Historical Records of Washington State: Records and …

1 Historical Records of Washington State: Records and Papers held at RepositoriesTHE Washington STATE Historical Records ADVISORY BOARD RICHARD C. BERNER, Seattle ALBERT H. CULVERWELL, Spokane EARL T. GLAUERT, Ellensburg HOWARD LOVERING, Seattle SIDNEY F. McALPIN, Olympia Chairman JAMES D. MOORE, Mount Vernon NANCY B. PRYOR, Olympia JAY W. REA, Cheney JAMES SCOTT, Bellingham THE Washington STATE Historical Records AND ARCHIVES PROJECT STAFF Project Administrator and Supervisory Editor: JOHN F. BURNS Editors: TIMOTHY E.

2 ECKERT, LAWRENCE R. STARK Assistant Editors: LYNN ELLEN STARK, B. TOYLYN COLLIER, KENNETH MUNSELL, KRISTIN RAVETZ Computer Systems Coordinator: DAVID W. HASTINGS Data Entry Coordinator: KATHLEEN M. WILCOX Keyboard Operators: DANA BERGLUND, LINDA SPROULL, CINDY GIBSON Regional Supervisors: TIMOTHY E. ECKERT, RICHARD S. HOBBS, DAVID W. HASTINGS, LAWRENCE R. STARK Survey Team Leaders and Field Workers: ERIC ANDERSON, JAMES M. BAILEY, MICHAEL BETZ, GAIL BROWN, SCOTT CLABAUGH, B. TOYLYN COLLIER, MICHAEL DOLE, CYNTHIA FLATLEY, STEVE GOBAT, MARY GRADY, NANCY GREEN, LYNN HARRISON, CRAIG HOLSTINE, ANN K.

3 HOYT, ELIZABETH JAHNKE, GARY KARNOFSKI, KAY LANDOLT, JANICE LARSON, WAYNE LAWSON, BARBARA LYNCH, VIRGINIA MILLER, STEPHANIE OGLE, BEVRA PATTERSON, SARA PATTON, LEE PENDERGRASS, CHARISSE PETERS, GREGORY RANCE, KRISTIN RAVETZ, JULIE REUWSAAT, KATHLEEN RILEY, MICHAEL SULLIVAN, VANNETTA UPSHAW-CASH, KATHLEEN WAUGH, ALFRED WILLIS, PAUL WHEELWRIGHT Secretary: KATHLEEN M. WILCOXCOMPILED FOR THE BOARD BY THE STAFF OF THE Washington STATE Historical Records AND ARCHIVES PROJECT 1981 PREFACE In 1976 the first Washington State Historical Records Advisory Board was appointed by the governor at the request of the National Historical Publications and Records Commission, known in archival circles as the NHPRC.

4 The Board's charge was to begin a program statewide that would improve access to archives and manuscripts material for researchers, and to generally suggest remedies to improve the condition of Historical Records -keeping in Washington State. Responding to this assignment the Board devised a plan for the first comprehensive Historical Records survey in any state since the end of the original Historical Records survey of the Depression Era. Understanding that a thorough knowledge of what Historical Records existed in the state was a precondition to addressing other problems, the Board decided to put a premium on such identification.

5 The staff of the Washington State Historical Records and Archives Project was fortunate to be entrusted by the Board in 1977 to launch such a survey process and to publish the results. This was done with the substantial support of grant funds provided by the NHPRC. I order to involve concerned citizens with the project, the first step taken was to hold a series of workshops across the state to provide basic education on archival and Records management techniques to public officials and private Records custodians.

6 The individuals attending the workshops were then able to assist the survey workers in completing their inventories. Through the balance of 1977 and 1978 staff surveyors and countless contributors from the agencies and organizations being surveyed labored mightily to uncover Historical Records materials and organize them sufficiently to compile listings. In their work they braved the hazards of dirt, rodents, unstable structures and extremes of cold and heat. Their efforts were magnificent. Over 1,500 institutions were contacted, and survey data compiled on over 25,000 record groups, collections and series of Records and papers.

7 The field workers' listings were then edited and indexed by editorial staff, and processed using the SPINDEX III system of computer programs developed by the National Archives. Utilizing this system will also allow Washington State data to be automatically incorporated into the national data base of Historical Records currently under development by the NHPRC, an ancillary benefit that may have tremendous impact on the availability of archives and manuscripts for research in the years ahead. About one quarter of the data assembled appears in this volume, over 6,400 descriptions of collections in over 250 large and small repositories in the state.

8 Three other volumes contain the remainder of the data. One is a hardcopy publication that describes Records held in the Washington State Archives and its system of regional depositories. Two further guides will be produced in Computer Output Microfiche (COM), one to public Records held by agencies such as courthouses, city halls, and special districts in the state, and the other describing Historical Records and papers held by private organizations and individuals. Collectively they will constitute the most comprehensive collection of data on Historical Records in one state anywhere in the nation.

9 Our hope is that these publications will promote access to primary source material essential to the study of the history of the state and its localities and regions. We believe that advantage will also accrue to those involved with contemporary problems. Lawyers and public officers involved in issues of the day will gain better knowledge of a body of resources that can assist them in their work. By having this data available, countless dollars in terms of research hours will be saved. That is our purpose, to enhance access to Historical materials, both for scholars and for contemporary researchers, in order that their task may be made easier and that the citizens of the state, and ultimately the nation, might benefit.

10 The staff of the Records project could not have begun to complete this work without the aid of hundreds of organizations and individuals throughout the state. The sage advice and support of past and present members of the advisory board was critical to the project's success. To the chairman, Sidney McAlpin, and members Richard Berner, Al Culverwell, Earl Glauert, Bruce Harding, Phil Lothyan, Howard Lovering, Jim Moore, Nancy Pryor, Jay Rea, George Scott, Jim Scott, Bruce LeRoy, Nat Washington , and Karyl Winn go many thanks.