Nature's Northwest: The North Pacific Slope in the Twentieth Century

by William G. Robbins, Katrine Barber

Overview

At the beginning of the twentieth century, the greater Northwest was ablaze with change and seemingly obsessed with progress. The promotional literature of the time praising railroads, population increases, and the growing sophistication of urban living, however, ignored the reality of poverty and ethnic and gender discrimination. During the course of the next century, even with dramatic changes in the region, one constant remained— inequality.

With an emphasis on the region’s political economy, its environmental history, and its cultural and social heritage, this lively and colorful history of the Pacific Northwest—defined here as Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, and southern British Columbia—places the narrative of this dynamic region within a national and international context.

Embracing both Canadian and American stories in looking at the larger region, renowned historians William Robbins and Katrine Barber offer us a fascinating regional history through the lens of both the environment and society. Understanding the physical landscape of the greater Pacific Northwest—and the watersheds of the Columbia, Fraser, Snake, and Klamath rivers—sets the stage for understanding the development of the area. Examining how this landscape spawned sawmills, fish canneries, railroads, logging camps, agriculture, and shared immigrant and ethnic traditions reveals an intricate portrait of the twentieth-century Northwest.

Impressive in its synthesis of myriad historical facts, this first-rate regional history will be of interest to historians studying the region from a variety of perspectives and an informative read for anyone fascinated by the story of a landscape rich in diversity, natural resources, and Native culture.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780816529599
Publisher:	University of Arizona Press
Publication date:	04/15/2011
Series:	The Modern American West
Pages:	312
Sales rank:	613,579
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

William G. Robbins is Emeritus Distinguished Professor of History at Oregon State University. He is the author or editor of eleven books, including The Great Northwest: The Search for Regional Identity. Katrine Barber is an associate professor of history at Portland State University and the director of the Center for Columbia River History. She is the author of Death of Celilo Falls.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations vii

List of Tables ix

Preface: Toward a Regional Narrative xi

Acknowledgments xix

Introduction: Mapping the Greater Northwest 1

Part I Into the New Century

1 The Years of "Exuberant Optimism" 15

2 Reformers, Radicals, and the New Order 36

Part II Extraregional Conflict and Economics

3 War and Peace: The Politics of Reaction 59

4 Shaping a Regional Culture, 1900-1930 78

5 Descent into Despair and War 103

Part III Toward a Postindustrial Society

6 The Great Boom 127

7 Remarking Northwest Landscapes 148

8 The Conflicted Politics of Environmentalism 169

9 Culture Works, 1930-2000 191

Epilogue: Regional Identity in a New Century 218

Notes 233

Illustration Credits 277

Index 279

Editorial Reviews

"The authors integrate the experiences of social groups far, far better than any predecessor volume. No other text frames the region this way."—Adam M. Sowards, Director of the Institute for Pacific Northwest Studies at the University of Idaho

From the Publisher