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.

When Fiction hits too Close: Storyteller Nard Jones and the Book His Hometown Banned

Allegedly based on several characters from his hometown of Weston, Oregon -- the fictional town in Oregon Detour was called "Creston" -- the book caused something of a scandal in Oregon.

90 Years Ago: A Sensational Kidnapping of a Weyerhaeuser

When the plan was underway, $200,000 was to be delivered within five days. The police and F.B.I. were of course notified.

How our State was Accidentally Named Washington

A sudden substitution of the name of Washington replaced "Columbia" in Congress, and the name of the new territory stuck.

How the Northwest Grew a Nordic Heritage

In time, the great western lands and waters attracted Nordics to familiar professions: dairying, logging, fishing, mining, and village businesses. During the late 1880s Scandinavians found their way to the Pacific Northwest.

Much of What We Know of Seattle History We Owe to One Man

Rich Berner served as the first head of the University of Washington Archives and Manuscripts Division.

Central Player: How the Timber Economy Made Washington State

An 1853 edition of the Columbian, the newspaper of record at that time, reported that "fourteen sawmills" were in operation on Puget Sound, most of them run by waterpower from nearby streams and rivers.

The Sculptor who made Seattle Center’s Controversial “Doughboy”

By the early 1920s Alonzo Victor Lewis's fame was recognized throughout the Pacific Northwest and beyond.  His mostly somber herculean statues loomed in many parks, nooks and street-corners. 

The Aspirational Birth of Washington’s University

The Denny-Terry-Lander deeds stipulated that the 10-acre site downtown on Universty Street was to be dedicated forever to educational purposes.  That stipulation was met.

Mary McCarthy’s Unfond Memories of Growing up in Seattle

McCarthy's autobiographical book, "Memories of a Catholic Girlhood," tartly describes a convent upbringing in Seattle in a barbed and entertaining memoir.

Passing Through: Some Writers Who Stopped Here

Carl Sandburg was called upon to give a talk and play his guitar at the 1962 Seattle World's Fair. His talk was a success, but he left the stage without touching the lonely guitar.

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