview with formerly incarcerated person, Jessica Sylvia. She talks about her experiences inside of Washington prisons. Topics covered include organizing, censorship, and prison policy