Off the Shelf: Local history resources at the library
Published 3:30 am Thursday, May 7, 2026
By Emily Sly
for the Sequim Gazette
Sequim is celebrating local history at the 131st Irrigation Festival this week, first held in 1896. Sequim’s initial library collection wasn’t too far behind the first Irrigation Festival; in 1915, the Sequim Women’s Club started a circulating library of 300 books. The books were later given to service members during World War I.
In 1923, the Progressive Club bought land for a library at 415 N. Sequim Ave. The Clyde Rhodefer Memorial Library was built 13 years later, after receiving financial support from the Public Works Administration. In 1947, the library became part of the newly-formed Clallam County Rural Library District, which later became the North Olympic Library System (NOLS). The library eventually outgrew the little building at 415 N. Sequim Ave. and in 1983, relocated to its present location at 630 N. Sequim Ave.
If you’re curious about local history, NOLS has many books and an online database of newspapers accessible at each branch, and an Archive Room at the Port Angeles Main Library. Learn more about our area’s past with some of the resources listed below. Summaries are provided by the books’ publishers.
“Sequim-Dungeness Valley” by Katherine Vollenweider: This compilation of historic photographs illustrates the area’s history from the 1800s to 1930 and includes information from archival documents sequestered in historical collections throughout the Puget Sound.
“Native Peoples of the Olympic Peninsula: Who We Are” by the Olympic Peninsula Intertribal Cultural Advisory Committee, edited by Jacilee Wray: The nine Native tribes of the Olympic Peninsula — the Hoh, Skokomish, Squaxin Island, Lower Elwha Klallam, Jamestown S’Klallam, Port Gamble S’Klallam, Quinault, Quileute, and Makah — share complex histories of trade, religion, warfare, and kinship, as well as reverence for the teaching of elders. This title traces the nine tribes’ common history and each tribe’s individual story.
“Sequim Pioneer Family Histories from 1850 – 1962”: These 157 family histories and many photos show the sharp contrast between life years ago and life today.
Harriet U. Fish wrote several booklets about local history including “Irrigation in the Sequim-Dungeness Valley,” “Diamond Point Quarantine Station,” “Sequim Bay” and “Clallam County Railroads.” They are all available for checkout at the Sequim Branch.
The Washington Rural Heritage website provides access to digitized materials held by small and rural libraries throughout the state. The North Olympic Heritage collection features about 5,000 photographs collected by Bert Kellogg, as well as “Listen Up!” oral histories recorded by NOLS featuring local residents’ experiences on a number of topics. Visit washingtonruralheritage.org to explore the collection.
More Information
The Sequim Branch Library is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays, so there’s time to stop by the library before or after this Saturday’s Grand Parade. Or visit the library during the week: Monday – Thursday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Fridays 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. The library is located at 630 N. Sequim Ave. Get in touch with your friendly library staff by calling 360-683-1161 or by emailing Discover@nols.org. The library is always open at NOLS.org.
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Emily Sly is Sequim branch library manager.
