When we Brits were 'given' all of Vancouver Island, I wonder why they didn't include that little bit that became Point Roberts (USA) into Canada. It's an odd little quirk.
And, I presume Washington state was named after George Washington - though of course his family originally came from Washington here in County Durham. As a teenager I lived about 5 miles from Washington Hall. Some years later, my mum queued to see George W Bush visit the village (now the centre of a New Town) with Tony Blair.
I’ve been rather surprised as I explore my family on ancestry to find the amount of cross border movement that there was as individuals pursued various opportunities.
It’s strange that you didn’t mention the transcontinental railroads in that region, which was driven by the geography of the Cascades that you mentioned. The official “Northern Route” terminated in Oregon, but took a long time to build because of the ruggedness of the route. By the time it arrived, the Great Northern, built at the private initiative of the scrappy James J Hill, had already arrived at Seattle by the easier route. This not only gave Seattle a head start on this economically critical mode of transportation, it also affected the cities’ growth because the difference in topography dramatically affected railroad fuel and capital costs and therefore shipping costs. Both the NP and the later Milwaukee road made massive investments in electric traction to try to close this gap later in the century. Through the Great Northern, Seattle was connected to the breadbasket of the Northern Plains and to booming Minneapolis, which was a hub of finance for the lumber industry and an efficient connection to the national rail network. Another way that geography matters!
Great stuff, Geoff! Loved the video too
Interesting - thank you. Two comments if I may:
When we Brits were 'given' all of Vancouver Island, I wonder why they didn't include that little bit that became Point Roberts (USA) into Canada. It's an odd little quirk.
And, I presume Washington state was named after George Washington - though of course his family originally came from Washington here in County Durham. As a teenager I lived about 5 miles from Washington Hall. Some years later, my mum queued to see George W Bush visit the village (now the centre of a New Town) with Tony Blair.
I have unsubscribed to so many substack newsletters. This is the one that I stick with. So interesting!
I’ve been rather surprised as I explore my family on ancestry to find the amount of cross border movement that there was as individuals pursued various opportunities.
Read this book. MCGILLIVARY - LORD OF THE NORTHWEST.
It’s strange that you didn’t mention the transcontinental railroads in that region, which was driven by the geography of the Cascades that you mentioned. The official “Northern Route” terminated in Oregon, but took a long time to build because of the ruggedness of the route. By the time it arrived, the Great Northern, built at the private initiative of the scrappy James J Hill, had already arrived at Seattle by the easier route. This not only gave Seattle a head start on this economically critical mode of transportation, it also affected the cities’ growth because the difference in topography dramatically affected railroad fuel and capital costs and therefore shipping costs. Both the NP and the later Milwaukee road made massive investments in electric traction to try to close this gap later in the century. Through the Great Northern, Seattle was connected to the breadbasket of the Northern Plains and to booming Minneapolis, which was a hub of finance for the lumber industry and an efficient connection to the national rail network. Another way that geography matters!
I think Geoff discussed the railroad aspect of growth in this region in one of his YouTube videos.