In the late 1970’s, a backpacking trip taken by a young thru-hiker and a notable guidebook author sparked the vision for a new hiking trail between the Rocky Mountains and Pacific Ocean and a life-long commitment to earn it a place in the National Trails System.
One day soon, visitors to our Sedro-Woolley headquarters will be able to hike through the history of the PNT and join Ron Strickland, Harvey Manning and a cast of trailblazers and volunteers at key moments like these through interpretive exhibits showcasing the hidden history of the Pacific Northwest Trail.
This summer, archivist intern, Hannah Morrison will begin the process of archiving materials related to the PNT, the PNTA, and their founder, Ron Strickland. Her work will create the foundation for a permanent collection and future exhibits planned for the visitor center at our headquarters in Sedro-Woolley, Washington.
This internship was created in partnership with the University of Washington through the Master of Library and Information Science Directed Fieldwork Program. Throughout the summer, Hannah will earn credit hours through her efforts to organize and protect PNTA’s collection, while receiving tuition reimbursement and hourly wages through the generous contributions of PNTA supporters like you.
Above: Archivist Intern Hannah Morrison processing a portion of our historical collection at PNTA headquarters. The full collection includes more than 50 years worth of historical documents, photographs, newspaper clippings, correspondence, artifacts and Ron Strickland’s hand-written journals. Top Image: Harvey Manning with Ron Strickland. 1970’s. “Tomorrow the Pacific Ocean!” — This phrase from Northwest guidebook author Harvey Manning was published in 1970, and is credited as the catalyst that led Strickland to first envision the Pacific Northwest Trail.
Hannah Morrison is a recent graduate of Yale University with a degree in Linguistics, and is currently in the middle of her Master of Library and Information Science program at the University of Washington. With career aspirations in archives and a background performing archiving services for libraries and historical societies, she brings a strong set of skills and a desire to tell the story of the PNT from its inception to where it is now and beyond, for the benefit of hikers and researchers for decades to come.
Her past experiences include linguistic archival work with the Blackfoot and Wampanoag Indigenous languages, processing and exhibit curation for the Massachusetts Historical Society, oral history transcription for Yale’s Holocaust Archive, and ongoing work in the Pacific Northwest Collection at UW Libraries. She is looking forward to the rest of this summer as she works part time, onsite to process the first PNTA Collection!
If you are interested in contributing historic materials to the PNTA collection, or giving in support of this project, please contact us at info@pnt.org.