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Dissertation Information for Ernest Bruce Halhad Shelvey

NAME:
- Ernest Bruce Halhad Shelvey

DEGREE:
- Ph.D.

DISCIPLINE:
- History

SCHOOL:
- Arizona State University (USA) (1999)

ADVISORS:
- Peter Iverson
- Stephen J. Pyne

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
- Robert A. Trennert Jr.

MPACT Status: Fully Complete

Title: Skagit scenes: Landscape formation in the Pacific Northwest

Abstract: The Skagit watershed, framed by the wild Fraser River and the tamed Columbia River, has undergone many transformations. Formed by uplift, ice and volcanic action of nature, manipulated by the fires ignited by First Peoples, ignored and dissected by British and American colonisers, differentiated by reservoir and river through American rationalisation, and defined by wilderness and usefulness by Canadian nationalists, the Skagit valley serves as an icon for the complexity of landscape creation. Skagit Scenes explores the history of the formation of unique landscapes in the midst of large imposing forces of change, converging local identities, and cycles of stability and upheaval. First Nations, Newcomers, Americans and Canadians worked out their cultural identity in and through the Skagit. In this peripheral region a clear representation of each society inevitably emerged out of the fluidity of established boundaries and the commingling of unique cultures.

Skagit Scenes clearly shows that simple, politically motivated explanations and solutions are not adequate for developing a clear understanding of the wonderfully complex landscapes developed by social, political, economic and environmental forces of change. The valley as homeland to First Nations, the mountains as borderland to Newcomers, the reservoir as hinterland to the Electric Age in America, and the river as outland for the exploration of Canadian identity, highlight the dynamic and ongoing process between human communities and nature itself. This history underscores the truism that there is no permanent state of nature, and thus, the Skagit serves as a metaphor for other landscapes experiencing industrial outbreak across the continent and around the globe. The history of this natural reservoir, not nearly as well known as Hetch Hetchy, Glen Canyon or the Three Gorges, is not just another dam story, but an alternative paradigm for understanding how humans transform their surroundings in the never-ending quest for stability and order.


MPACT Scores for Ernest Bruce Halhad Shelvey

A = 0
C = 0
A+C = 0
T = 0
G = 0
W = 0
TD = 0
TA = 0
calculated 2008-05-04 20:52:06

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Students under Ernest Bruce Halhad Shelvey

ADVISEES:
- None

COMMITTEESHIPS:
- None