Within musket range of the rebuilt Fort Vancouver, Patrice Hruska wields a common garden trowel to unearth an uncommon piece of Pacific Northwest history.
The chunk of brick that the Washington State University Vancouver anthropology student has found is a remnant of the old powder magazine at the Hudson’s Bay Company’s main supply depot in the region.
Though the building measured just 20 by 20 feet, the 14,000 pounds of gunpowder packed within its walls helped the fur-trading company wield great power in the early 1800s.
“It’s really kind of fun to dig something up that hasn’t been seen for 150 years or so,” says … » More …
Richard Daugherty—”Doc”—can’t remember where exactly the site was in relation to the present reservoir created by Lower Monumental Dam on the Snake River. He’d been holding out a little hope that maybe there would be some sign of the work he had supervised during that summer 50 years ago.
“It’s sure good to see it again,” he says, but admits that he doesn’t recognize much. The native village that he and his students had excavated now lies under 30 or 40 feet of water. Many of those former Washington State College students now stand around with him in the early summer heat and reminisce, picking … » More …
The lonely flower
Your most interesting article about “The Orphan Flower” intrigued me. What a lovely and unique flower and leaf. Thank you for sharing its appearance with us.
I may say also, that having discovered Washington State Magazine in my today’s mail, I spent the entire afternoon enjoying each article. What an exciting place is Washington State University. Receiving this publication is always stimulating and certainly makes me proud of the work being done there. Please extend my congratulations to each one making this a better place in which to live.
Marley Austin Jesseph ’47
Bloomington, Indiana
School in the woods
I read … » More …