September 6, 2009 -- Portland Writing Examiner -- Karen Braucher Tobin
"Francis Drake in Nehalem Bay 1579"
presents daring maritime historical research
New book by Garry Gitzen makes the case for Drake in Oregon
Garry Gitzen believes Sir Francis Drake spent five weeks in Nehalem Bay, Oregon, in the summer of 1579, not in a bay in California as has been previously asserted. In his new book he attempts to set the historical record straight using historical documents, archaeological evidence, maps, surveys, and Native American life and language.
This is a bold and ambitious project undertaken by an independent historian using the extensive library of the late Wayne Jensen, a curator at the Tillamook Museum and member of the Oregon Archaeological Society. While Gitzen is not a professional writer, the book is well-organized and makes a strong case that Drake did not land in California at all, but in Oregon. It is also an amazing story featuring stone carvings, maps, and a pioneering spirit on both the part of the sailors and of the researchers trying to understand our past.
Why does this matter? As Gitzen explains, "The compelling and groundbreaking discovery of hard evidence that Francis Drake was in Nehalem Bay in 1579 is rewriting Pacific Northwest's first contact history, exploration, and colonization of the North American continent." (p.22) As Harvey Steele, Life Member of The Oregon Archaeological Society, has written, "Uniquely, Gitzen presents long well-organized sections on each of the key issues...One reason this tome is so valuable is in Gitzen's reprinting of many obscure sources and bringing them to one publication."
For the reader, this is a real-life treasure hunt on two levels: first, there is the exciting story of Drake sailing up the coast, surveying the land, and meeting the Indians, and, second, there is the amazing story of various independent researchers and university scholars trying to piece together what happened so long ago. To the layman, it comes as a shock that we actually know so little about where these explorers landed. The state of navigation in the late 1500s was quite primitive by our standards, and the entire coast was called "California," including the Pacific Northwest, at that time.
If Gitzen's theory is true, Drake named this new land from 38 ° to 48 ° North latitude - Nova Albion or New England! Somehow this has all been lost in the sands of time.
Readers will approach this volume with skepticism, but by the end of chapter one, they will be hooked. Gitzen has collected all the archaeological evidence in one volume in such a way that all serious students of history must take note.
This is an excellent book for anyone interested in the early history of America, maritime history, or the history and archaeology of the Pacific Northwest. The stories of the struggles of early researchers is captured well, and it's astounding to find out that academic scholars have not delved deeply into the subject. There are photos of the stone carvings apparently left by Drake's party as part of their effort to claim the coast for the British crown, as well as an indepth comparison of Indian ways mentioned in Drake's men's diaries versus Oregon coastal natives' way of life. You will be amazed by the interactions between the white men and natives as related here. You'll have to read the book to find out more.
In this book Gitzen presents his bold challenge: accept his theory or show him what is wrong with it. His extensive data all point to Drake in Nehalem Bay in 1579. This would have been the first European contact with Pacific Northwest Indians.
This is a great adventure story and non-fiction mystery for high school age students through adults. It also shows how a few persistent researchers have attempted to understand the strange carvings and stone cairns left behind. The incredible amount of unpaid research and writing that Garry Gitzen has performed is admirable. Hopefully, this book will get historians' attention and make a difference in piecing together our early history.
Several historians have started to respond, including historian Susan Jackson of The Drake Exploration Society, United Kingdom, who writes, "Francis Drake in Nehalem Bay is a scholarly piece of research and I would recommend its reading to any serious student of Francis Drake or of 16th century maritime expansion." It is now also part of The Bancroft Library (University of California, Berkeley), which houses one of the largest and most heavily used libraries of historical materials in the United States.
This book is recommended for all intellectually curious people as well as others who are interested in the following specific areas: historical research, archaeological research, maritime history, Pacific Northwest history, early American history, anthropology, Native American history, and those interested in first contact between cultures. The illustrations and photographs are fascinating.
This is a perfect book for a long rainy day in Portland or on the coast. "Francis Drake in Nehalem Bay 1579: Setting the Historical Record Straight" by Garry Gitzen
Available at all book outlets. ISBN978-0-578-00625-3
This is a bold and ambitious project undertaken by an independent historian using the extensive library of the late Wayne Jensen, a curator at the Tillamook Museum and member of the Oregon Archaeological Society. While Gitzen is not a professional writer, the book is well-organized and makes a strong case that Drake did not land in California at all, but in Oregon. It is also an amazing story featuring stone carvings, maps, and a pioneering spirit on both the part of the sailors and of the researchers trying to understand our past.
Why does this matter? As Gitzen explains, "The compelling and groundbreaking discovery of hard evidence that Francis Drake was in Nehalem Bay in 1579 is rewriting Pacific Northwest's first contact history, exploration, and colonization of the North American continent." (p.22) As Harvey Steele, Life Member of The Oregon Archaeological Society, has written, "Uniquely, Gitzen presents long well-organized sections on each of the key issues...One reason this tome is so valuable is in Gitzen's reprinting of many obscure sources and bringing them to one publication."
For the reader, this is a real-life treasure hunt on two levels: first, there is the exciting story of Drake sailing up the coast, surveying the land, and meeting the Indians, and, second, there is the amazing story of various independent researchers and university scholars trying to piece together what happened so long ago. To the layman, it comes as a shock that we actually know so little about where these explorers landed. The state of navigation in the late 1500s was quite primitive by our standards, and the entire coast was called "California," including the Pacific Northwest, at that time.
If Gitzen's theory is true, Drake named this new land from 38 ° to 48 ° North latitude - Nova Albion or New England! Somehow this has all been lost in the sands of time.
Readers will approach this volume with skepticism, but by the end of chapter one, they will be hooked. Gitzen has collected all the archaeological evidence in one volume in such a way that all serious students of history must take note.
This is an excellent book for anyone interested in the early history of America, maritime history, or the history and archaeology of the Pacific Northwest. The stories of the struggles of early researchers is captured well, and it's astounding to find out that academic scholars have not delved deeply into the subject. There are photos of the stone carvings apparently left by Drake's party as part of their effort to claim the coast for the British crown, as well as an indepth comparison of Indian ways mentioned in Drake's men's diaries versus Oregon coastal natives' way of life. You will be amazed by the interactions between the white men and natives as related here. You'll have to read the book to find out more.
In this book Gitzen presents his bold challenge: accept his theory or show him what is wrong with it. His extensive data all point to Drake in Nehalem Bay in 1579. This would have been the first European contact with Pacific Northwest Indians.
This is a great adventure story and non-fiction mystery for high school age students through adults. It also shows how a few persistent researchers have attempted to understand the strange carvings and stone cairns left behind. The incredible amount of unpaid research and writing that Garry Gitzen has performed is admirable. Hopefully, this book will get historians' attention and make a difference in piecing together our early history.
Several historians have started to respond, including historian Susan Jackson of The Drake Exploration Society, United Kingdom, who writes, "Francis Drake in Nehalem Bay is a scholarly piece of research and I would recommend its reading to any serious student of Francis Drake or of 16th century maritime expansion." It is now also part of The Bancroft Library (University of California, Berkeley), which houses one of the largest and most heavily used libraries of historical materials in the United States.
This book is recommended for all intellectually curious people as well as others who are interested in the following specific areas: historical research, archaeological research, maritime history, Pacific Northwest history, early American history, anthropology, Native American history, and those interested in first contact between cultures. The illustrations and photographs are fascinating.
This is a perfect book for a long rainy day in Portland or on the coast. "Francis Drake in Nehalem Bay 1579: Setting the Historical Record Straight" by Garry Gitzen
Available at all book outlets. ISBN978-0-578-00625-3