Center for Pacific Northwest Studies
Today's Hours: 8:30am-12pm | 1pm-4:30pm | Appt. Required
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Access and Use of Materials
Materials in Archives & Special Collections do not circulate, meaning they must be accessed onsite. Learn more about what to expect when you visit us and work with collection materials.
Harmful Language & Content Warning
We acknowledge that problematic content exists in the material we collect and the methods we use to interpret those resources. We welcome respectful dialogue with those who may be harmed or impacted, and seek to engage in respectful practices that build trust and collaboration.
Read our full "Statement About Potentially Harmful Language and Content"
The Center for Pacific Northwest Studies houses over 300 archival collections supporting research into the region's past and present. Holdings include collections of private, family and political papers, organizational and business records, and wide-ranging formats including correspondence, diaries, photographs, maps, oral histories, audio-visual materials and electronic records. Particular emphasis is given to the collection of materials which document economic development, cultural and social history, environmental history, and other historically significant trends in the region. Learn more about CPNWS collections below, or contact us for more information.
Search Collection Guides
Collection guides, also called finding aids, describe the contents of archival collections and provide basic background information. Many also contain a list of what is in each folder or box. These guides can be accessed and searched via the Center's website and the Archives West platform (please be sure to narrow results by name of repository, for example, "Western Washington University, Center for Pacific Northwest Studies."
James W. Scott Fellowship
The James W. Scott Regional Research Fellowships promote awareness and innovative use of archival collections at Western Washington University, and seek to forward scholarly understandings of the Pacific Northwest.
Publications
The CPNWS Occasional Papers series provides an interdisciplinary forum for the presentation of interpretive studies on the past and present of the region that stretches from Alaska and British Columbia southward to northern California, from the Pacific Coast eastward to the Rocky Mountains.
Location
Location: Goltz-Murray Archives Building
The Goltz-Murray Archives Building is located at 808 25th St., at the corner of Bill McDonald Parkway and 25th St., on the south end of the Western Washington University campus.
Parking
Free archives visitor parking is available in Lot 33G (across from main entrance), marked by signs on north side of the lot.
Contact Us
Email: cpnws@wwu.edu
Phone: (360) 650-7534
Ruth Steele , she/her
Archivist, Center for Pacific Northwest Studies
steeler@wwu.edu; 360-650-7747 ; AB225
Roz Koester , she/her
Assistant Archivist for Outreach and Instruction
koester@wwu.edu; (360) 650-6621 ; Wilson 662
Elizabeth Joffrion
Director of Archives & Special Collections
Elizabeth.Joffrion@wwu.edu; (360) 650-3283 ; Wilson Library 673