The Northwest Room has a small, but significant collection of original documents of early Northwest History. These manuscript materials include exploration, missionaries, military campaigns, and documents related to early settlers. The earliest document is a handwritten letter from Father DeSmet in 1840. The collection also includes a …
Ephemera are sometimes defined as "the minor transient documents of everyday life." Created for a temporary purpose and meant to be discarded, ephemera includes greeting cards, tickets, brochures, receipts, handbills, advertisements, labels, trading cards and many other bits and pieces. Though intended to be temporary, this material …
The Grand Coulee Dam is the largest dam on the Columbia River. The U. S. Bureau of Reclamation constructed the dam between 1934 and 1941. It is the largest hydroelectric power producer in the United States. Images in this collection are taken from a photo album showing the construction of Grand Coulee Dam from 1933 to 1937. The album …
The discovery of gold in Northern Idaho in 1882 was the catalyst for the establishment of the first settlements and towns in the Idaho Territory. Many of these towns started as mining camps built close to ore deposits, and depended on the mines to remain viable. When the ore was depleted, the population moved elsewhere. Many of the towns …
The First National Indian Congress was held in Spokane in October 1925 and then again in July 1926. About three thousand Indians, representing thirty-four tribes of the Northwest, attended the first Congress in 1925. They pitched seventeen tepees on Riverside …
The Ned M. Barnes Northwest Room of Spokane Public Library is pleased to introduce a digital collections page of photographs selected from collections in the Northwest Room. These collections emphasize the most frequently requested subjects in the Northwest Room – the homes, buildings, streets and activities in and around Spokane. The original items are available for use and study in the Ned M. Barnes Northwest Room of Spokane Public Library.
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