Washington State Historical Society Presents: History After Hours: Peter Blecha discussing 'Stomp and Shout: The Untold Story of Northwest Rock and Roll'
Northwest Rock & Roll’s historical highpoints are well documented—in the late 20th century, Nirvana, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, and other grunge gods took the world by storm. Previously, Seattle’s Queensrÿche and Heart had ruled the heavy metal realm. And prior to that, The Wailers, The Kingsmen, Paul Revere and The Raiders, and The Sonics had all fueled local teen dances with garage-rock versions of the region’s signature song, “Louie Louie.”
Yet these iconic bands are only half the story. In this talk, join author Peter Blecha to discover the lesser-known but vitally important bands and scenes that laid the foundation for what was to come—finally connecting all the dots between the fabled Northwest era of Ray Charles, Quincy Jones, and Jimi Hendrix, and the R&B-spiked roots of a distinct regional artform: the “Original Northwest Sound.”
Peter Blecha (he/him) is the director of the Northwest Music Archives, an award-winning author, a founding curator at MoPop, and a longtime staff historian…
Event interval: Single day event. Accessibility Contact: aletheia.wittman@wshs.wa.gov. Event Types: Special Events.
Thursday, January 29, 2026, 7:00 PM – 9:30 PM.
Washington State History Museum.
For more info visit www.washingtonhistory.org. Barnes & Noble University District Presents: Zev Handel discussing "Chinese Characters across Asia"
Join Barnes & Noble University District (located within University Book Store) for an evening with Zev Handel discussing his book Chinese Characters across Asia.
This is a unique opportunity to learn from a UW professor and get a peek into a linguistic history that has shaped the world. Like the book, this talk will be accessible to everyone—regardless of whether you have any knowledge of Chinese characters or East Asian languages. All are welcome.
Zev Handel has been teaching in the Department of Asian Languages and Literature at the University of Washington for over 25 years, after receiving his PhD from the University of California, Berkeley. A linguist specializing in Chinese, his two main research areas are ancient Chinese pronunciation and East Asian writing systems. He has published extensively in Chinese dialectology, Sino-Tibetan comparative linguistics, and the spread and development of the Chinese script. He is a co-editor of the five-volume Encyclopedia of Chinese Language and Linguistics. …
Event interval: Single day event. Accessibility Contact: CRM3563@bn.com. Event Types: Special Events.
Tuesday, February 3, 2026, 5:00 PM.
B&N University District
4324 University Way NE, Seattle, WA.
For more info visit stores.barnesandnoble.com. Folio Presents: Jennifer Ott discussing "Where the City Meets the Sound: The Story of Seattle's Waterfront"
Folio: The Seattle Athenaeum welcomes author, historian and Folio member Jennifer Ott for an author reading celebrating the release of her book Where the City Meets the Sound: The Story of Seattle's Waterfront.
From canoes on the beach at Dzidzilalich to steamships and piers, Seattle's waterfront was the center of the city's economy and culture for generations. Its tumultuous history reflects a broader story of immigration, labor battles, and technological change. The 2001 Nisqually Earthquake brought fresh urgency and opportunity to remake this contested space, sparking intense debates over history preservation, the environment, and Indigenous connections long ignored.
Today, the revitalized Waterfront Park offers a new chapter in this ongoing story. The removal of the Alaskan Way Viaduct and the reconstruction of the seawall have redefined how the city interacts with its shoreline. With its blend of historic structures and forward-looking public spaces, the waterfront will continue…
Jennifer Ott details…
Event interval: Single day event. Accessibility Contact: info@folioseattle.org. Event Types: Special Events.
Tuesday, February 3, 2026, 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM.
Folio: The Seattle Athenaeum.
For more info visit www.folioseattle.org. UW China Studies Program and Department of Asian Languages and Literature Present: Ping Wang discussing "The Poetic Way of Xie Lingyun"
During the dark centuries between the fall of the Han dynasty in 220 CE and the golden age of reunified China under the Tang and Song dynasties (618–1279), the shi poetic form embraced new themes and structure. In this meticulously constructed study, Ping Wang traces the social conditions that sparked innovation and marked a significant turn in intellectual history. Using biography, social history, and literary analysis, she demonstrates how the shi form came to dominate classical Chinese poetry, making possible the works of the great poets of later dynasties and influencing literary development in Korea and Japan.
Focusing on the life of poet Xie Lingyun (385–433), Wang traces the exile of aristocratic families in the wild south, which led to their thematic use of “mountains and water” (shanshui) landscapes over the pastoral ones of earlier writers and artists. Changes in poetic form moved away from genres associated with aggrandizement of the imperial court and, through innovative use of meter and syntax,…
Event interval: Single day event. Campus location: Thomson Hall (THO). Accessibility Contact: Chinast@uw.edu. Event Types: Lectures/Seminars.
Thursday, February 5, 2026, 3:30 PM – 5:00 PM.
For more info visit jsis.washington.edu. Elliott Bay Book Company Presents: 2026 Pacific Northwest Book Awards Winner Coll Thrush discussing "Wrecked"
Join 2026 Pacific Northwest Book Awards winner Coll Thrush for a discussion of his book Wrecked: Unsettling Histories from the Graveyard of the Pacific, which demonstrates how the history of shipwrecks reveals the fraught and unfinished business of colonization on the Northwest Coast.
The Northwest Coast of North America is a treacherous place. Unforgiving coastlines, powerful currents, unpredictable weather, and features such as the notorious Columbia River bar have resulted in more than two thousand shipwrecks, earning the coastal areas of Oregon, Washington, and Vancouver Island the moniker “Graveyard of the Pacific.” Beginning with a Spanish galleon that came ashore in northern Oregon in 1693 and continuing into the recent past, Wrecked includes stories of many vessels that met their fate along the rugged coast and the meanings made of these events by both Indigenous and settler survivors and observers.
Commemorated in museums, historical markers, folklore, place-names, and the remains of the ships…
Event interval: Single day event. Accessibility Contact: sbrekkan@elliottbaybook.com. Event Types: Special Events.
Thursday, February 5, 2026, 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM.
Elliott Bay Book Company.
For more info visit elliottbaybook.com. Pacific Lutheran University Presents: Banu Subramaniam discussing "Botany of Empire" | Rachel Carson Science, Technology, and Society Lecture
Pacific Lutheran University welcomes Banu Subramaniam, author and the Luella LaMer Professor of Women's and Gender Studies at Wellesley College, as the 2026 Rachel Carson lecture series guest speaker.
Subramaniam's work explores the natural sciences in relation to race, gender, colonialism, ethnicity, caste, and xenophobia. There will be a Q&A session following the lecture. This event is free and open to the public.
Event interval: Single day event. Campus room: Anderson University Center. Accessibility Contact: events@plu.edu. Event Types: Special Events.
Monday, February 23, 2026, 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM.
Pacific Lutheran University.
For more info visit calendar.plu.edu. KUOW and Seattle Public Library Present: Coll Thrush discussing "Wrecked" | KUOW Book Talks
Join KUOW’s Katie Campbell in conversation with historian Coll Thrush to explore the stories behind his new book, Wrecked: Unsettling Histories from the Graveyard of the Pacific, a haunting and deeply researched look at the Northwest Coast, where more than 2,000 shipwrecks reveal powerful histories of place, people, and survival.
Coll Thrush is a professor of history and associate faculty in critical Indigenous studies at the University of British Columbia, and the founding co-editor of the Indigenous Confluences book series at the University of Washington Press. Raised in Auburn, Washington, in the treaty territory of the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe, he is the author or editor of four books that examine the intersections of Indigenous and colonial histories, often through the lens of place and memory.
Thanks to SPL event partners KUOW and Third Place Books.
KUOW Live Events are sponsored by Phinney Ridge Painting and Microsoft.
Event interval: Single day event. Accessibility Contact: https://www.spl.org/using-the-library/accessibility/americans-with-disabilities-act/ada-accommodation-request. Event Types: Special Events.
Thursday, February 26, 2026, 6:30 PM – 8:00 PM.
Seattle Public Library - Central Library.
For more info visit www.spl.org. MOHAI Presents: David B. Williams and Jennifer Ott discussing "Seattle's Locks and Ship Canal: A History and Guide"
MOHAI Mercantile hosts the official book launch event for Seattle’s Locks and Ship Canal with local historians David B. Williams and Jennifer Ott.
This portable guide is an introduction to the engineering marvel of the Ballard locks, and a primer on the history of the ship canal. Hear from the authors about the tumultuous history of one of Seattle’s defining projects, and the dramatic changes it brought to the city’s economy, neighborhoods, and natural environment.
Doors open at 6pm for music and mingling. Food and drink available for purchase.
Conversation and Q&A begin at 7pm, followed by a book signing with the authors.
Event interval: Single day event. Accessibility Contact: information@mohai.org. Event Types: Special Events.
Tuesday, March 24, 2026, 6:00 PM – 8:30 PM.
Museum of History and Industry (MOHAI).
For more info visit mohai.org.