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The River That Made Seattle: A Human and Natural History of the Duwamish
With bountiful salmon and fertile plains, the Duwamish River has drawn people to its shores over the centuries for trading, transport, and sustenance. Chief Se’alth and his allies fished and lived in villages here and white settlers established their first settlements nearby. Industrialists later straightened the river’s natural turns and built factories on its banks, floating in raw materials and shipping out airplane parts, cement, and steel. Unfortunately, the very utility of the river has been its undoing, as decades of dumping led to the river being declared a Superfund cleanup site.Using previously unpublished accounts by Indigenous people and settlers, BJ Cummings’s compelling narrative restores the Duwamish River to its central place in Seattle and Pacific Northwest history. Writing from the perspective of environmental justice—and herself a key figure in river restoration efforts—Cummings vividly portrays the people and conflicts that shaped the region’s culture and natural environment. She conducted research with members of the Duwamish Tribe, with whom she has long worked as an advocate. Cummings shares the river’s story as a call for action in aligning decisions about the river and its future with values of collaboration, respect, and justice.
237 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 15, 2020
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514 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
October 27, 2020
A great, readable history that could have used more maps and illustrations.
November 25, 2021
This was so worth the read. I have lived here for my whole life and had no idea about most of the events in this book. Despite being incredibly important, this history is left out of every tour I’ve ever been on (which include the wastewater plant). I’ve heard countless stories about Boeing through my grandpa and dad’s collective decades of work there, but I’ve never heard these ones. It was incredible to realize what was going on during my grandparents’ time in Seattle, my parents’, and even what has happened within my lifetime. It’s amazing how much Seattle has changed in only a few generations. This book is a short read and a very deserved space in history for the Duwamish. If you live in Seattle, or anywhere nearby Seattle, read this book. If you don’t, find a book like this for the area you live in.
July 14, 2025
Really good overview of the Duwamish and some related rivers of the region. Springs from geology, meanders through native peoples, pools around industrial uses and finally widens out around pollution and industrial waste.
The author has a long history with the Duwamish and it comes across in the prose, but rest assured, the facts are here - 23 pages of notes and a great index. As other reviewers note, it would be really nice to have a few maps. I turned instead of online sources.
I've personally hiked along the (mostly defunct) Black river, and look forward to walking close to the Duwamish. I also look forward to half a decade of updates since this was published.
The author has a long history with the Duwamish and it comes across in the prose, but rest assured, the facts are here - 23 pages of notes and a great index. As other reviewers note, it would be really nice to have a few maps. I turned instead of online sources.
I've personally hiked along the (mostly defunct) Black river, and look forward to walking close to the Duwamish. I also look forward to half a decade of updates since this was published.
July 24, 2024
Hm. I was really excited to read this book but it ended up being a bit of a slog to get through. It felt like it was split into two parts: pre-1950s history of settlement and development, and post-1950s discussion of pollution. I had issues with both parts.
It was hard to follow the narrative in the first part—slow and a little boring. Too many names and not enough focus on the underlying message. The second part, on the other hand, had too much underlying message. It was really clear that the author has an agenda, and I can’t help but feel like there are other pieces to the history and perspectives that were not considered. All in all, I learned some interesting bits about the Duwamish River but couldn’t say that I was inspired by this book in the way I was hoping to be. Definitely think it could benefit from more maps and images.
It was hard to follow the narrative in the first part—slow and a little boring. Too many names and not enough focus on the underlying message. The second part, on the other hand, had too much underlying message. It was really clear that the author has an agenda, and I can’t help but feel like there are other pieces to the history and perspectives that were not considered. All in all, I learned some interesting bits about the Duwamish River but couldn’t say that I was inspired by this book in the way I was hoping to be. Definitely think it could benefit from more maps and images.
July 8, 2025
Quick read that covers the social and ecological history of the Duwamish river. Lots of critical information and interesting anecdotes in an engaging style.
October 7, 2024
My wife read this book with work, and given its attention to the natural and environmental history of the Duwamish River, that makes total sense. It was a very readable account, and captured some history of Se'alth that I hadn't heard before. While she may have attended closely to discussion of PCBs and EPA's dragging feet, I was reading hard the story of the Duwamish and Suquamish and their insistent connection to the river and their welcome of all who would steward its vitality and health.
Things I didn't know: Princess Angeline apparently went to Olympia with her father, Se'alth, and tried to get his name removed from the city: it is custom to no longer speak the names of the dead (which he would soon come to be). I maybe knew but didn't appreciate how the signatories of the 1855 Treaty of Point Elliott and Treaty of Point No Point and Treaty of Medicine Creek were made "chiefs" by the territorial governor, Isaac Stevens, when there weren't chiefs, if only to force credibility onto the document. I maybe knew but didn't appreciate in a similar vein that the many intermarrying peoples among the villages didn't make up discreet tribes, exactly, until Stevens created these hierarchies and regions. And I certainly didn't see the full scale effect of the Indian Wars after 1855, and how these brought concessions to the warriors like Nisqually's Leschi, but left those conciliating peacemakers, like Se'alth and the Duwamish, with nothing. As a result of siding with the white settlers, the Duwamish were left with no reservation and no claims at all.
After reading this book, I really want to go to the river, to the Longhouse, to the plaque in Mukilteo commemorating the signing of the Treaty at Point Elliott, and I still want to visit Se'alth's grave in Suquamish, and visit the museum there.
It's a well written, clear book with a lot of heart.
Things I didn't know: Princess Angeline apparently went to Olympia with her father, Se'alth, and tried to get his name removed from the city: it is custom to no longer speak the names of the dead (which he would soon come to be). I maybe knew but didn't appreciate how the signatories of the 1855 Treaty of Point Elliott and Treaty of Point No Point and Treaty of Medicine Creek were made "chiefs" by the territorial governor, Isaac Stevens, when there weren't chiefs, if only to force credibility onto the document. I maybe knew but didn't appreciate in a similar vein that the many intermarrying peoples among the villages didn't make up discreet tribes, exactly, until Stevens created these hierarchies and regions. And I certainly didn't see the full scale effect of the Indian Wars after 1855, and how these brought concessions to the warriors like Nisqually's Leschi, but left those conciliating peacemakers, like Se'alth and the Duwamish, with nothing. As a result of siding with the white settlers, the Duwamish were left with no reservation and no claims at all.
After reading this book, I really want to go to the river, to the Longhouse, to the plaque in Mukilteo commemorating the signing of the Treaty at Point Elliott, and I still want to visit Se'alth's grave in Suquamish, and visit the museum there.
It's a well written, clear book with a lot of heart.
March 4, 2025
This book filled in a lot of gaps in my knowledge of local history. It reads on the dry, factual side.
The first half includes the interactions between white settlers and indigenous people around the Duwamish watershed. Quickly the settlers decided they wanted the native people out but inconveniently the government couldn't officially deport them without running afoul of Federal treatise laws. They drew up "treaties" which relocated natives to tiny reservations and made it illegal for them to exist inside the newly-drawn boundaries. Their next problem was that these tribes didn't have hierarchical organizational structures with clear representatives as the groups were intermeshed. They forced people into representative roles and likely forged some of their signatures.
The second half focuses on the environmental and social decay and rehabilitation of the lower Duwamish during the 1950s-late 2000s. It was heartening to read about Beal's efforts to rehabilitate and daylight Hamm Creek. I hadn't ever heard of him.
I learned a ton about the ongoing EPA Superfund cleanup. Over 20 ethnic groups fish in the river. Beyond sustenance fishing, the Duwamish indigenous people consider it a sacred area. The EPA's goal is to meet the needs of these people and decontaminate the area so that people can safely eat the fish like they did for thousands of years before we poisoned the soil. Over seven generations the Duwamish area was ethnically cleansed, the course of the river straightened and deepened, polluting industrial sites were established and the river was poisoned. As one of the tribal members said, the cleanup effort aim to benefit local residents seven generations into the future, not just employ band-aid solutions.
Growing up in West Seattle I spent a lot of time in the Duwamish watershed and exploring the banks of the river, unaware of most of this history and social impact. It's a cautionary tale. This book is a compact and efficient way to look back, so we can look up at the situation today, look ahead, and prevent the same mistakes.
Sprinkled in are tidbits about non-Duwamish areas, for example:
It was thrilling to read the blow-by-blow details of the competing North & South plans to connect Lake Washington to Puget Sound via manmade canals. Semple's Beacon Hill cut plan was insane. It's neat that you can still see the beginnings of his attempt from I-5.
Previously I thought Green Lake was a manmade lake, but I learned in this book that the lake was natural. It was lowered by several feet by the Olmsteads to expose more shoreline with which to create their park. The big fields on the North and South ends were the shallowest mudflats.
The first half includes the interactions between white settlers and indigenous people around the Duwamish watershed. Quickly the settlers decided they wanted the native people out but inconveniently the government couldn't officially deport them without running afoul of Federal treatise laws. They drew up "treaties" which relocated natives to tiny reservations and made it illegal for them to exist inside the newly-drawn boundaries. Their next problem was that these tribes didn't have hierarchical organizational structures with clear representatives as the groups were intermeshed. They forced people into representative roles and likely forged some of their signatures.
The second half focuses on the environmental and social decay and rehabilitation of the lower Duwamish during the 1950s-late 2000s. It was heartening to read about Beal's efforts to rehabilitate and daylight Hamm Creek. I hadn't ever heard of him.
I learned a ton about the ongoing EPA Superfund cleanup. Over 20 ethnic groups fish in the river. Beyond sustenance fishing, the Duwamish indigenous people consider it a sacred area. The EPA's goal is to meet the needs of these people and decontaminate the area so that people can safely eat the fish like they did for thousands of years before we poisoned the soil. Over seven generations the Duwamish area was ethnically cleansed, the course of the river straightened and deepened, polluting industrial sites were established and the river was poisoned. As one of the tribal members said, the cleanup effort aim to benefit local residents seven generations into the future, not just employ band-aid solutions.
Growing up in West Seattle I spent a lot of time in the Duwamish watershed and exploring the banks of the river, unaware of most of this history and social impact. It's a cautionary tale. This book is a compact and efficient way to look back, so we can look up at the situation today, look ahead, and prevent the same mistakes.
Sprinkled in are tidbits about non-Duwamish areas, for example:
It was thrilling to read the blow-by-blow details of the competing North & South plans to connect Lake Washington to Puget Sound via manmade canals. Semple's Beacon Hill cut plan was insane. It's neat that you can still see the beginnings of his attempt from I-5.
Previously I thought Green Lake was a manmade lake, but I learned in this book that the lake was natural. It was lowered by several feet by the Olmsteads to expose more shoreline with which to create their park. The big fields on the North and South ends were the shallowest mudflats.
October 22, 2021
In this short, meticulously researched book, B.J. Cummings recounts the story of the Duwamish River: beginning with the diverse 1000s-year-old Indigenous populations, who lived along the river that sustained them, to the arrival of the first White settlers, and then to the diverse newly arrived immigrants who today have settled near or along this river in South Park. Between those years we learn of efforts to divert the river, of industrial pollution, and of the competing interests of Federal and State government in mandating a cleanup.
Cummings' story is one of social and environmental justice (or the lack thereof), of business interests, and of politics. As Cummings writes, “The choices we have made about how we use our rivers reflect the values of the governing bodies of our cities . . . at the moments when those choices were made.” We learn that the values often clashed within the same side (business and industry; white settlers; various levels of government, and more) and often clashed with opposing sides (new settlers vs. Indigenous; treaty fishing rights vs. commercial fishermen; environmentalists vs. industry, etc.)
I had never really thought much about the Duwamish River. In fact, I usually thought of it as a waterway. Cummings explains how the once meandering river with a fertile flood plane was dredged and straightened to accommodate industry but that same act or acts polluted the river, poisoned the fish, and destroyed the agricultural lands along the river.
She also tells us that White people had come to settle along the Duwamish River about a decade before the Denny Party arrived. In order to encourage settlement, the Donation Land Claims Act of 1850 gave 160 acres to a white male settler who promised to “improve” the land. A married couple got twice that much as did settlers who arrived before 1850. Never mind whose land was been given away.
The Duwamish people were by turns friendly and hostile to the new settlers but in the end those tribes who had been the friendliest got the least. In an ironic turn, once the City of Seattle, named of course after a Duwamish chief, incorporated, one of the first laws passed was to ban the Indigenous people from living inside the city.
I found the early history the most interesting. The effects of industry and the resulting pollution of the river were not uninteresting or unimportant. Cummings goes back and forth in the time line of polluters and various governmental agencies attempts to hold the polluters responsible or not. It gets a bit confusing. Overall, though, it’s a book well worth reading.
Cummings' story is one of social and environmental justice (or the lack thereof), of business interests, and of politics. As Cummings writes, “The choices we have made about how we use our rivers reflect the values of the governing bodies of our cities . . . at the moments when those choices were made.” We learn that the values often clashed within the same side (business and industry; white settlers; various levels of government, and more) and often clashed with opposing sides (new settlers vs. Indigenous; treaty fishing rights vs. commercial fishermen; environmentalists vs. industry, etc.)
I had never really thought much about the Duwamish River. In fact, I usually thought of it as a waterway. Cummings explains how the once meandering river with a fertile flood plane was dredged and straightened to accommodate industry but that same act or acts polluted the river, poisoned the fish, and destroyed the agricultural lands along the river.
She also tells us that White people had come to settle along the Duwamish River about a decade before the Denny Party arrived. In order to encourage settlement, the Donation Land Claims Act of 1850 gave 160 acres to a white male settler who promised to “improve” the land. A married couple got twice that much as did settlers who arrived before 1850. Never mind whose land was been given away.
The Duwamish people were by turns friendly and hostile to the new settlers but in the end those tribes who had been the friendliest got the least. In an ironic turn, once the City of Seattle, named of course after a Duwamish chief, incorporated, one of the first laws passed was to ban the Indigenous people from living inside the city.
I found the early history the most interesting. The effects of industry and the resulting pollution of the river were not uninteresting or unimportant. Cummings goes back and forth in the time line of polluters and various governmental agencies attempts to hold the polluters responsible or not. It gets a bit confusing. Overall, though, it’s a book well worth reading.
March 26, 2023
I did not fully know what I was getting into when I started reading this book as a history of Seattle - this was not the book I anticipated reading.
That being said, this book was amazing. Well written, well researched, and such a rich history of a significant, vital river and its watershed (and people and cultures) over time. The information goes back to the Native inhabitants and homesteading that occurred; progresses the story through greedy industrial magnets and the industrial boom; being designated an EPA Superfund site and the ensuing decades-long cleanup; and integrated/shed new light on practical yet ground-breaking conversations of environmental justice, placemaking, and the critical community roles of culture, arts, storytelling, consensus, transparency, and continued communication.
The only note of constructive criticism about this book I feel the need to call out is that in the early historical portions, there are unnecessary referrals to members of the Native American population as “attackers” or “fighters” which could have easily been swapped for other more neutral descriptors. Even in these tales, the Native Americans were not the only ones attacking or fighting, so that descriptor does not fairly identify one segment of people versus the other, and unjustly and unnecessarily furthers stereotypes.
That being said, this book was amazing. Well written, well researched, and such a rich history of a significant, vital river and its watershed (and people and cultures) over time. The information goes back to the Native inhabitants and homesteading that occurred; progresses the story through greedy industrial magnets and the industrial boom; being designated an EPA Superfund site and the ensuing decades-long cleanup; and integrated/shed new light on practical yet ground-breaking conversations of environmental justice, placemaking, and the critical community roles of culture, arts, storytelling, consensus, transparency, and continued communication.
The only note of constructive criticism about this book I feel the need to call out is that in the early historical portions, there are unnecessary referrals to members of the Native American population as “attackers” or “fighters” which could have easily been swapped for other more neutral descriptors. Even in these tales, the Native Americans were not the only ones attacking or fighting, so that descriptor does not fairly identify one segment of people versus the other, and unjustly and unnecessarily furthers stereotypes.
June 1, 2024
I've been wanting to pick up this book for a while and I'm so glad I did. It's exactly what it says on the tin, providing an in-depth look at the cultural, political, economic, social, and environmental histories of the Duwamish River. It's a perfect companion piece to Coll Thrush's "Native Seattle", approaching some of the same historical moments from a different lens of environmental impact. This book was a very digestible read as someone who is not familiar with the nuances of ecology, and stresses the importance of individual activism, multicultural solidarity, and continued perseverance and preservation. It will make you mad at the state of the world, and hopeful that it can change. My only comment would be that I wish it had more maps/diagrams of how the landscape changed over time, as I personally would have loved more visualization while learning about the evolution of the river, but without it, the book is still absolutely work the read, whether you live in/near Seattle or far from it.
October 22, 2025
I was a little hesitant to reach for a book on environmental history written by an activist, but it is perfectly fine. The author sticks to a rather factual narrative populated by interesting and significant characters. I wanted to read more about the construction of Harbor Island; I would think that what was in its time the largest artificial island in the world, right in the mouth of Duwamish River, deserves more than half a paragraph. The rather amazing technological details of landscape transformation of Seattle are also outside of the scope of the book.
The book is probably too dense for a casual reader, but I view that as a good thing. In comparison, the primary competitor, Emerald City by Klingle, an academic author, is unbearably verbose. This makes the present book my primary choice for environmental history of Seattle, even though I had to complement it by other sources.
The book is probably too dense for a casual reader, but I view that as a good thing. In comparison, the primary competitor, Emerald City by Klingle, an academic author, is unbearably verbose. This makes the present book my primary choice for environmental history of Seattle, even though I had to complement it by other sources.
May 10, 2021
Seattle's river was diked, channeled and wholly reengineered in the 20th century. Efforts to restore the river dominate government and civic action in the 21st. This book, written by an activist who has worked on the front lines of river restoration for decades, details the history and its cultural impacts on the first people who are with us today, those living next to the river, and in the greater region.
Read more at bookmanreader.blogspot.com .
Read more at bookmanreader.blogspot.com .
January 6, 2022
This is an eye-opening book. I did not know how polluted and despoiled the Duwamish was in the late 20th Century, so that part of the story was a revelation. This book is, as well, a deep look into environmental justice, activism, and the politics of pollution. It also presents many lessons on how unregulated industrial development sweeps aside everything it encounters: indigenous people, the land, species, cultures, health and wellbeing, and ways of life.
October 21, 2022
This book covers a lot of the history of the Seattle area and the Duwamish River as well as the Native Americans who were not well treated by the white settlers. There was a different philosophy about land and use vs. ownership. Give back; don’t just take away. We are fighting climate change, but if we restore native growth, it can help. The settlers took out vast quantities of wood and planted crops new to the area. Good information about the battles fought when treaties were not upheld.
July 29, 2020
A wonderful book about the Duwamish River and the role it played in Seattle's history and present. The book begins as a history, and ends with current efforts to restore some health to the river, and the communities that live amongst Seattle's heavy industry. Spectacular book. I wish everyone in Western Washington would read this gem.
March 7, 2024
Well researched text particularly regarding the treatment of indigenous people in the Puget Sound area. Having read “The Source: How Rivers Made America and How America Remade Its Rivers” by Martin Doyle, I was not surprised, however, by how appallingly the Duwamish River has been misused. Sadly it reflects a nationwide phenomenon.
January 9, 2021
The historical background sections of this book were dry and lifeless to me. I did enjoy the final chapters where Cummings describes her personal involvement with the Duwamish River Cleanup Coalition.
October 25, 2021
Very content heavy, but a must read for anyone who lives, works, and/or plays on Duwamish land (or anyone interested in just how badly white people can screw up the environment). My appreciation for the watershed I live in has grown tenfold.
October 15, 2020
3.0 / 5.0
Expected broader focus and more history detail Focused too much on pollution and cleanup
Expected broader focus and more history detail Focused too much on pollution and cleanup
March 23, 2022
Mandatory reading for anyone who has ever lived in or near Seattle.
July 25, 2022
This is an extremely detailed and interesting history of the Duwamish River. I read it for a project and it has been so so helpful. Definitely recommend to any residents of Seattle.
December 18, 2022
Really cool book with some great old history and then an even better recounting of the modern history of the work to clean and reclaim the Duwamish
May 30, 2023
Interesting book about the Duwamish river, its first inhabitants and more recent efforts to clean up the pollution.
October 1, 2023
“God damn, you can change a place.” - James Rasmussen (161)
March 12, 2024
A honest, concise history of the river every Seattleite should know, especially as the environmental story is still writing itself.
Read
May 25, 2024Should be required reading for all Washingtonians.
November 1, 2024
Very in-depth history of Seattle and its diverse inhabitants. Will need to read again
January 8, 2025
Anyone who gives this book less than 5 stars probably worked at the Malarkey Cement Factory
June 15, 2024
depressing read, but important in understanding how colonialism has impacted the duwamish and the indigenous communities along its shores.
November 17, 2021
What a difference community involvement makes to achieving a better balance in solving big environmental problems. The book delves back into the history of the "taming" of the Duwamish and it's Native peoples; how the white Europeans justified their actions toward the environment and the tribes whose land they secured for their own benefit. The Duwamish River restoration is a work in progress; a reckoning with big companies who tried to sweep (literally and figuratively) their wrongs under the table only to see the utility and the humanity of working together with the impacted communities. I can only hope their dreams for the future can hold on until a different administration can help them realize a better future for the Duwamish, and the diverse community that lives there.
trying to sweep (literally) big company wrongs under the table;
trying to sweep (literally) big company wrongs under the table;
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews