Mossback

Preserving Asahel Curtis’ Legacy

Asahel Curtis shot thousands of images in the early 20th century. Knute Berger talks about the effort to share them with the public for the first time.
Asahel Curtis, the renowned Pacific Northwest photographer, was amazingly prolific. He documented regional life for 50 years, from the 1890s to the 1940s. Crosscut’s resident historian Knute Berger explored Curtis’ work and legacy in Season 5 of the Mossback’s Northwest video series, but that legacy now has a new chapter. 
As Berger detailed in a more recent episode of Mossback’s Northwest, he’s revisiting Curtis’ story thanks to a new project that aims to digitize the approximately 60,000 glass plate and nitrate negatives that make up the photographer’s massive archive.  
The Washington State Historical Society will spend the next few years painstakingly scanning each one. The goal is not only to preserve the history the images contain, but also to share them — for free — with the public.  
In this episode of Mossback, Berger joins co-host Stephen Hegg to discuss the digitization project and all it entails, as well as a handful of remarkable photographs the process has turned up already. Plus, they dig into the philosophical aspects of photography in an increasingly online, AI-driven world, where notions of fact and reality can seem elusive. 
For more on all things Mossback, visit crosscut.com/mossback. To reach Knute Berger directly, drop him a line at knute.berger@crosscut.com. And if you’d like an exclusive weekly newsletter from Knute, where he offers greater insight into his latest historical discoveries, become a Crosscut member today.
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Credits
Hosts: Stephen Hegg, Knute Berger
Producer: Seth Halleran
Story editors: Sara Bernard and Sarah Menzies

The Mother of the Pacific Crest Trail

Catherine Montgomery spearheaded a movement to preserve old growth in Washington forests. Knute Berger shares her story.
In the early 1900s in Washington, women couldn’t yet vote, but many formed powerful civic groups to advocate for everything from prison reform to forest preservation.  
One woman stands out: the mountaineer, teacher, activist and suffragist Catherine Montgomery. Her advocacy helped support women’s empowerment, protect wilderness and old growth trees, and even plant the first seed for what would later become the Pacific Crest Trail.  
Crosscut’s resident historian Knute Berger introduced us to Catherine Montgomery’s legacy in a recent episode of the Mossback’s Northwest video series, but there is more left to explore.  
In this episode of Mossback, Berger joins co-host Stephen Hegg to paint a picture of Montgomery’s life, the political and social context of her time, and the tough work Montgomery and many other women undertook in that era to advocate for forests and other social causes in the face of rapid development. Plus, we hear what it’s like to visit the little-known park she helped create. 
For more on all things Mossback, visit crosscut.com/mossback. To reach Knute Berger directly, drop him a line at knute.berger@crosscut.com. And if you’d like an exclusive weekly newsletter from Knute, where he offers greater insight into his latest historical discoveries, become a Crosscut member today.
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Credits
Hosts: Stephen Hegg, Knute Berger
Producer: Seth Halleran
Story editors: Sara Bernard and Sarah Menzies
 

The Explosion that Rocked Seattle

In 1915, Germany wanted to keep the United States from joining World War I. Knute Berger explains how the fight came to the Northwest.
In the years leading up to World War I, Germany and its sympathizers tried to prevent the United States from entering the conflict. An intricate network of spies and saboteurs attempted to sway public opinion as well as interrupt shipments of war materiel at U.S. ports.
Seattle was not immune to these forces. In the wee hours of May 30, 1915, a scow packed with dynamite near Harbor Island lit up the skies. The blast marked the beginning of an era of anti-German sentiment; the Espionage Act; and, of course, the U.S.’s eventual involvement in both world wars. 
Crosscut’s resident historian Knute Berger blew open this history in a recent episode of the Mossback’s Northwest video series, but there is much more to the story.
In this episode of Mossback, Berger joins co-host Stephen Hegg to discuss the murky details of this gigantic explosion in Seattle, the geopolitical context surrounding it, similar efforts by German saboteurs across the U.S. at that time, and the way these pre-war histories are remembered—and forgotten.
For more on all things Mossback, visit crosscut.com/mossback. To reach Knute Berger directly, drop him a line at knute.berger@crosscut.com. And if you’d like an exclusive weekly newsletter from Knute, where he offers greater insight into his latest historical discoveries, become a Crosscut member today.
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Credits
Hosts: Stephen Hegg, Knute Berger
Producer: Seth Halleran
Story editors: Sara Bernard and Sarah Menzies
 

The Black Migration to Victoria

Still encountering racism in the 'free' states of the West, some Black communities sought the American Dream in Canada.
Before the Civil War, many states in the American West were considered “free” because the institution of slavery was outlawed. That didn’t mean, however, that these places were free from racism and legalized discrimination.
So when a group of Black Americans from San Francisco were invited to join what was then a British colony in Victoria, on Vancouver Island, hundreds agreed to make the journey. The result was a mixed bag of freedom, opportunity, and, in some cases, encounters with the same discrimination they’d attempted to escape. 
Crosscut’s resident historian Knute Berger explored this complex history in a recent episode of the Mossback’s Northwest video series, but there is much more left to discuss.
In this episode of Mossback, Berger joins co-host Stephen Hegg to lay out the context surrounding the Black exodus to Victoria and key figures in that history, including one who had a significant impact on the city of Seattle. Plus, we hear about one of the only known examples of the Underground Railroad in the Pacific Northwest.
For more on all things Mossback, visit crosscut.com/mossback. To reach Knute Berger directly, drop him a line at knute.berger@crosscut.com. And if you’d like an exclusive weekly newsletter from Knute, where he offers greater insight into his latest historical discoveries, become a Crosscut member today.
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Credits
Hosts: Stephen Hegg, Knute Berger
Producer: Seth Halleran
Story editors: Sara Bernard and Sarah Menzies

Putting the P in P-Patch

P-Patches launched a modern agricultural movement in the 1970s, sprouting from a small family farm in Wedgwood.
Seattle was once full of farms. But as the city developed, land-use regulation and other forces began to push farmers out. 
One farming family feeling the squeeze in Seattle in the 1970s helped launch a program that has had a profound impact on the city ever since. A piece of their land became the first of what is now a collection of about 90 public urban gardens, or “P-Patches.”
Crosscut’s resident historian Knute Berger dug into this history and what it represents in a recent episode of the Mossback’s Northwest video series, but there is a lot more left to unearth. 
In this episode of Mossback, Berger joins co-host Stephen Hegg to discuss Seattle’s early efforts at farm-to-table living, how the rise of supermarkets and other economic forces almost derailed them, the details of the first P-Patch and what these popular gardens now symbolize in an ever-changing city.
For more on all things Mossback, visit crosscut.com/mossback. To reach Knute Berger directly, drop him a line at knute.berger@crosscut.com. And if you’d like an exclusive weekly newsletter from Knute, where he offers greater insight into his latest historical discoveries, become a Crosscut member today.
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Credits
Hosts: Stephen Hegg, Knute Berger
Producer: Seth Halleran
Story editors: Sara Bernard and Sarah Menzies

The Past and Future of Grizzlies in Washington

The North Cascades' bear population thrived in the 19th century, but now almost none are left. Advocates are working to bring them back.
The iconic grizzly bear once roamed the North Cascades. Grizzly bones have also been found as far west as Whidbey Island. Today, however, there are almost no grizzlies left in Washington state. 
Some government agencies have started the process of potentially reintroducing the bears to the region, given their history as a key part of the ecosystem. This idea, however, isn’t without controversy. 
Crosscut’s resident historian Knute Berger dug into this history and controversy in a recent episode of the Mossback’s Northwest video series, but there’s more left to explore.
In this episode of Mossback, Berger joins co-host Stephen Hegg to ask what evidence we have of grizzlies in Washington’s historical record, why the bears have mostly disappeared and why some want to bring them back. Plus, Berger and Hegg offer some sound advice on bear etiquette. 
For more on all things Mossback, visit crosscut.com/mossback. To reach Knute Berger directly, drop him a line at knute.berger@crosscut.com. And if you’d like an exclusive weekly newsletter from Knute, where he offers greater insight into his latest historical discoveries, become a Crosscut member today.
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Credits
Hosts: Stephen Hegg, Knute Berger
Producer: Seth Halleran
Story editors: Sara Bernard and Sarah Menzies

The Flight Heard Round the World

In 1924, four airplanes took off from what’s now Magnuson Park. Six months and more than 26,000 miles later, half the fleet made it back.
The 1920s marked an era of aviation. After World War I, many powerful nations focused on the new technology and rushed to be the first to use it to circumnavigate the globe.
In 1924, the U.S. military selected eight Army pilots and four specially made biplanes with open-air cockpits to make that first attempt. The pilots were called “the Magellans of the Sky” after the celebrated 16th-century explorer who tried the same feat on the sea. Their official launch site? The shores of Sand Point, or what’s now Magnuson Park in Seattle. 
Crosscut’s resident historian Knute Berger shone a light on these lesser-known Magellans in a recent episode of the Mossback’s Northwest video series, but there’s more left to highlight. 
In this episode of Mossback, Berger joins co-host Stephen Hegg to dig deeper into the reasons behind the attempt, the physical dangers and geopolitical challenges the pilots faced, the flight’s global significance and its relationship to Boeing. They also discuss the Centennial Celebration that will mark the anniversary of the flight in 2024, exactly where the planes launched and landed a century ago. 
For more on all things Mossback, visit crosscut.com/mossback. To reach Knute Berger directly, drop him a line at knute.berger@crosscut.com. And if you’d like an exclusive weekly newsletter from Knute, where he offers greater insight into his latest historical discoveries, become a Crosscut member today.
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Credits
Hosts: Stephen Hegg, Knute Berger
Producer: Seth Halleran
Story editors: Sara Bernard and Sarah Menzies
Executive producer: Sarah Menzies

Why Is There a Stonehenge in Washington?

The millionaire built a 'castle' on the Columbia River and later a replica of the English monument.
The Stonehenge that sits atop Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, has long inspired speculation of its purpose and imitators to its form. One of those imitators overlooks the Columbia River in Washington state where it inspires questions: Who built the replica and why?
The answer to the first part of that question is Samuel Hill, a wealthy railroad man who marveled at the landscape the abutted the river and who enjoyed building things out of concrete, including the replica and roads.
In a recent episode of the Mossback’s Northwest video series, Knute Berger tells the story of Sam Hill and his concrete curiosity overlooking the Columbia.
But there is more to the story. For this episode of the Mossback podcast, Berger and co-host Stephen Hegg explore the origins of the monument and attempt to answer the second part of the question: Why?
Before listening, we suggest you watch the Mossback's Northwest episode about Samuel Hill and his Stonehenge here.
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Credits
Hosts: Stephen Hegg, Knute Berger
Producer: Seth Halleran
Executive producer: Mark Baumgarten

How the Frango Became a Northwest Fixture

For decades, department stores competed for customers. Knute Berger recalls how Frederick & Nelson lured them in with a chocolate mint truffle.
Food does more than feed us. It connects us, to each other, to traditions and to place. This is true everywhere, but especially in the Pacific Northwest, where an abundance of life creates endless options for indulgence. 
Salmon, apples and even chicken teriyaki all have a spot in the hearts of Northwesterners, but there is one delectable that seems to inspire a particularly intense and mouthwatering nostalgia: the Frango.
Host Knute Berger and Stephen Hegg discussed the Seattle-made chocolate treat in a recent episode of the Mossback’s Northwest video series. But there is more to the story.
For this episode of the Mossback podcast, Berger and co-host Stephen Hegg dig into the origin and cultural impact of the Frango. They discuss how the chocolate mint truffle was a part of a larger department-store culture that shaped the rituals of the region for many, and they explore some of the other sweets created here.
Before listening, we suggest you watch the Mossback's Northwest episode about Frangos and other Northwest delights here.
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Credits
Hosts: Stephen Hegg, Knute Berger
Producer: Seth Halleran
Executive producer: Mark Baumgarten

The Naked Truth of Nature Man

Earnest Darling was a regular Northwestern kid until an illness inspired him to shed his clothes and take to the woods. Fame followed.
On the desk of Crosscut's resident historian Kute Berger sits a black-and-white photograph of a man with a kind of contemporary look. He is standing, bearded, in what looks like a tropical setting. And he’s wearing a mesh crop top. 
This is Earnest Darling and the photo, surprisingly, was taken in 1908. "He looks like someone I went to college with at the Evergreen State College in 1972," says Berger. 
Darling did go to college, at Stanford University, but dropped out and became a wanderer in a loincloth, living off the land, inspiring numerous newspaper articles and even striking up a friendship with adventurer and author Jack London. 
In a recent episode of the Mossback’s Northwest video series, Berger tells the story of Darling and his rise to fame as an early-20th century curiosity. 
But there is more to the story. For this episode of the Mossback podcast, Berger joins co-host Stephen Hegg to discuss Darling's origins, his various sojourns and the difficulties the proto-hippie faced as he challenged the conventions of his time.
Before listening, we suggest you watch the Mossback's Northwest episode about Earnest Darling here.
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Credits
Hosts: Stephen Hegg, Knute Berger
Producer: Seth Halleran
Executive producer: Mark Baumgarten