Pacific Northwest

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The Pacific Northwest from space

This page is about the region that includes parts of Canada and the United States. For the U.S.-only region, see Northwestern United States

The Pacific Northwest, abbreviated PNW, or PacNW is a region in the northwest of North America. There are several partially overlapping definitions but the term Pacific Northwest should not be confused with the Northwest Territory (aka the Great Northwest) and the Northwest Territories. The term Northwest Coast is often used when referring only to the coastal regions. The term Northwest Plateau has been used to describe the inland regions, although they are commonly referred to as "the interior" (which in British Columbia is by convention capitalized and is used as a proper name).

The region's biggest cities are Vancouver, B.C., Seattle, Portland, Victoria, Spokane, and Boise.

The area's biomes and ecoregions are distinct from the surrounding areas. The Georgia Strait-Puget Sound basin is shared between British Columbia and Washington, and the Pacific temperate rain forests, comprising the world's largest temperate rain forest zone, stretch along the coast from Alaska to California. The dryland area inland from the Cascade Range and Coast Mountains is very different from the terrain and climate of the Coast, and is comprised of the Columbia and Fraser Plateaus and mountain ranges contained within them. The interior regions' climates are a northward extension of the Great Western Desert which spans the Great Basin farther south, although by their northern reaches dryland and desert areas verge with boreal forest and various alpine flora regimes.

It is often claimed that the region also has a shared political culture and/or common cultural values. The region is referred to by some as Cascadia as part of a modern-era rebranding effort, that is also associated with the perception of shared cultural and political traits.

1 Definitions and related terms
2 History
- 2.1 Initial exploration
- 2.2 Territorial disputes
3 Geology
4 Geography
5 Climate
6 Population
7 Economy
8 Culture
- 8.1 Language
- 8.2 Spirituality and religion
9 See also
10 References
11 External links

[edit] Definitions and related terms

Different definitions of Pacific Northwest and related terms. Click image for legend.

The Pacific Northwest, broadly defined, extends from the ocean to the continental divide and includes all of Washington, most of Oregon, Idaho and British Columbia, and adjoining parts of Alaska, Yukon Territory, Montana, Wyoming, Nevada and California.[1] Both the name "Pacific Northwest" and the name "Cascadia", which is derived from the Cascade Range, are commonly used without a definition, although the term "Pacific Northwest" is considerably older, having its origins in the early 19th Century.

"Cascadia" is of recent coinage (1980s) and is sometimes used in geology, ecology and climatology, as well as by the Cascadia independence movement and a very few small businesses and organizations with a regional-marketing identity. Of the two terms, only "Pacific Northwest" is in general use, and also encompasses more area than the Cascadia concept, which tends to be more coastal and limited to the Evergreen Triangle area of Washington and Oregon. As a bioregion, Cascadia has been defined as "the watersheds of rivers that flow into the Pacific Ocean through North America's temperate rainforest zone".

In the United States, the term "Pacific Northwest" is also used for most of the official region of the Northwestern United States, which includes the American states of the Pacific Northwest but excludes areas of it in Canada.

[edit] History

[edit] Initial exploration

Landscape in Oregon Country, by Charles Marion Russell.

British Captain and erstwhile privateer Francis Drake sailed off the Oregon coast in 1579, and a Greek captain in the employ of the Portuguese Empire claimed to have found the Strait of Juan de Fuca, which bears his name. During the early 1740s, Imperial Russia sent the Dane Vitus Bering to the region.

In 1774 Juan Pérez commanded a fleet of ships sent by the viceroy of New Spain up to lat. 55° N. This was followed by another Spanish explorer Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra who got it as far as Prince of Wales Sound, reaching 59° N in 1775. In 1776 English mariner Captain James Cook visited Nootka Sound on Vancouver Island and also voyaged as far as Prince William Sound. In the 1790s Captain George Vancouver charted the Pacific Northwest on behalf of Great Britain, including the bays and inlets of Puget Sound, the Strait of Georgia and the Johnstone Strait-Queen Charlotte Strait and the rest of the British Columbia Coast and Alaska Panhandle shorelines. In 1786 Jean François La Pérouse, representing France, sailed to the Queen Charlotte Islands after visiting Nootka Sound but any possible French claim to this region were lost when La Pérouse and his men and journals were lost in a shipwreck near Australia. Captain James Barclay (also spelled Barkley) also visited the area flying the flag of the Austrian Empire. American merchant sea-captain Robert Gray traded along the coast and discovered the mouth of the Columbia River.

[edit] Territorial disputes

US Navy Admiral Charles Wilkes' 1841 Map of the Oregon Territory from "Narrative of the United States Exploring Expedition." Philadelphia: 1845

Initial formal claims to the region were asserted by Spain, based on the Treaty of Tordesillas which, in the Spanish Empire's interpretation, endowed that empire with the Pacific Ocean as a "Spanish lake". Russian maritime fur trade activity extending from the farther side of the Pacific prompted Spain to send expeditions north to assert Spanish ownership, while at the same time British claims were made and advanced by Captain James Cook and subsequent expeditions by George Vancouver. Potential French, Austrian and Portuguese claims were never advanced. As of the Nootka Conventions, the last in 1794, Spain gave up its exclusive a priori claims and agreed to share the region with the other Powers, giving up its garrison at Nootka Sound in the process.

The United States later established a claim following the exploration of the region by the Lewis and Clark Expedition, partly through the negotiation of former Spanish claims north of the Oregon-California boundary. From the 1810s until the 1840s, modern-day Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and western Montana, along with most of British Columbia, were part of what Americans called the Oregon Country and the British called the Columbia District. This region was jointly claimed by the United States and Great Britain after the Treaty of 1818, which established a condominium of interests in the region in lieu of a settlement. In 1840 American Charles Wilkes explored in the area. John McLoughlin, Chief Factor of the Hudson's Bay Company, headquartered at Fort Vancouver, was the de facto local political authority for most of this time.

This arrangement ended as U.S. settlement grew and President James K. Polk was elected on a platform of calling for annexation of the entire Oregon Country and of Texas. After his election, supporters coined the famous slogan "Fifty-four Forty or Fight", referring to 54 degrees latitude, 40 minutes north - the northward limit of the region. After a war scare with the United Kingdom, the Oregon boundary dispute was settled in the 1846 Oregon Treaty, partitioning the region along the 49th parallel and resolving most but not all of the border disputes (see Pig War).

The mainland territory north of the 49th Parallel remained unincorporated until 1858, when a mass influx of Americans and others during the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush forced the hand of Colony of Vancouver Island's Governor James Douglas, who declared the mainland a Crown Colony, although official ratification of his unilateral action was several months in coming. The two colonies were amalgamated in 1866 to cut costs, and joined the Dominion of Canada in 1871. The U.S. portion became the Oregon Territory in 1848; it was later subdivided into territories that were eventually admitted as states, the first of these being Oregon itself in 1859. See Washington Territory.

American expansionist pressure on British Columbia persisted after the colony became a province of Canada, even though Americans living in the province did not harbor annexationist inclinations. The Fenian Brotherhood openly organized and drilled in Washington State, particularly in the 1870s and the 1880s, though no cross-border attacks were experienced. During the Alaska Boundary Dispute, U.S. President Teddy Roosevelt threatened to invade and annex British Columbia if Britain would not yield on the question of the Yukon ports. In more recent times, during the so-called "Salmon War" of the 1990s, Washington State Senator Slade Gorton called for the U.S. Navy to "force" the Inside Passage, even though it is not an official international waterway.

[edit] Geology

See the main article at Geology of the Pacific Northwest.

The Northwest is still geologically active, with both active volcanos and geologic faults.

[edit] Geography

The Pacific Northwest is a diverse geographic region, dominated by several mountain ranges, including the Coast Mountains, the Cascade Range, the Olympic Mountains, the Columbia Mountains and the Rocky Mountains. The highest peak in the Pacific Northwest is Mt. Rainier, in the Washington Cascades, at 14,410 feet. Immediately inland from the Cascade Range there is a broad plateau, narrowing progressively northwards, and also getting higher. In the US this region, semi-arid and often completely arid, is known as the Columbia Plateau, while in British Columbia it is the Interior Plateau, also called the Fraser Plateau. The Columbia Plateau was the scene of massive ice-age floods, as a consequence there are many coulees, canyons, and plateaus. The Columbia River cuts a deep and wide gorge around the rim of the Columbia Plateau, and through the Cascade Range on its way to the Pacific Ocean. After the Mississippi, more water flows through the Columbia than any other river in the lower 48 states.

Because many areas have plentiful rainfall, the Pacific Northwest has:

some of North America's most lush and extensive forests, and at one time, the largest trees in the world. Coastal forests in some areas are classified as temperate rain forest, or in some local slang, "cold jungle".
a large number of aluminum refineries^{[citation needed]}, due to plentiful and inexpensive hydroelectric power from, for example, the hydroelectric dams on the Columbia River run by agencies such as the Bonneville Power Administration.

The major cities of Vancouver, Portland, and Seattle all began as seaports supporting the logging, mining, and farming industries of the region, but have developed into major technological and industrial centers (such as the Silicon Forest), which benefit from their location on the Pacific Rim.

The region has four U.S. National Parks: Crater Lake in Oregon, and Olympic, Mount Rainier, and North Cascades in Washington. Other outstanding natural features include the Oregon Coast, the Columbia River Gorge, The Columbia River, Mt. St. Helens, and Hells Canyon on the Snake River between Oregon and Idaho. There are several Canadian National Parks in the Pacific Northwest, from Pacific Rim National Park on the west coast of Vancouver Island, and Mount Revelstoke National Park and Glacier National Park in the Selkirk Range alongside Rogers Pass, as well as Kootenay National Park and Yoho National Park on the British Columbia flank of the Rockies. Although unprotected by national parks and only a handful of provincial parks, the south-central Coast Mountains in British Columbia contain the five largest mid-latitude icefields in the world.

[edit] Climate

The Pacific Northwest experiences a wide variety of climates. Oceanic climate ("marine west coast climate") occurs in many coastal areas, typically between the ocean and high mountain ranges. Alpine climate dominates in the high mountains. Semi-arid and Arid climate is found east of the higher mountains, especially in rainshadow areas. The Harney Basin of Oregon is an example of arid climate in the Pacific Northwest. Hemiboreal climate occurs in places such as Revelstoke, British Columbia. Subarctic climate occurs farther north. Mediterranean climate occurs in various areas such as Victoria, British Columbia.

[edit] Population

Map of Cascadia megacity, showing population density (shades of yellow/brown), highways (red), and major railways (black). Federal land shown in shades of green.

Most of the population of the Pacific Northwest is concentrated in the Vancouver-Seattle-Portland corridor. This area is sometimes seen as a megacity (also known as a conurbation, an agglomeration, or a megalopolis). This megacity stretches along Interstate 5 in the states of Oregon and Washington and BC 99 in the province of British Columbia. As of 2004, the combined populations of the Greater Vancouver Lower Mainland, the Seattle metropolitan area and the Portland metropolitan area totaled almost nine million people.

[edit] Economy

Some of the notable industries and products from the region:

Aerospace (Boeing)
High Technology and E-commerce (Microsoft, Intel, Tektronix, Amazon.com)
Fishing (Crab and Salmon)
Lumber (Weyerhauser)
Shoes & Apparel (Nike, Columbia)
Hydroelectric power (Grand Coulee Dam, Bonneville Dam)
Agriculture (Washington Apples, Idaho potatoes, Tillamook Cheese)
Entertainment industry (film and television)

[edit] Culture

The Pacific Northwest's culture is quite varied, and to a certain degree reflects the varied geography of the region. While the majority of inhabitants of the western regions (which include most of the large cities) are considered to be supporters of the political left-wing, the less-populated areas east of the Cascade Range tend to be politically and culturally more conservative.

Environmentalism is very popular in most Pacific Northwest cities, from small towns such as Ashland, Oregon to large cities like Seattle or Portland. Ecologically conscious services such as recycling and public transportation are fairly well-developed and generally available in the more populated areas as well. The international organization Greenpeace was born in Vancouver in 1970 as part of a large public opposition movement in British Columbia to US nuclear weapons testing on Amchitka Island in the Aleutians.

Skiing, snowboarding, climbing, hiking, camping, boating and water sports are all popular outdoor activities. In general, residents appreciate the regions varied geography, and enjoy spending time in the great outdoors.

In his book Nine Nations of North America, author Joel Garreau claimed that the Pacific Rim region he called Ecotopia had a different culture from that of what he called The Empty Quarter to the east, and was necessarily different economically as well as ecologically. It must be noted that the concept of "Ecotopia," which is specific in its boundaries, does not identically match that of "Cascadia," which varies in its definition.

Video game usage is higher per-capita than any other region of the country^[1].

Washington, British Columbia, Oregon and California are also known for supporting progressive political views relating to other--sometimes controversial--subjects. All four jurisdictions have relatively liberal abortion laws, legalized medical marijuana, and are supportive of LGBT rights. Oregon was the first (and remains the only) U.S. state to legalize physician-assisted suicide, with the Death with Dignity Act of 1994. Colegio Cesar Chavez, the nation's first fully accredited Hispanic college, was founded in Mount Angel, Oregon in 1973.

The Pacific Northwest is also known for indie music, especially grunge and so-called alternative rock as well as historically-strong folk music and world music traditions. KEXP.org is a popular and well-known Seattle-based public indie music radio station.

Cuisine of the area include wild salmon, huckleberries, and locally-produced fruits, vegetables, and cheeses. A distinct version of West Coast fusion cuisine more influenced by Asian and Mid-East influences than its Californian counterpart. Due to the close proximity of locally-grown fruit and vegetables, weekly and monthly farmers markets are popular during the growing season.

Northwest craft beers and premium Northwest wines are popular with alcohol consumers. Cannabis use is relatively popular and tolerated, especially around Vancouver BC, Bellingham, Seattle, Olympia, Portland, and Eugene.

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Latinos make up much of the agricultural labor force and population east of the Cascade Range in the U.S. states, and are an increasing presence in the general labor force in the western regions as well. African Americans are less numerous than either Asians or Latinos in many communities in the American Pacific Northwest, however the overall African American population has been on an upwards growing trend in other smaller urban area's throughout the American portion of the region, such as Spokane and Eugene.^[2] They are concentrated in western urban areas such as Seattle and Portland, though unlike other regions, there are fewer majority black communities than the majority Asian communities that can be found in Vancouver and Seattle. As of the 2000s, many Asians were moving out and into middle class suburbs, though some would voice concern about preserving historical communities. African Americans have held the positions of Mayor and King county executive, while Washington state elected a Chinese American Governor during the 1990s, Gary Locke. British Columbians of many ethnicities are prominent in all levels of politics and government there, and the province has a number of "firsts" in Canadian political history, including the first non-white Premier, Ujjal Dossanjh, who is Indo-Canadian and the first non-white Lieutenant-Governor the Hon. David Lam.

[edit] Language

The Pacific Northwest English accent is considered to be "very neutral" to most Americans and Canadians. Although it does possess the low back vowel merger, or the Cot-caught merger, it is one of the closest living accents to conservative General American English. It lacks the Northern Cities Vowel Shift, and does not participate as strongly in the California Vowel Shift or the Canadian raising as do other regional accents. Because of its lack of any distinguishing vowel shift, the accent is very similar to and hard to distinguish from conservative speakers in other dialect regions especially the Northern Midlands, California, and the prairies.

Chinook Jargon was a pidgin or trade language established among the indigenous inhabitants of the region. After contact with Europeans, French, English and Cree words entered the language, and "eventually Chinook became the lingua franca for as many as 250,000 people along the Pacific Slope from Alaska to Oregon". [2] Chinook Jargon reached its height of usage in the 19th century though remained common in resource and wilderness areas, particularly but not exclusively by Native Americans and Canadian First Nations people, well into the 20th Century. Today its influence is felt mostly in place names and a handful of localized slang terms, particularly the word skookum, which remains hallmark of people raised in the region.

Of the non-indigenous languages in the region, Chinese has been common since the gold rushes of the mid-19th Century, particularly in British Columbia. Since the 1980s the Toishan, a Cantonese-based dialect which was predominant in the area, has been replaced by mainstream Cantonese and by Mandarin because of large-scale immigration from Asia. Punjabi is also very common in British Columbia, which has a large Sikh community, and because of Canada's entrenched multiculturalism policies a host of other languages are spoken in the Greater Vancouver area.

[edit] Spirituality and religion

The Pacific Northwest is the least church-going part of English-speaking North America; this is most pronounced on the part of the region west of the Cascades. Nevertheless, three of the four large international charities in the region are faith-based: Northwest Medical Teams International, World Concern, and World Vision International. The fourth is Mercy Corps. The archetype of the Skid Road mission, a shelter offering soup and sermons to down-and-out workers and inebriates, was launched on the skid roads of Seattle and Vancouver, with the Salvation Army having deep roots in Vancouver's Gastown district, dating back to the era of the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway (1880s) and attained prominence in the same centers during the Klondike Gold Rush.

Despite its low rate of church attendance, the region is also known as a magnet for unique Christian groups, ranging from the Doukhobors to the Mennonites of British Columbia, and countless religiously-based communal efforts by ethnic groups such as Finns, Norwegians, Danes and others. The Mennonite Central Committee Supportive Care Services is based in Abbotsford, BC.^[3] Mennonite Central Committee and Mennonite Disaster Service enjoy a heavy rate of enlistment and donations from the strong Mennonite community in BC's Fraser Valley. Also within the region there is a fairly strong representation of Orthodox churches (Greek, Russian, Serbian and others) as well as the Ukrainian Uniate Catholic church.

"American Buddhist with Thai Buddha", Living Enrichment Center, Wilsonville, Oregon, 1998.

Exploration of eastern religions (especially Buddhism and Taoism) has been fashionable in the Pacific Northwest for many years, and Tibetan Buddhism in particular has a strong local following. The Northwest Tibetan Cultural Association, claimed to be the largest organization of its kind in the world, was founded in Portland in 1993. Yogic teachings, Sufism, tribal and ancient beliefs and other philosophies are widely studied and appreciated. Because of immigration to Canada the Lower Mainland of British Columbia has a very large Sikh community and cultural presence as well as a major growth in Chinese Buddhist temples and congregations since the increase in immigration from Asia in the 1980s. There is a small Hindu population, a number of Parsee (Zoroastrians), and an emerging Muslim population from India, the Middle East, Africa, the Balkans, Southeast Asia and elsewhere.

Also attracted to the area are alternative religions and spirituality, such as New Age spirituality and Neo-Paganism. Before its closure in 2004, Mary Manin Morrissey's "megachurch" called Living Enrichment Center, which was located in Wilsonville, Oregon, was one of the biggest New Thought churches in the entire world, with a congregation estimated at between two thousand and five thousand members. Morrissey's "Life Keys" religious program was broadcast to several major networks around the U.S. West Coast. Neale Donald Walsch, author of Conversations with God, lives in Ashland, Oregon, where he runs a retreat center. Gangaji, an internationally recognized spiritual teacher and disciple of Poonjaji, lives in Ashland, Oregon. Established in more recent times, the training school of the immortal (according to the organization) being Ramtha is headquartered in Yelm, Washington. The followers of the Guru Rajneesh, the sannyasins, established a center for their beliefs and lifestyle near Antelope, Oregon, which included an ashram complex as well as, for a while, a near-takeover of the local economy. The Emissaries of the Divine Light are a notable presence in the region of 100 Mile House, BC. More controversially, the commune run by Brother Twelve in the Gulf Islands of British Columbia early in the 20th Century. Oregon's Willamette Valley has a large population of Russian Old Believers. ^[4]