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Oregon Authors: James Gilchrist Swan
The Northwest Coast: Or, Three Years' Residence in Washington Territory
by James Gilchrist Swan
Copyright © 1857
The Northwest Coast: Or, Three Years' Residence in Washington Territory
About this book (from Stephan's Reviews at Goodreads.com)
"This book was written by James Swan and is an account of the three years he spent on the NW coast in Willapa Bay in the 1850s.
Swan is a wonderful writer. The book is extremely funny, but also provides one of the best anthropological accounts of NW Indian tribes ever written.
As opposed to most of the settlers, Swan had a deep respect for the natives and would set off with them in their canoes to hunt, visit other tribes or just get in trouble. At the time, there were only a handful of settlers and a lot of natives. He was one of the few people who learned their language and won their respect."