7 pm Monday, March 11
Everett Public Library Auditorium

It was a stimulus package, parks-building effort, and an environmental  project, all rolled into one. It was the Civilian Conservation Corps, and it worked wonders during the Great Depression here in the Evergreen State. Author, historian and artist Janet Oakley reveals the surprising facts about CCC efforts in the Evergreen State at 7pm Monday March 11.

Many of the "tree soldiers" were job-starved Easterners, brought in by train to heal the environmental scars of the West. They wore Army-type uniforms and woke to reveille each morning.  Most were 18-25 year-olds whose families were on relief. The Army provided their board and transportation to Washington State. 

Many had never seen mountains before. They built their own camps from scratch. The rock-solid construction of the observation tower at the top of Mt. Constitution on Orcas Island is a fair sample of the craftsmanship of the tree soldiers, and parks all over the state still show their marks, as does our landscape.

Oakley will appear in the Everett Public Library Auditorium, 2702 Hoyt in Everett sponsored in part by Humanities Washington. All library programs are free and open to the public. For further information, please call 425-257-8000.

Granite Falls Historical Museum has CCC Exhibit

Photos, documents, and a hand-built topographic map of the Mountain Loop Highway are amongst the items. Stop by any Sunday afternoon and learn about the CCC right here.

Saturday, March 2     2:00-3:00pm
Museums only display about 10% of their holdings to the public. Learn the surprising political, philosophical, artistic, environmental and historic reasons why museums keep objects from view, and find out which museums own Bing Crosby's toupees, a quilt made of Ku Klux Klan robes, Native American spirit boards, and other amazing artifacts.  Presented by Harriet Baskas,  author and award-winning radio producer.  Please preregister online at www.sno-isle.org, or by phone at (425) 493-8202. Mukilteo PublicLibrary, 4675 Harbour Pointe Blvd, Mukilteo, WA  98275

The League of Snohomish County Heritage Organizations (LOSCHO) has announced five nominees for the 2012 Malstrom Award. The award recognizes  outstanding work by any heritage organization or other organizational projects centered on Snohomish County history. See the nominees on the LOSCHO web site. The winner will be announced March 23th at the Heritage Day & Malstrom Award Luncheon.

Author, historian and artist Janet Oakley reveals some surprising facts about Civilian Conservation Corps efforts in the Washington State at 7pm Monday March 11 in the Everett Public Library Auditorium, 2702 Hoyt in Everett. Her appearance is sponsored by the library and by Humanities Washington. The program is free.

The CCC was a stimulus package, parks-building effort, and an environmental project, all rolled into one. It worked wonders during the Great Depression here in the Evergreen State.

Many of the "tree soldiers" were job-starved Easterners, brought in by train to heal the environmental scars of the West. They wore Army-type uniforms and woke to reveille each morning.  Most were 18-25 year-olds whose families were on relief. The Army provided their board and transportation to Washington State.  Many had never seen mountains before. They built their own camps from scratch.

Cameron A. Johnson
Public Programs
Everett Public Library
2702 Hoyt Avenue
Everett, WA  98201

425-257-7640
425-257-8029 (fax)
cjohnson@ci.everett.wa.us<

Open, fill out, and print the online membership form.

Fill out the information and mail the form, with your check, to:
Granite Falls Historical Society
PO Box 1414
Granite Falls, WA 98252

You can also join at the museum during open hours on Sundays from 12 noon to 5 p.m.

The Sharp House bedroom has a temporary display of quilts made by women in past and present Granite Falls area. The display case shows drawings for quilt designs, the oldest, more fragile quilts on loan or in our collection, and quilt making materials. Stop by any Sunday between 12 noon and 5 p.m. to admire these lovely works of art.

See and read about the work of carver William Shelton.
Burke Blog

The Granite Falls Historical Society Board of Directors has mailed it's annual report on the year's events to members. You can read the letter right here, using Adobe Reader or Google Docs Just click the file name below. The letter opens in a new window.

One hundred years ago, seacoast forts like Flagler, Casey, and Worden were the sentinels of Puget Sound. Built with acres of concrete, bristling with coastal defense guns, they housed hundreds of soldiers and artillerymen. But what were they guarding against?

 Bill Woodward, Professor of American History at Seattle Pacific University, discusses “Those Mysterious Seacoast Forts,” at 2pm Sunday September 16 at the Everett Public Library Auditorium, 2702 Hoyt in Everett.

 Washington’s seacoast forts are state parks now, a playground for dogs and kids, but a hundred years ago they were a defense network. The first was built after the Civil War and guarded the Columbia River, but within a generation they covered all approaches to Puget Sound. What were the threats they meant to deter, were those threats real, and what effect, if any, does any of this have to do with us today?

 Woodward says the fears that gave rise to these forts still echo today, and help explain both how Americans see the world and how we rely on new technologies to “guarantee” security.  

 This event is free.

 For further information, please call 425-257-8000.