No comments about Beautiful America's Columbia River Gorge (Beautiful America).

No comments about Oregon: A Picture Book To Remember Her By.

No comments about Thomas Guide 2003 Portland.

No comments about The Trail: A Bibliography of the Travelers on the Overland Trail to California, Oregon, Salt Lake City, and Montana During the Years 1841-1864.

No comments about Tourist Travel Treats for Oregon / Northern California (State of Jefferson).

No comments about The Oregon Trail (Airmont Classics).

No comments about The Old Emigrant Trail: Story of the Lost Trail to Oregon (The Oregon Trail).

2 comments about Wet and Wired: A Pop Culture Encyclopedia of the Pacific Northwest.

1. I'm a native Southerner, so reading this book about the Pacific Northwest was a lot of fun. The writers have a unique voice that makes this book much more than a mere compendium of facts. Each piece is written with a lot of humor and insight. Anyone interested in pop culture should own this book!



2. This is a definite fun read. If you grew up in Portland in the 50's and 60's, like I did, it's a wonderful stroll down memory lane as well as a good refresher on what's been going on since. Seems very close to the truth, at least on the topics I'm in a position to judge. Only knock is it's a little too Seattle oriented for my blood!

No comments about The Coast of Oregon.

2 comments about The Wreck of the Sv. Nikolai.

1. This is a truly remarkable story. Russian fur traders moving down the west coast in search of more Otter (only a few years after Lewis & Clark headed home from Oregon), their ship wrecked on the Olympic Peninsula. The sailors escaped the wreckage only to have their women, including the captains wife captured by local American Indians. By the time the ships captain and men come up with a plan to rescue the women, the women do not want to go back with the sailors! The story is historically accurate, and has been retold here from Russian ship logs and the Quinalt oral history of the event. It is a fun one to read.



2. This is a very short book about the Russian exploration effort in Washington and Oregon. The Russians were exploring this area to see if there was a wealth of fur bearing animals. Their merchandise was shoddy, and few Indians wanted to trade for this. The Sv. Nikolai then was stranded on a beach in a storm. The crew escaped with some weapons, but few provisions. Then began the journey into poverty and want and then slavery for the crew. Some Indians were merciful, and treated their captives kindly. Some did not. Twenty of the crew were eventually rescued when an American in Russian employ ransomed them.
   
   The editor tells this tale from two perspectives. First, he starts with the Russian perspective, and then an oral tale from the Indians who captured the Russian crew. This is not exciting reading. It did show the rivalry of Great Britain, Russia, Spain and the United States for this valuable area. This is an OK read for those interested in early European exploration.