This is a list of history books I rely on for research in this blog. It is far from complete, but does consist of the most common books I refer too. Please feel free to comment if there is a book or two that you’d highly recommend.

General Pacific Northwest History

Ghost Towns of the Pacific Northwest: Your Guide to the Hidden History of Washington, Oregon, and British Columbia by Philip Varney

British Columbia

California

California’s Geographic Names: A Gazetteer of Historic and Modern Names of the State by David L. Durham

Idaho

Idaho Place Names: A Geographical Dictionary by Lalia Boone

Nevada

Nevada Place Names: A Geographical Dictionary by Helen S. Carlson

Oregon (my full list of Oregon History books can be found here)

Ghost Towns of the American West by Berthold Steinhilber

“Ghost Towns of the West” by Lambert Florn

“Hiking Oregon’s History : The Stories Behind Historic Places You Can Walk to See” by William L. Sullivan

“Historical Atlas of Washington and Oregon” by Derek Hayes

“Lincoln County Lore” by Lincoln County Historial Society

“The Oregon Book: Information A to Z” by Connie Battaile

“The Oregon Companion: An Historical Gazetteer of the Useful, the Curious, and the Arcane” by Richard H. Engeman

“The Oregon Desert by E.R. Jackman and R.A. Long

“Oregon’s Dry Side: Exploring East of the Cascade Crest” by Alan D. St. John

“Oregon Geographic Names” (Copyright 1992) by Lewis A. MacArthur

“Oregon For the Curious” by Ralph Friedman

“Oregon Ghost Towns” by Lambert Florin

“Oregon Post Offices, 1847-1982” by Richard W. Helbock

“Ten Years in Oregon. Travels and adventures of Dr. E. White and lady, west of the Rocky Mountains” Compiled by A. J. Allen. (1968 limited edition)

“Thirty-One Years In Baker County: A History Of The County From 1861 to 1893” by Isaac Hiatt

“Willamette Landings: Ghost Towns of the River” by Howard McKinley Corning

Washington

Place Names of Washington by Robert Hitchman

Washington State Place Names by Doug Brokenshire