from the Scout Report: > 7. Washington State Pioneer Life Database > http://content.lib.washington.edu/pioneerlifeweb/index.html > > Like many other parts of the American West, the area that later became the > state of Washington in 1889 was a place of great opportunity, both in terms > of the existing natural resources, and in a more intangible fashion, a place > that represented a new beginning for those persons venturing west from the > Midwest and the East Coast. This recently developed online database > presented by the University of Washington Library contains writings, > diaries, letters, and recollections from those persons who moved to > Washington in the 19th century. Visitors can search the collections, or > elect to browse through the collection list, which contains over two dozen > primary documents available for viewing. Some of the highlights here include > the recollections of Lila Hannah Firth who lived on San Juan Island (located > in Puget Sound) in the 1860s and an account of the first ascension of Mount > Rainier, one Dr. William F. Tolmie. Rounding out the site is an online > exhibition titled Northwest of the West: the Frontier Experience on the > Northwest Coast., which serves as a nice introduction to the overall > experience of these first pioneers moving west. [KMG]