From Our Corner

Beware of Hurricane Sandy scams

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(Photo courtesy of Red Cross)

When Hurricane Sandy left parts of the East Coast in ruins, many thoughtful and generous people did what comes naturally – they gave money to help those in need. Unfortunately, some… Read more

WSU creates new endowed professorship to honor Sam Reed

Image Secretary of State Sam Reed's alma mater, Washington State University, is creating an endowment to fund The Sam Reed Distinguished Professorship in Civic Education and Public Civility in honor of Reed’s "distinguished record of public service." He will… Read more

Clippings for the week of November 16, 2012

[caption id="attachment_4996" align="alignright" width="227" caption="Image courtesy North Pend Oreille Heritage collection"] Image [/caption] Washington State Library News On November 16th, Carolyn Petersen from the Washington State Library gave an eReader overview that included hands-on experience with eReader devices at the Dayton Memorial Library. This was sponsored by a grant… Read more

Guv's 1912 Thanksgiving proclamation

Image Thanksgiving proclamations have been a common practice for governors and presidents, all the way back to President Washington in 1789. And so 100 years ago, Washington Gov. Marion E. Hay issued a… Read more

Statehood telegram tops Archives treasures poll

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(Image courtesy of Washington State Archives)

Whenever we launch our monthly Archives treasures online poll, it’s usually clear right away which of the three entries will win. This month’s… Read more

Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce

Image Chief Joseph Washington State Library continues to celebrate Native American Heritage month by focusing on the history of Chief Joseph and the Nez Perce. The Nimi'ipuu (meaning “The Real People”) founded their villages in a 17 million acre swath of land that extended from the Bitteroot to the Blue mountains, especially along the banks of the Clearwater, Salmon, and Snake River drainages. Their language is a part of the Sahaptian sub… Read more

Reed & Wyman greet Consular Corps

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From left: Irish Consul General John Keane, Hungarian Consul General Helen Szablya, Secretary Reed, Secretary-elect Wyman, and Mrs. Keane (Photo courtesy of Patrick McDonald)

Secretary of State Sam Reed and… Read more

Behind the scenes with digital newspaper program

Image The Washington State Library uses a variety of online or digital programs to make its vast collections of diaries, maps, oral histories and other publications easily accessible to residents in our state… Read more

WSL Updates Special Edition for November 20, 2012

WSL Updates Special Edition for Tuesday, November 20, 2012 Topics include: 1) WASHINGTON STATE LIBRARY FEATURES WASHINGTON’S POET LAUREATE 2) WANTED – READER’S ADVISOR 3) FREE CE OPPORTUNITIES --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1) WASHINGTON STATE LIBRARY FEATURES WASHINGTON’S POET LAUREATE Join Washington State Poet Laureate, Kathleen Flenniken, and West Region National Student Poet, Miles Hewitt, as they… Read more

Clippings for the week of November 9, 2012

[caption id="attachment_4996" align="alignright" width="227" caption="Image courtesy North Pend Oreille Heritage collection"] Image [/caption] Washington State Library News Not many Republicans get elected statewide in Washington, but Sam Reed probably could have the secretary of state job for life if he wanted it. He’s been that popular. Instead, Reed is retiring after three… Read more

CFD enrollees, you can donate to Hurricane Sandy relief

Image If you are a public or retired employee enrolled in the Combined Fund Drive giving program , you already deserve kudos for your generosity and sense of giving back. You now have an… Read more

The Long Journey of Ozette Potatoes

Image Ozette Potatoes Not long ago as the WSL tribal library consultant I facilitated the annual meeting of the Washington State tribal librarians. One of the topics up for discussion was the native foods. The tribes are making a concerted… Read more

Looking for Pacific Northwest Native Resources?

Image From the desk of Sean Lanksbury. PNW & Special Collections Librarian Washington State Library Pacific Northwest and Special Collections compiled a selection of resources on the language, culture and intercultural connections of the… Read more

Yes, another election! This time, your fave for Archives Treasure

You’re probably thinking, “Another election?” Well, yes, but this one is short and sweet, and unlike what everyone recently experienced with candidates and ballot measures, we won’t constantly bombard you with ads.

This election is meant for you to choose which of this month’s Archives treasures is your favorite. And the three candidates are: 1) The… Read more

Archives treasure #3: 1854 territorial election returns

As we await the final results for this fall’s General Election (counties certify their elections results Nov. 27), it’s worth going far back to see what Washington election results looked like when we were just a fledgling territory. Our third and final Archives treasure for November is the election returns from Washington Territory’s first election. These returns are from the Olympia Precinct on Jan. 30, 1854. That historic first election was… Read more

A Rainmaker Meets His Match in Ephrata

Image Hatfield and towers in Hemet, California, 1912

From the desk of Steve Willis, Central Library Services Program Manager of the Washington State Library:

The reel grabbed at random this week contained… Read more

WSL Updates for November 15, 2012 - Expanded Edition

Volume 8, November 15, 2012 for the WSL Updates mailing list – Expanded Edition Note: WSL Updates will be on hiatus next week. Topics include: 1) LAST CALL – CIVIL WAR EXHIBIT AT CWU 2) ALKI’S FIRST ONLINE EDITION 3) WLA GRADUATE STUDY SCHOLARSHIPS 4) PUBLIC LIBRARY GRANTS FOR TEENS AND NEWS LITERACY 5) ONLINE NORTHWEST 2013 SCHOLARSHIPS 6) FREE CE OPPORTUNITIES: NOVEMBER 19 – 30… Read more

Archives Treasure #2: The Centralia Massacre file

Image Nov. 11 is a joyous date in Washington history since it’s when statehood was attained in 1889. But it’s also a date marked by violence and tragedy in 1919 in the form of the… Read more

November Archives treasure #1: Statehood telegram

Image Happy belated birthday, Washington! Last Sunday marked The Evergreen State’s 123rd birthday (and a good-looking 123 at that!) It was on Nov. 11, 1889, when Washington joined the Union as the 42nd state. That was the date when President… Read more

Clippings for the week of November 2, 2012

[caption id="attachment_4996" align="alignright" width="227" caption="Image courtesy North Pend Oreille Heritage collection"] Image [/caption] Washington State Library News Talking books aren’t just for people who are legally blind, they also are for people who are visually impaired, have a physical disability, or even a reading disability. Danielle Miller, program manager for the… Read more