An Industry-Focused Approach to Piling Recordation along the Shorelines of Grays Harbor County

Summary

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2024: Individual Abstracts" session, at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Following non-native settlement in Grays Harbor County, Washington on the Pacific coast, the Harbor and adjacent rivers became integral to the growth and prosperity of the region’s growing timber-focused economy during the early-twentieth century. Native shorelines were transformed as piling-supported trestles, log booms, timber mills, and commercial wharves lined the harbor and riverbanks during the area’s peak of economic prosperity. The economic downturn of the Great Depression, unchecked timber harvesting, and implementation of modern environmental regulations led to a decline in the timber industry and the closure of most of the area’s mills and related businesses throughout the latter half of the twentieth century. Our poster discusses HDR’s recent survey of the remnants of the area’s historic past and our approach to comprehensively document the hundreds of pilings and associated features that still stand along the shorelines today. Although most of the pilings and features are linked to the region’s early-twentieth century timber economy, the individual piling cluster or feature has its own unique story that are linked to specific functions or enterprises. While examining these pilings within the larger industrial landscape, we explore their histories through our industry-focused approach to best tell their individual and collective stories.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• SAA 2024: Individual Abstracts   •
• Society for American Archaeology 89th Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA (2024)

Keywords

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 38779.0