The Northwest Coast is the coastal region of the Pacific Northwest, and the Northwest Plateau (also commonly known as "
the Interior" in British Columbia), is the inland region. The term "Pacific Northwest" should not be confused with the
Northwest Territory (also known as the Great Northwest, a historical term in the United States) or the
Northwest Territories of
Canada. The region is sometimes referred to as Cascadia, which, depending on the borders, may or may not be the same thing as the Pacific Northwest.
The region's largest metropolitan areas are
Greater Seattle, Washington, with 4 million people;
Metro Vancouver, British Columbia, with 2.84 million people; and
Greater Portland, Oregon, with 2.5 million people.
The culture of the Pacific Northwest is influenced by the
Canada–United States border, which the United States and the
United Kingdom established at a time when the region's inhabitants were composed mostly of
indigenous peoples. Two sections of the border—one along the
49th parallel south of British Columbia and one between the
Alaska Panhandle and northern British Columbia—have left a great impact on the region. According to Canadian historian
Ken Coates, the border has not merely influenced the Pacific Northwest—rather, "the region's history and character have been determined by the boundary". (Full article...)
While colonial authorities used
quarantine,
smallpox vaccine, and
inoculation to keep the disease from spreading among colonists and settlers, it was largely allowed to spread among indigenous peoples. The
Colony of Vancouver Island made attempts to save some natives, but most were forced to leave the vicinity of Victoria and go back to their homelands, despite awareness that it would result in a major smallpox epidemic among natives along the Pacific Northwest coast. Many colonists and newspapers were vocally in favor of expulsion. The situation in the Puget Sound region was similar, with newspapers encouraging settlers to get vaccinated, but with little effort towards protecting natives. Most papers supported removing natives. The effect of the epidemic in the Puget Sound area is not well documented and it appears it did not spread south beyond the
Chehalis people of the
Chehalis River area. (Full article...)
Carol Elaine Channing (January 31, 1921 – January 15, 2019) was an American actress, comedian, singer and dancer who starred in
Broadway and film musicals. Her characters usually had a fervent expressiveness and an easily identifiable voice, whether singing or for comedic effect.
Channing originated the lead roles in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes in 1949 and Hello, Dolly! in 1964, winning the
Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for the latter. She revived both roles several times throughout her career, playing Dolly on Broadway for the final time in 1995. She was nominated for her first Tony Award in 1956 for The Vamp, followed by a nomination in 1961 for Show Girl. She received her fourth Tony Award nomination for the musical Lorelei in 1974. (Full article...)
Image 13The Coast Mountains are heavily eroded by glaciers, including Mount Waddington (far background, center). (from Geology of the Pacific Northwest)
Image 14Magnetic anomalies around the Juan de Fuca and Gorda Ridges, off the west coast of North America, color coded by age. (from Geology of the Pacific Northwest)
Image 20None of the multiple possible definitions of the Pacific Northwest is universally accepted. This map shows three possibilities: (1) The shaded area shows the historical
Oregon Country. (2) The green line shows the
Cascadia bioregion. (3) The labeled states and provinces include Washington, Idaho, Oregon and British Columbia. (from Pacific Northwest)
Image 31Map of "
megacity", showing population density (shades of yellow/brown), highways (red), and major railways (black). Public land shown in shades of green. (from Pacific Northwest)
Image 32The 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens (from Cascade Range)
Image 37Public transportation is used in the Pacific Northwest region. Vancouver's
SkyTrain rapid transit system achieves daily ridership of over 500,000 passengers per day on weekdays and the overall transit ridership levels in the
Metro Vancouver area rank third in North America per capita. (from Pacific Northwest)
... that future state senator William T. Vinton was sent to jail for contempt of court when he refused to sign a city paving contract, but was later vindicated by an
Oregon Supreme Court decision?
... that Gus C. Moser served five 4-year terms in the
Oregon State Senate, including two non-consecutive 2-year periods as senate president, to which post he was elected unanimously in 1917?
... that a Washington state radio station turned to "professional bikini watchers"—military recruiters—to report on crowds at local beaches?