Stevens Pass: Gateway to Seattle [Paperback]

JoAnn Roe (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1995

Distributed by the University of Nebraska Press for Caxton Press

A history of the massive undertaking required to build the railroads and roadways through the northern Cascades into the Seattle region.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

An award winning author of a dozen books, JoAnn Roe has lived in the western United States all her life and continues to write about the people and history of the West.

Product Details

• Paperback: 191 pages
• Publisher: Caxton Press; 1st Caxton Press ed edition (January 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0870044281
• ISBN-13: 978-0870044281
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.7 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #718,592 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining and informative amalgam of history and travel information through Stevens Pass, August 29, 2007

By 

Tanis "Tanis Yvonne Somerville" (Seahurst, Washington) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Stevens Pass: The Story of Railroading and Recreation in the North Cascades (Paperback)

Stevens Pass has always had an aura of mystery about it. Even while Seattle boomed during the great gold rush of the 1800's, there remained no way to cross the formidable North Cascades. Inspired by the Orient trade, railroaders spent years looking for a suitable route over the mountain until surveyor John F. Stevens discovered a pass in 1890.
The Great northern Railroad lent romance to the crossing of Stevens Pass. But its real saga consisted of the nearly superhuman feats of construction crews, ghastly design mistakes, unpredictable acts of nature, and the determination of magnates, despite countless unforeseen obstacles, to connect communities by rail.
The other half of the saga consists of individuals who traversed the mountains, built crude homes, and schooled their children at home or in drafty log schoolhouses with few books. Nefarious pioneers took advantage of the isolation to work scams, fight, steal, and even murder.
More than a regional history, this story tells of the Wellington disaster, a killer avalanche; the period when ski jumping events grew crowds of thousands; the growing efforts of the United States Forest Service to serve recreational seekers; and the scoundrels and heroes of the new frontier.
I enjoyed this book immensely, and learned a lot about an area in history that at one time was sitting in my own backyard, so to speak.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent for armchair & professional historians!, January 31, 2011

By 

Anders Tronsen (Carnation, Washington United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Stevens Pass: Gateway to Seattle (Paperback)

this work is EXCELLENT! It outlines & refers to some of the significant items from Stevens Pass history. I worked on the GNRy during my college years, and i've somewhat kept up with events; I salute this book for accuracy & detail!

I enjoyed the detailed descriptions of long-abandoned minor stops along the GN,(more modern place photos would have been welcome additions), but I was a bit worried about the details given to the (number of BROTHELS, for example....!

Perhaps a bit more information regarding James Hill & his Zeal for the PNW / western RR expansion would have been appropriate, but can be easily found elsewhere. the Maps I found to be Very Helpful, but both large & small-scale maps showing the stations (current & former locations) would have been helpful.

edited to add: One 'GLARING' mistake Ms. Roe makes is (repeatedly) referring to the GN as 'Railroad'; the GN always styled itself as the 'Great Northern RAILWAY', a distinction - difference that most 'true fans' would easily recognize (and, was quoted Correctly in a GNRy press release found in the book!)

4.0 out of 5 stars Northwest Must Read, March 27, 2009

By 

F. J. Coverson "ramonarav" (snohomish wa) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Stevens Pass: Gateway to Seattle (Paperback)

Growing up in the Northwest and hiking in this region I have an appreciate for the authors over view of the history of Stevens Pass. I Passed this book along to friends and family who share my love of this region. A must read and an interesting history of Stevens Pass and the importance of the railroad and its construction through modern times.