Cascade Range Volcanoes:
Historical Timeline

• 1790 -- Quimper's map with Mount Baker
  In 1790, Ensign Manuel Quimper of the Spanish Navy set sail from Nootka, a temporary settlement on Vancouver Island, with orders to explore the newly discovered Strait of Juan de Fuca. Accompanying Quimper was first-pilot Gonzalo Lopez de Haro who drew detailed charts during the six-week expedition. Although Quimper's written journal of the voyage makes no reference to the mountain, one of Haro's manuscript charts includes a sketch of a prominent peak in the area of Mount Baker. Haro labels this peak "La gran montana del Carmelo".
  
  
  
• 1792-1794 -- The Volcanoes of George Vancouver
  Between 1792 and 1794 Captain George Vancouver of the Royal British Navy, along with Lieutenant William Broughton, explored Puget Sound and the Columbia River, spotting five Cascade Range volcanoes and naming four of them.
  • April 30, 1792:   Captain George Vancouver spots and names Mount Baker, Washington, after his third lieutenant Joseph Baker.
  • May 7, 1792:   Captain George Vancouver first spots Mount Rainier, Washington.
  • May 8, 1792:   Captain George Vancouver names Mount Rainier after British Rear Admiral Peter Rainier.
  • May 19, 1792:   Captain George Vancouver spots Mount St. Helens, Washington.
  • June 7, 1792:   Captain George Vancouver spots Mount Adams, Washington.
  • October 20, 1792:   Captain George Vancouver names Mount St. Helens after fellow countryman, Alleyne Fitzherbert, who held the title Baron St. Helens and who was at the time the British Ambassador to Spain.
  • October 29, 1792:   Lieutenant William Broughton of the British George Vancouver expedition spots Mount Hood, Oregon.
  • October 30, 1792:   Lieutenant William Broughton of the British Vancouver expedition names Mount Hood after the British Admiral Lord Samuel Hood.
  
  
  
• 1792 - "First Picture of Mount Rainier"
  The "First Picture of Mount Rainier" was drawn by W. Alexander, from a sketch by J. Sykes, in 1792. The "picture" was engraved by J. Landseer for inclusion in Captain Geroge Vancouver's publication.

• ca.1800 -- Possible eruption of Mount St. Helens -- Wilkes
  Excerpt from Charles Wilkes' Narrative of the United States Exploring Expedition ... , published in 1844, which includes a Flathead Indian account of a possible Mount St. Helens eruption sometime during the late 1790s or early 1800s, and also mentions Mount Rainier and Mount St. Helens being in eruption ca.1841-1844.
  
  
  
• ca.1800 -- Possible eruption of Mount St. Helens -- Dana
  Excerpt from James D. Dana, Geologist for the U.S. Exploring Expedition, Geology, published in 1849, which mentions volcanic activity of Mount Rainier and Mount St. Helens in the early 1840s, plus reference to ashes falling "some fifty years since".
  
  
  
• ca.1800 -- Possible eruption of Mount St. Helens -- Stuckley
  Kalispel account of a volcanic eruption (now determined to be Mount St. Helens? Tephra ?Layer T?) from Doctor George Stuckley, assistant surgeon United States army, of his trip in a canoe from Fort Own down the Bitter Root, Clark's Fork, and Columbia rivers, to Vancouver, written December 19, 1853, and pubished in I.I. Stevens? ?Reports of explorations and surveys, to ascertain the most practicable and economical route for a railroad from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean?, published in 1855.
  
  
  
• 1805-1806 -- The Volcanoes of Lewis & Clark
  Five Volcanoes are found listed within the journals of Lewis & Clark (although not necessarily referred to by their correct names) -- Mount Adams, Mount Hood, Mount Jefferson, Mount Rainier, and Mount St. Helens. The journals also include interesting information about other volcanic and geologic features such as Monument Rock, Beacon Rock, the Columbia River, and many of the rivers which flow into the Columbia. Lewis and Clark named Mount Jefferson.
  • October 18, 1805:   Lewis and Clark have their first sighting of a Cascade Range volcano. They see Mount Hood, Oregon, from a location near the Walla Walla River.
  • March 30, 1806:   Lewis and Clark spot Mount Jefferson, Oregon, and name it after the then current President and their benefactor, Thomas Jefferson.
  • April 2 and April 6, 1806:   Lewis and Clark spot FIVE VOLCANOES from the mouth of the Willamette River.
  
  
  
  
• Early 1800s -- Eruptions of Mount Hood - Alley and Munro-Fraser
  Excerpt from the 1885 report History of Clarke County, Washington Territory, by B.F. Alley and J.P. Munro-Fraser, describing Rev. J.L. Parrish's account of the November 22, 1842 eruption of Mount St. Helens. Also includes reference to two early 1800s eruptions of Mount Hood.

• 1820 -- Eruption of Mount Baker and Mount Rainier -- Plummer, 1893
  Professor Fred G. Plummer's Paper on "Recent Volcanic Activity" Read Before the Academy of Science, from the Tacoma Ledger, February 28, 1893, courtesy the University of Washington, Pacific Northwest Seismograph Network Website, 2007.
  
  
  
• 1824-1829 -- The Volcanoes of Peter Skene Ogden
  Peter Skene Ogden was a chief trader with the Hudson's Bay Company. In the period 1824-1829, he led five trapping expeditions to the "Snake Country" -- the upper reaches of the Columbia. He viewed Mount St. Helens, Mount Hood, and Mount Adams. He is given credit for the discovery of Newberry Caldera and the naming of Mount Shasta.
  • November 16, 1826:   Peter Skene Ogden "discovers" Newberry Caldera and Paulina and East Lake although he is unaware the area is actually a large volcanic caldera.
  • February 14, 1827:   Ogden names the Shasta River and a nearby peak Mount Shasta ... this peak however in actuality was today's Mount McLoughlin ... in 1841 the U.S. Exploring Expedition attached the name to the present-day Mount Shasta.

• 1831 -- Eruption of Mount St. Helens and Mount Hood -- Plummer, 1898
  "Reported volcanic eruptions in Alaska, Puget Sound, etc., 1690 to 1896", by Frederick G. Plummer, March 13, 1896, IN: Holden, E.S., 1898, A catalogue of earthquakes on the Pacific coast, 1769-1897.
  • 1831 -- Eruption of Mount St. Helens and Mount Hood -- Plummer, 1893
    Professor Fred G. Plummer's Paper on "Recent Volcanic Activity" Read Before the Academy of Science, from the Tacoma Ledger, February 28, 1893, courtesy the University of Washington, Pacific Northwest Seismograph Network Website, 2007.
  
  
  
  
• 1831 -- Mount St. Helens in eruption -- Thornton
  Excerpt from J.Quinn Thornton's Oregon and California in 1848, first published in 1849 and then re-published in 1864, which includes Mount St. Helens in eruption in 1831, Mount St. Helens in eruption ca.1842, references to a volcanic Mount Hood, and references to a Mount Hood eruption ca.1845.
  
  
  
• August 1831 -- Mount St. Helens, and references to Mount Hood -- Parker
  Excerpt from Rev. Samuel Parker's 1838 report which has a passage about a possible eruption of Mount St. Helens in August, 1831, when the area of Fort Vancouver went dark and ash fell. Also includes reference to Indians witnessing "fires" in the fissures on Mount Hood.
  
  
  
• 1832 -- Eruption of Mount St. Helens -- Plummer, 1898
  "Reported volcanic eruptions in Alaska, Puget Sound, etc., 1690 to 1896", by Frederick G. Plummer, March 13, 1896, IN: Holden, E.S., 1898, A catalogue of earthquakes on the Pacific coast, 1769-1897.
  
  
  
• 1835 -- Eruption of Mount St. Helens -- Evans
  Elwood Evans? 1889 report ?History of the Pacific Northwest, Oregon and Washington?, published in 1889, lists the Cascade Range peaks and their heights, mentions volcanic activity at Mounts Hood, St. Helens, and Rainier, and mentions a 1835 and 1842 eruption of Mount St. Helens.
  
  
  
• 1838-1842 - Wilkes Expedition
  In 1836, Congress approved the sum of $300,000 for a purely scientific exploratory expedition. The expedition, headed by Charles Wilkes, left in 1838 and returned in 1842. The scientific expedition visited at least cursorily most every non-civilised coastal area in the world, including the Pacific Northwest in 1841. A large number of Puget Sound names which are still in use today were provided by Wilkes' expedition, Commencement Bay (where he started his charting of the sound) and Elliott Bay among them. Wilkes noticed the Cascade Range volcanoes and made comments about them.
  
  
  
• 1839 -- Presidents Range -- Kelley
  In the 1830s Hall J. Kelley proposed naming the volcanoes of the Cascades the "Presidents Range", with each of the peaks bearing the name of a U.S. President. This quotation from Kelley's 1839 Memoir appeared in the March 1917 edition of The Quarterly of the Oregon Historical Society. Annotations are from the author, Fred W. Powell. THIS PAGE INCLUDES: Presidents Range versions as published by Thomas J. Farnham, 1843, "Travels in the Great Western Prairies, The Anahuac and Rocky Mountains, and in the Oregon Territory"; Lansford Hastings, 1845, "The Emigrants Guide, to Oregon and California ... "; J.Quinn Thornton, 1849, "Oregon and California in 1848", vol.1; and William Gladstone Steel, 1889, "The Mountains of Oregon".

• 1841 -- Volcanoes of Charles Wilkes
  Excerpts from Charles Wilkes' Narrative of the United States Exploring Expedition ... , published in 1844, which includes references to the Cascade Range, Mount Baker, Mount Rainier, Mount St. Helens, Mount Hood, and Mount Shasta.
  
  
  
• 1841 -- Volcanoes of James D. Dana
  Excerpts from James D. Dana, Geologist for the Wilke's 1838-1842 U.S. Exploring Expedition, published in 1849, and includes references to the Cascade Range, Mount Rainier, Mount St. Helens, Mount Hood, and Mount Shasta.
  
  
• 1841 -- First known sketch of Mount Shasta
  From Charles Wilkes' Narrative of the United States Exploring Expedition ... , published in 1844, done by Alfred Agate and engraved by George Ellis.
  
  
  
• ca.1841-1844 -- Mount Rainier and Mount St. Helens -- Wilkes
  Excerpt from Charles Wilkes' Narrative of the United States Exploring Expedition ... , published in 1844, which includes a Flathead Indian account of a possible Mount St. Helens eruption sometime during the late 1790s or early 1800s, and also mentions Mount Rainier and Mount St. Helens being in eruption ca.1841-1844.
  
  
  
• 1841 -- Eruption of Mount Rainier and Mount St. Helens -- Plummer, 1898
  "Reported volcanic eruptions in Alaska, Puget Sound, etc., 1690 to 1896", by Frederick G. Plummer, March 13, 1896, IN: Holden, E.S., 1898, A catalogue of earthquakes on the Pacific coast, 1769-1897.
  
  
  
• 1842 -- Eruption of Mount St. Helens -- Evans
  Elwood Evans? 1889 report ?History of the Pacific Northwest, Oregon and Washington?, published in 1889, lists the Cascade Range peaks and their heights, mentions volcanic activity at Mounts Hood, St. Helens, and Rainier, and mentions a 1835 and 1842 eruption of Mount St. Helens.
  
  
  
• 1842 -- Eruption of Mount St. Helens -- Gibbs
  Account of the 1842 eruption of Mount St. Helens, written by George Gibbs while on a reconnaissance of the country lying upon Shoal Water bay and Puget sound, Olympia, W.T., March 1, 1854, plus comment of Mount St. Helens? ?smoking? in 1854, pubished in I.I. Stevens? ?Reports of explorations and surveys, to ascertain the most practicable and economical route for a railroad from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean?, published in 1855.
  
  
  
• 1842 -- Eruption of Mount Baker -- Plummer, 1898
  "Reported volcanic eruptions in Alaska, Puget Sound, etc., 1690 to 1896", by Frederick G. Plummer, March 13, 1896, IN: Holden, E.S., 1898, A catalogue of earthquakes on the Pacific coast, 1769-1897.
  
  
  
• 1842 -- Eruption of Mount St. Helens -- Plummer, 1898
  "Reported volcanic eruptions in Alaska, Puget Sound, etc., 1690 to 1896", by Frederick G. Plummer, March 13, 1896, IN: Holden, E.S., 1898, A catalogue of earthquakes on the Pacific coast, 1769-1897.
  • 1842 -- Eruption of Mount St. Helens -- Plummer, 1893
    Professor Fred G. Plummer's Paper on "Recent Volcanic Activity" Read Before the Academy of Science, from the Tacoma Ledger, February 28, 1893, courtesy the University of Washington, Pacific Northwest Seismograph Network Website, 2007.
  
  
  
  
• 1842 -- Mount St. Helens eruption -- Swan
  Excerpt from James G. Swan, published in 1857, "Mount St. Helen's is a volcano, and has been in active operation as late as 1842".
  
  
  
• 1842 -- Eruptions of Mount St. Helens and Mount Rainier -- Dana
  Excerpt from James D. Dana, Geologist for the U.S. Exploring Expedition, Geology, published in 1849, which mentions volcanic activity of Mount Rainier and Mount St. Helens in the early 1840s, plus reference to ashes falling "some fifty years since".
  
  
  
• October 1842 -- Mount St. Helens eruption -- Hines
  Rev. Gustavus Hines' 1850 report has a passage about an October 1842 (possibly November 1842) eruption of Mount St. Helens.
  
  
  
• November 20, 1842 -- Mount St. Helens eruption -- Allen and White
  Excerpt from Miss A.J. Allen's 1848 publication Ten years in Oregon, including a description of an eruption of Mount St. Helens on November 20, 1842, as written by Elijah White.
  
  
  
• November 22, 1842 -- Mount St. Helens - Rev. Parrish account - Alley and Munro-Fraser
  Excerpt from the 1885 report History of Clarke County, Washington Territory, by B.F. Alley and J.P. Munro-Fraser, describing Rev. J.L. Parrish's account of the November 22, 1842 eruption of Mount St. Helens. Also includes reference to two early 1800s eruptions of Mount Hood.
  
  
  
• ca.1842 (possibly November 22, 1842) -- Mount St. Helens in eruption -- Thornton
  Excerpt from J.Quinn Thornton's Oregon and California in 1848, first published in 1849 and then re-published in 1864, which includes Mount St. Helens in eruption in 1831, Mount St. Helens in eruption ca.1842, references to a volcanic Mount Hood, and references to a Mount Hood eruption ca.1845.
  
  
  
• November 23, 1842 and November 14, 1843 -- Mount St. Helens and Mount Rainier -- Fremont
  Excerpt from John Fremont, whose expeditions of 1842 and 1843-44 were funded by the Army Bureau of Topographical Engineers. The 1845 report includes a paragraph about the November 23, 1842 eruption of Mount St. Helens, and the November 14, 1843 eruption of Mount St. Helens and Mount Rainier.
  
  
  
• 1843 -- Mount St. Helens and Mount Baker -- Bolduc/DeSmet
  Passage from a Letter of J.B.Z. Bolduc, Apostolical Missionary, to Mr. Cayenne, written at Cowlitz, February 15, 1844, appearing in Father Pierre Jean De Smet's Oregon Missions and Travels over the Rocky Mountains, 1845-1846, published in 1847.
  
  
  
• 1843 -- Mount St. Helens and Mount Baker -- Gibbs
  Mention of Mount St. Helens' eruptions of 1842 and 1843, and Mount Baker eruption of 1843, written in 1869 and published in 1873. Also comments about Fremont's statement that Mount Rainier was in eruption in 1843.
  
  
  
• 1843 -- Mount St. Helens smoking, with south side crater -- Johnson and Winter
  In 1843 Overton Johnson and William Henry Winter journeyed west, passing through Oregon on their way to California. Their account was originally published in 1846, re-printed in 1932, and then re-printed again in 2000.
  
  
  
• 1843 -- Mount Rainier eruption -- Meany
  Passage from Edmund S. Meany's 1916 publication Mount Rainier, A Record of Exploration, mentioning eruptions of 1843, 1854, 1858, and 1870, plus an earlier Indian legend.
  
  
  
• 1843 -- Eruption of Mount St. Helens, and Mount Rainier -- Plummer, 1898
  "Reported volcanic eruptions in Alaska, Puget Sound, etc., 1690 to 1896", by Frederick G. Plummer, March 13, 1896, IN: Holden, E.S., 1898, A catalogue of earthquakes on the Pacific coast, 1769-1897.
  • 1843 -- Eruptions of Mount Rainier and Mount St. Helens -- Plummer, 1893
    Professor Fred G. Plummer's Paper on "Recent Volcanic Activity" Read Before the Academy of Science, from the Tacoma Ledger, February 28, 1893, courtesy the University of Washington, Pacific Northwest Seismograph Network Website, 2007.

  • 1843-44 -- Eruption of Mount St. Helens -- Plummer, 1893
    Professor Fred G. Plummer's Paper on "Recent Volcanic Activity" Read Before the Academy of Science, from the Tacoma Ledger, February 28, 1893, courtesy the University of Washington, Pacific Northwest Seismograph Network Website, 2007.
  
  
  
  
• 1843 - Volcanoes of John C. Fremont
  Excerpts from John C. Fremont, whose exploring expedition of 1843-44 to Oregon and Northern California was funded by the Army Bureau of Topographical Engineers. The 1845 report includes Mount Rainier, Mount St. Helens, Mount Hood, and Mount Jefferson.
  
  
  
• February 16, 1844 -- Mount St. Helens -- Burnett
  In a letter written in 1844, Peter Burnett - later to become Governor Burnett of California - describes an eruption of Mount St. Helens, as seen from Linnton, Oregon. Also references to possibly 1842 lava flow.
  
  
  
• September 1845 -- Mount St. Helens eruption -- Warre
  From the journal of British spy Henry Warre, written in 1845, published in 1976.
  
  
  
• 1845 -- Mount Hood, Mount St. Helens, and Mount Rainier
  From the journal of Joel Palmer, one of the men who carved out the Barlow Route from The Dalles to the Willamette Valley, via the south side of Mount Hood.
  
  
  
• ca.1845 -- Mount Hood in eruption -- Thornton
  Excerpt from J.Quinn Thornton's Oregon and California in 1848, first published in 1849 and then re-published in 1864, which includes Mount St. Helens in eruption in 1831, Mount St. Helens in eruption ca.1842, references to a volcanic Mount Hood, and references to a Mount Hood eruption ca.1845.
  
  
  
• 1846 -- Eruptions of Mount Baker, Mount Rainier, Mount St. Helens -- Plummer, 1893
  Professor Fred G. Plummer's Paper on "Recent Volcanic Activity" Read Before the Academy of Science, from the Tacoma Ledger, February 28, 1893, courtesy the University of Washington, Pacific Northwest Seismograph Network Website, 2007.
  
  
  
• 1846 -- Eruptions of Mount Hood, Mount St. Helens, and Mount Baker -- Plummer, 1898
  "Reported volcanic eruptions in Alaska, Puget Sound, etc., 1690 to 1896", by Frederick G. Plummer, March 13, 1896, IN: Holden, E.S., 1898, A catalogue of earthquakes on the Pacific coast, 1769-1897.
  
  
  
• 1847 -- Eruption of Mount Baker -- Plummer, 1898
  "Reported volcanic eruptions in Alaska, Puget Sound, etc., 1690 to 1896", by Frederick G. Plummer, March 13, 1896, IN: Holden, E.S., 1898, A catalogue of earthquakes on the Pacific coast, 1769-1897.
  
  
  
• March 26 and March 30, 1847 -- Mount St. Helens eruptions -- Kane
  From the writings of Paul Kane, "Wanderings of an Artist", published in 1859. Passages about plumes from Mount St. Helens on March 26 and March 30, 1847. Includes reference to 1843 Mount St. Helens' eruption.
  • March 26, 1847:   Paul Kane witnesses and paints an eruption of Mount St. Helens, Washington.   "... There was not a cloud visible in the sky at the time I commenced my sketch, and not a breath of air was perceptible: suddenly a stream of white smoke shot up from the crater of the mountain, and hovered a short time over its summit; it then settled down like a cap. This shape it retained for about an hour and a-half, and then gradually disappeared ..."
  • March 30, 1847:   Paul Kane witnesses and paints an eruption of Mount St. Helens.   "... I had a fine view of Mount St. Helen's throwing up a long column of dark smoke into the clear blue sky. ..."

• 1850 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1850 -- Eruption of Mount Baker and Mount St. Helens
  
  
  
• 1851 - First ascent of Lassen Peak, California.
  by Grover K. Godfrey and Capt. J.W. Maxwell.
  
  
  
• 1851 to 1852 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1850s and 1851 -- Feather Lake volcano
  
  
  
  
• 1852 -- Eruption of Mount St. Helens -- Plummer, 1898
  "Reported volcanic eruptions in Alaska, Puget Sound, etc., 1690 to 1896", by Frederick G. Plummer, March 13, 1896, IN: Holden, E.S., 1898, A catalogue of earthquakes on the Pacific coast, 1769-1897.
  
  
  
• 1853 -- Eruption of Mount Baker -- Plummer, 1898
  "Reported volcanic eruptions in Alaska, Puget Sound, etc., 1690 to 1896", by Frederick G. Plummer, March 13, 1896, IN: Holden, E.S., 1898, A catalogue of earthquakes on the Pacific coast, 1769-1897.
  • 1853 -- Eruption of Mount Baker -- Plummer, 1893
    Professor Fred G. Plummer's Paper on "Recent Volcanic Activity" Read Before the Academy of Science, from the Tacoma Ledger, February 28, 1893, courtesy the University of Washington, Pacific Northwest Seismograph Network Website, 2007.
  
  
  
  
• June 12, 1853 -- Discovery of Crater Lake, Oregon
  John W. Hillman, James L. Loudon, Patrick McManus, George Ross, Isaac Skeeters, and _____Dodd.
  Excerpts from M.W. Gorman's article "The Discovery and Early History of Crater Lake", published in 1897, and printed in Mazama: A Record of Mountaineering in the Pacific Northwest.
  
  
  
• August 26, 1853 -- First Ascent of Mount St. Helens
  Thomas Jefferson Dryer, John Wilson, ?Drew, and ?Smith.
  Excerpts from newspaper clipping describing the first ascent of Mount St. Helens.    "... We found the night cold and extremely uncomfortable -- our party did not find much repose, and as the eastern sky commenced to show the approach of day [August 26, 1853], we left the camp and pursued our way upward. The higher we ascended, the more difficult our progress. Suffice it to say, that by constant and persevering effort, we were enabled to reach the highest pinnacle of the mountain soon after meridian. The atmosphere produced a singular effect upon all the party, each face looked pale and sallow, and all complained of a strange ringing in the ears. It appeared as if there were hundreds of fine toned bells jingling all around us. ..." -- Thomas J. Dryer, September 3, 1853, "The Oregonian"
  
  
  
• 1853-1854 - Pacific Railroad Surveys
  (information courtesy Smithsonian Institution Website, Museum of Natural History, 2002)
  
  By the middle of the 19th century, the United States spanned the entire width of the North American continent from Atlantic to Pacific, but the only ways to get from one coast to the other were by ship or by arduous horse or wagon travel through deserts and mountains. The discovery of gold in California further stimulated westward traffic and only heightened the need for a faster and more convenient way to bring the far-flung parts of the country together. In 1853 Congress commissioned the Army's Topographic Bureau to conduct a series of surveys to find a suitable route for a transcontinental railroad.

  There were six major expeditions; five of them covered the area between the Great Plains and California, Oregon, and Washington, and the sixth explored the coastal states of California and Oregon. All of these expeditions were accompanied by naturalists and were provided, through the Smithsonian, with equipment and instructions for collecting.

  • The northern survey, commanded by Isaac I. Stevens, governor of Washington Territory, explored roughly along the 47th parallel between St. Paul, MN and Puget Sound on the Pacific coast. J.G. Cooper, G. Gibbs, and George Suckley served as naturalists.
  • Another expedition, under the command of Capt. J. W. Gunnison, surveyed a central route along the 38th, 39th, and 41st parallels, through what is now Kansas, Colorado, Utah, and Nevada. On 26 October 1853, Gunnison and a party of his men, including the botanist F. Kreutzfeldt, were killed in a skirmish with Indians. Lt. E. G. Beckwith took over command and completed the expedition.
  • The third expedition, under the command of Lt. A. W. Whipple, followed the 35th parallel from Fort Smith, AR to the Mojave Desert in southern California. Naturalists included J.M. Bigelow, J. Marcou, and Caleb Kennerly.
  • The southern route followed the 32nd parallel and was covered by two expeditions: one under J. Pope went from the Red River to the Rio Grande, and the other, under Lt. J. G. Parke, worked between the Rio Grande and the Colorado River. Although the Pope expedition had no one formally assigned as a naturalist, collections were made by expedition personnel. Parke's expedition was accompanied by the naturalist A.L. Heerman, who later assisted R.S. Williamson, whose party explored a connecting route between 35th and 32nd parallels.
  • Another expedition under the command of R.S. Williamson and H.L. Abbott surveyed the area between the Sacramento Valley in California and the Columbia River, Oregon. Natural history collections were made by John S. Newberry and William P. Trowbridge. The route that was finally selected for the railroad largely followed the 38th parallel, but the decision was mainly political.
  
  
  
  
• 1853 - Naming of Mount Adams
  Both Mount St. Helens and Mount Hood got their "English" names long before Mount Adams, whose name survives from an 1839 scheme by Hall J. Kelly to make the Cascades the "Presidential Range" (see 1839 above). Kelly was inspired by Lewis and Clark's naming of Mount Jefferson in Oregon after the president who supported their journey across the continent. Kelly, however, intended the name "Mount Adams" to go to Mount Hood -- he left the mountain in Washington out of the plan entirely. However, the Pacific Railroad Expedition (see 1853-1854 above) who mapped the peaks mixed up Kelly's names, and "Mount Adams" ended up 40 miles in the wrong direction -- where there just happened to be a mountain ready to bear the name. "Mount Adams" went down on their map. The Native Americans, of course, knew it was there all along -- they called the mountain "Pahtoe".
  
  
  
• August 8, 1854 -- First Ascent of Mount Hood, Oregon
  Thomas Jefferson Dryer, Wells Lake, and an unidentified Indian.
  Excerpts from Littell's Living Age Magazine.    "... Finally, at 2 1-2 o'clock P.M. we attained the summit on the southeast side. We found the top similar to that of Mount St. Helens -- extremely narrow, lying in a crescent shape; Mt. St. Helens facing the northwest by a crescent, while Mt. Hood faces the southwest. ..." -- Thomas J. Dryer, as appearing in "Littell's Living Age", v.VII, 1854
  
  
  
• August 14, 1854 -- First Ascent of Mount Shasta, California
  Captain E.D. Pearce and seven others.
  Excerpts from the San Francisco Daily Herald, as transcribed by the College of the Siskiyous, California.    "... After many a desperate struggle we all reach the heights of Mt. Shasta, at half-past 11 o'clock A.M., which we found to be in the shape of a mammoth stack of chimneys, with barely room enough for our party to stand upon. Here I pause for the want of language to describe the beauties of the surrounding scenery. ... After a few necessary preliminaries, precisely at 12 o'clock we unfurled the Stars and Stripes, and raised the standard to its long resting-place, amid the deafening cheers of the little multitude. Cheer after cheer followed in quick succession, as the Flag of Liberty floated proudly upon the breeze, until we were too hoarse to give utterance to our feelings. ..." -- Mr. E.D. Pearce, as appearing in the "San Francisco daily Herald", August 28, 1854
  
  
  
• Late August or early September, 1854 -- First Ascent of Mount Adams, Washington
  A.G. Aiken, Edward J. Allen, and Andrew J. Burge
  Excerpt from George H. Himes, ca.1907 in "Steel Points", as re-told by Edmund S. Meany in The Mountaineer, December 1917.
  
  
  
• 1854 -- Mount Baker eruption -- Davidson
  Passage from George Davison's "Letters to the Editor" in Science, September 25, 1885, titled "Recent volcanic activity in the United States: eruptions of Mount Baker", giving accounts of Mount Baker eruptions of 1854, 1858, and 1870, plus discrediting newspaper accounts of Mount Baker's summit collapse.
  
  
  
• 1854 -- Mount St. Helens ?smoking? -- Gibbs
  Account of the 1842 eruption of Mount St. Helens, written by George Gibbs while on a reconnaissance of the country lying upon Shoal Water bay and Puget sound, Olympia, W.T., March 1, 1854, plus comment of Mount St. Helens? ?smoking? in 1854, pubished in I.I. Stevens? ?Reports of explorations and surveys, to ascertain the most practicable and economical route for a railroad from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean?, published in 1855.
  
  
  
• 1854 -- Mount Rainier eruption -- Meany
  Passage from Edmund S. Meany's 1916 publication Mount Rainier, A Record of Exploration, mentioning eruptions of 1843, 1854, 1858, and 1870, plus an earlier Indian legend.
  
  
  
• 1854 -- Eruptions of Mount St. Helens, Mount Hood, and Mount Baker -- Plummer, 1898
  "Reported volcanic eruptions in Alaska, Puget Sound, etc., 1690 to 1896", by Frederick G. Plummer, March 13, 1896, IN: Holden, E.S., 1898, A catalogue of earthquakes on the Pacific coast, 1769-1897.
  
  
  
• 1854 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1854 -- Mount Hood, smoking
  • 1854 -- Mount Hood height
  
  
  
  
• 1855 - Naming of Newberry Crater
  Newberry Crater was named for Dr. John Strong Newberry, a physician and naturalist, who accompanied the 1855 Topographic Corps Expedition, mapping future railroad routes. Newberry grew up in Ohio, but came to know much of the geology and botany of the West. He was a geologist with the Pacific Railroad Surveys in 1855 when they surveyed the central Oregon area. To honor Dr. Newberry, in 1903 Dr. I.C. Russell examined central Oregon for the U.S. Geological Survey and attempted to use the name Mount Newberry for the Paulina Mountains and Paulina Peak. The name Mount Newberry never found acceptance but the caldera at the summit became known as Newberry Crater. -- information courtesy U.S. Forest Service, Deschutes National Forest, Newberry National Volcanic Monument Website, 2002
  
  
  
• 1856 - Three Sisters
  The Three Sisters appear as the "Three Sisters" on Preston's map of Oregon of 1856  [see map detail].   The name was probably originally applied by members of the Methodist Mission in Salem in the early 1840s, and the individual peaks were given the names "Mount Faith", "Mount Hope", and "Mount Charity", beginning from the north.
  
  
  
• 1856 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1856 -- Eruption of Mount Baker
  
  
  
  
• 1857 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1857 -- Possible eruption Mount St. Helens
  
  
  
  
• 1858 -- Mount Baker eruption -- Davidson
  Passage from George Davison's "Letters to the Editor" in Science, September 25, 1885, titled "Recent volcanic activity in the United States: eruptions of Mount Baker", giving accounts of Mount Baker eruptions of 1854, 1858, and 1870, plus discrediting newspaper accounts of Mount Baker's summit collapse.
  
  
  
• 1858 -- Mount Rainier eruption -- Meany
  Passage from Edmund S. Meany's 1916 publication Mount Rainier, A Record of Exploration, mentioning eruptions of 1843, 1854, 1858, and 1870, plus an earlier Indian legend.
  
  
  
• 1859 -- Mount Baker eruption of November 26 -- Begg
  Paragraph from Alexander Begg's History of British Columbia, published in 1894.
  
  
  
• 1859 -- Eruptions of Mount Hood and Mount Baker -- Plummer, 1898
  "Reported volcanic eruptions in Alaska, Puget Sound, etc., 1690 to 1896", by Frederick G. Plummer, March 13, 1896, IN: Holden, E.S., 1898, A catalogue of earthquakes on the Pacific coast, 1769-1897.
  
  
  
• 1859 -- Mount Baker eruption -- Swan
  Excerpts from University of Washington Libraries collection "James Gilchrist Swan papers, 1833-1909".
  
  
  
• August 17, 1859 -- Mount Hood eruption -- "private letter"
  "Private letter" appearing within the American Journal of Science and Arts, November 1859.
  
  
  
• 1859 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1859 -- Eruption of Mount Hood
  • 1859 -- Eruption of Mount Baker

• 1860 - Engravings, Volcanoes along the Railroad Surveys
  U.S. War Department: Images of engravings from U.S. War Department's Reports of explorations and surveys to ascertain the most practicable and economical route for a railroad from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean, 1860, v.12, pt.1.
  
  
  
• 1860 -- Eruption of Mount Baker -- Plummer, 1898
  "Reported volcanic eruptions in Alaska, Puget Sound, etc., 1690 to 1896", by Frederick G. Plummer, March 13, 1896, IN: Holden, E.S., 1898, A catalogue of earthquakes on the Pacific coast, 1769-1897.
  
  
  
• 1860 -- Mount Baker eruption -- Swan
  Excerpts from University of Washington Libraries collection "James Gilchrist Swan papers, 1833-1909".
  
  
  
• 1860 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1860 -- Eruptions of Mount Baker and Mount St. Helens
  • 1860 -- Eruption of Mount Baker
  
  
  
  
• 1861 -- Eruption of Olympus -- Plummer, 1893
  Professor Fred G. Plummer's Paper on "Recent Volcanic Activity" Read Before the Academy of Science, from the Tacoma Ledger, February 28, 1893, courtesy the University of Washington, Pacific Northwest Seismograph Network Website, 2007.
  
  
  
• 1861 -- Eruption of Mount Olympus -- Plummer, 1898
  "Reported volcanic eruptions in Alaska, Puget Sound, etc., 1690 to 1896", by Frederick G. Plummer, March 13, 1896, IN: Holden, E.S., 1898, A catalogue of earthquakes on the Pacific coast, 1769-1897.
  
  
  
• 1861 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1861 -- Coso
  
  
  
  
• 1864 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1864 -- Mount Shasta height
  • 1864 -- Mount Baker crater collapsing
  
  
  
  
• 1865 -- Eruption of Mount Hood -- Plummer, 1898
  "Reported volcanic eruptions in Alaska, Puget Sound, etc., 1690 to 1896", by Frederick G. Plummer, March 13, 1896, IN: Holden, E.S., 1898, A catalogue of earthquakes on the Pacific coast, 1769-1897.
  
  
  
• 1865 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1865 -- Mount Baker active
  • 1865 -- Crater Lake seen
  • 1865 -- Eruption of Mount Hood
  
  
  
  
• 1866 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1866 -- Three Sisters fire and smoke
  • 1866 -- Possibly Glacier Peak
  • 1866 -- Smoking Mount Hood
  
  
  
  
• 1867 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1867 -- Mount Baker active
  • 1867 -- Presumably Mount Baker
  • 1867 -- Mount Hood height
  
  
  
  
• 1868 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1868 -- Volcano ??? Inyo vicinity
  
  
  
  
• August 17, 1868 -- First Ascent of Mount Baker
  Edward T. Coleman, ?Tennent, and David Ogilvy.
  Excerpts from Edward T. Coleman's article published in 1869 in Harper's New Monthly Magazine.    "... Roping ourselves together, we now attempted this ... As precipices extended downward from our feet, a single false step would have been fatal. In safety, however, we passed the most dangerous point, and reached the passage, which, by a gentle ascent of 30 or 40 feet, brought us to the summit. It was now four o'clock. We had been two hours making this final climb. The plateau on which we stood was about a quarter of a mile in diameter, and embraced an extent of about eighty acres. The scene was grand in the nakedness of its desolation. The white surface of snow was unrelieved by a single rock. The forests had been on fire for weeks, and a dense pall of smoke veiled the surrounding scenery from our view. It lay like a reddish cloud beneath us. We felt cut off from the world we had left. Overhead the sun poured down his bright beams from a sky which formed a dome of purplish blue, unsullied by a cloud. ... We now advanced to the centre of the plateau, and all laying hold of the flag-staff bearing the Stars and Stripes we planted it firmly in the snow, and named the peak after General Grant. Immediately after we sang an appropriate patriotic song. We then shook hands, and, a flask of brandy being produced, the names of all those interested in the expedition were duly honored. ..." -- Edward T. Coleman, as appearing in "Harper's New Monthly Magazine", November 1869
  
  
  
• 1869 -- Eruption of Mount Hood -- Plummer, 1893
  Professor Fred G. Plummer's Paper on "Recent Volcanic Activity" Read Before the Academy of Science, from the Tacoma Ledger, February 28, 1893, courtesy the University of Washington, Pacific Northwest Seismograph Network Website, 2007.
  
  
  
• 1869 -- Eruption of Mount Hood -- Plummer, 1898
  "Reported volcanic eruptions in Alaska, Puget Sound, etc., 1690 to 1896", by Frederick G. Plummer, March 13, 1896, IN: Holden, E.S., 1898, A catalogue of earthquakes on the Pacific coast, 1769-1897.

• 1870 -- Mount Baker eruption -- Davidson
  Passage from George Davison's "Letters to the Editor" in Science, September 25, 1885, titled "Recent volcanic activity in the United States: eruptions of Mount Baker", giving accounts of Mount Baker eruptions of 1854, 1858, and 1870, plus discrediting newspaper accounts of Mount Baker's summit collapse.
  
  
  
• 1870 -- Mount Rainier eruption -- Meany
  Passage from Edmund S. Meany's 1916 publication Mount Rainier, A Record of Exploration, mentioning eruptions of 1843, 1854, 1858, and 1870, plus an earlier Indian legend.
  
  
  
• August 17, 1870 -- First Ascent of Mount Rainier
  Hazard Stevens and Philomon Beecher Van Trump.
  Excerpts from Hazard Steven's article published in 1876 in The Atlantic Monthly Magazine.    "... The wind blew so violently that we were obliged to brace ourselves with our Alpine staffs and use great caution to guard against being swept off the ridge. We threw ourselves behind the pinnacles or into the cracks every seventy steps, for rest and shelter against the bitter, piercing wind. Hastening forward in this way along the dizzy, narrow, and precarious ridge, we reached at length the highest point. Sheltered behind a pinnacle of ice we rested a moment, took out our flags and fastened them upon the Alpine staffs, and then, standing erect in the furious blast, waved them in triumph with three cheers. We stood a moment upon that narrow summit, bracing ourselves against the tempest to view the prospect. ..." -- Hazard Stevens, as appearing in "The Atlantic Monthly", November 1876
  
  
  
• 1871 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1871 -- Mount Rainier active
  • 1871 -- Mount Baker active
  
  
  
  
• 1872 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1872 -- Mount Hood smoking
  
  
  
  
• ca.1872 - Naming of Mount Thielsen
  Information courtesy Lewis A. McArthur, 1982, Oregon Geographic Names: Western Imprints, The Press of the Oregon Historical Society. "About 1872 Mount Thielsen was named by John A. Hurlburt of Portland, in honor of Hans Thielsen, prominent pioneer railroad engineer and builder."
  
  
  
• 1873 -- Eruption of Mount Rainier -- Plummer, 1898
  "Reported volcanic eruptions in Alaska, Puget Sound, etc., 1690 to 1896", by Frederick G. Plummer, March 13, 1896, IN: Holden, E.S., 1898, A catalogue of earthquakes on the Pacific coast, 1769-1897.
  
  
  
• 1873 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1873 -- Mount Hood illuminated
  
  
  
  
• 1878 -- Wheeler Survey
  Mount McLoughlin, Crater Lake, Mount Jefferson, and Mount Hood, Oregon.
  
  
  
• 1879 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1879 -- Mount Hood smoking
  
  
  
  
• March 3, 1879 - the USGS established.
  The United States Geological Survey (USGS) was established on March 3, 1879, just a few hours before the mandatory close of the final session of the 45th Congress ... President Rutherford B. Hayes signs the bill appropriating money for sundry civil expenses of the Federal Government for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1879. The sundry civil expenses bill includes a brief section establishing a new agency, the United States Geological Survey, placing it in the Department of the Interior, and charging it with a unique combination of responsibilities: "classification of the public lands, and examination of the geological structure, mineral resources, and products of the national domain." Clarance King is the first director of the USGS.

• 1880 -- Eruption of Mount Baker and Mount Olympus -- Plummer, 1893
  Professor Fred G. Plummer's Paper on "Recent Volcanic Activity" Read Before the Academy of Science, from the Tacoma Ledger, February 28, 1893, courtesy the University of Washington, Pacific Northwest Seismograph Network Website, 2007.
  
  
  
• 1880 -- Eruption of Mount Rainier and Mount Baker -- Plummer, 1898
  "Reported volcanic eruptions in Alaska, Puget Sound, etc., 1690 to 1896", by Frederick G. Plummer, March 13, 1896, IN: Holden, E.S., 1898, A catalogue of earthquakes on the Pacific coast, 1769-1897.
  
  
  
• 1880 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1880 -- Eruption near Mount Baker
  • 1880 -- Mount Baker eruption
  
  
  
  
• 1881 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1881 -- Mount Baker eruption
  • 1881 -- Idaho volcano
  
  
  
  
• 1882 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1882 -- Mount Rainier active
  
  
  
  
• 1883 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • August 1883 -- Summit of Mount Hood
  
  
  
  
• 1884 -- Eruption of Mount Rainier -- Plummer, 1893
  Professor Fred G. Plummer's Paper on "Recent Volcanic Activity" Read Before the Academy of Science, from the Tacoma Ledger, February 28, 1893, courtesy the University of Washington, Pacific Northwest Seismograph Network Website, 2007.
  
  
  
• 1884 -- Eruption of Mount Rainier -- Plummer, 1898
  "Reported volcanic eruptions in Alaska, Puget Sound, etc., 1690 to 1896", by Frederick G. Plummer, March 13, 1896, IN: Holden, E.S., 1898, A catalogue of earthquakes on the Pacific coast, 1769-1897.
  
  
  
• 1886 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1886 -- Mount Hood "smoking", Mount St. Helens
  
  
  
  
• 1887 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1887 -- Mount Hood illuminated
  
  
  
  
• August 12, 1888 -- First Ascent of Mount Jefferson, Oregon
  Ray L. Farmer and E.C. Cross.
  Excerpts from "The First Ascent of Mount Jefferson" which appeared in the "Mazama: A Record of Mountaineering in the Pacific Northwest", March 1907.

• 1891 -- Eruption of Mount Hozomeen -- Plummer, 1893
  Professor Fred G. Plummer's Paper on "Recent Volcanic Activity" Read Before the Academy of Science, from the Tacoma Ledger, February 28, 1893, courtesy the University of Washington, Pacific Northwest Seismograph Network Website, 2007.
  
  
  
• 1891 -- Eruption of Mount Baker and Mount Hozomeen -- Plummer, 1898
  "Reported volcanic eruptions in Alaska, Puget Sound, etc., 1690 to 1896", by Frederick G. Plummer, March 13, 1896, IN: Holden, E.S., 1898, A catalogue of earthquakes on the Pacific coast, 1769-1897.
  
  
  
• 1893 -- Eruption of Mount Olympus -- Plummer, 1898
  "Reported volcanic eruptions in Alaska, Puget Sound, etc., 1690 to 1896", by Frederick G. Plummer, March 13, 1896, IN: Holden, E.S., 1898, A catalogue of earthquakes on the Pacific coast, 1769-1897.
  
  
  
• 1894 -- Eruption of Mount Jefferson -- Plummer, 1898
  "Reported volcanic eruptions in Alaska, Puget Sound, etc., 1690 to 1896", by Frederick G. Plummer, March 13, 1896, IN: Holden, E.S., 1898, A catalogue of earthquakes on the Pacific coast, 1769-1897.
  
  
  
• 1894 to 1895 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1894 -- Eruption of Mount Rainier
  • 1895 -- Olympic Mountains
  
  
  
  
• 1896 - Glacier Peak first appears on a map
  Map by C.H. Crocker: The Pacific Northwest, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, prepared by C.H. Crocker, 1896. This map is issued by the Pacific Northwest Immigration Board, which was established and is maintained by the business men of the city of Portland, Oregon. -- map source: Washington State University Online Map Collection, 2002
  • "Mt. Baker"
  • "Glazier Peak" (Glacier Peak)
  • "Mt. Tacoma or Mt. Rainier"
  • "Mt. St. Helens"
  • "Mt. Adams"
  • "Mt. Hood"
  • "Mt. Jefferson"
  • Three Sisters depicted but online map too dim to read
  • "Snow Butte" (Mount Bachelor)
  • "Diamond Peak"
  • "Old Bailey" (Mount Bailey)
  • "Mt. Thielsen"
  • "Crater L." -- Wizard Island depicted but not named
  • "Union Pk." (???) -- south of Crater Lake and north of "Mt. Scott"
  • "Mt. Scott" (???) -- this is not today's Mount Scott (high point in Crater Lake National Park). This "Mt. Scott" is south of Crater Lake, south of "Union Pk.", and northeast of "Mt. Pitt".
  • "Mt. Pitt" (Mount McLoughlin)
  
  
  
  
• 1896 to 1899 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1896 -- Eruption of Mount Hood
  • 1897 -- Mount Baker in eruption
  • 1898 -- Eruption of Mount St. Helens
  • 1898 -- Mount Rainier avalanche
  
  
  
• March 2, 1899 - Mount Rainier National Park established
  President William McKinley established Mount Rainier National Park as America's 5th national park.

• 1900 to 1902 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1900 -- Mount Baker active
  • 1900 -- Lassen eruption
  • 1902 -- Mount Rainier
  • 1902 -- Lassen active
  • 1902 -- Mount Rainier heating up
  
  
  
• May 22, 1902 - Crater Lake National Park established
  President Theodore Roosevelt creates Crater Lake National Park.
  
  
  
• 1903 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1903 -- Mount St. Helens excitement
  
  
  
  
• 1905 and 1912 - Naming of Mount McLoughlin
  "In 1905 the Oregon Legislative Assembly renamed the 9,495 foot Mount Pitt in southern Oregon to Mount McLoughlin. The United States Board of Geographic Names recognized that change in 1912." Information courtesy Oregon State Archives, 50th Anniversary Exhibit Website, John McLoughlin: Father of Oregon, June, 2001.
  
  
  
• May 6, 1907 - Lassen Peak and Cinder Cone National Monuments established
  President Theodore Roosevelt signs a bill creating Lassen Peak and Cinder Cone as national monuments ... both were incorporated into the Lassen Volcanic National Monument in 1916 after Lassen Peak erupted.
  
  
  
• 1907 to 1909 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • June 1907 -- Lassen and Cinder Cone National Monuments
  • 1908 -- Mount Baker active
  • 1908 -- Mount Baker and Mount Hood active
  • 1909 -- Lassen active
  • 1909 -- Mount Baker active

• 1912 -- Nomenclature of Northwest Mountains -- Himes
  Excerpts from an article appearing in the October 1912 edition of Mazama, written by George H. Himes, which gives explanations for the naming of the major peaks of the Cascade Range. The article also refers to Hall J. Kelley's "Presidents Range".
  
  
  
• Spring 1913 - Fire Lookout, Lassen Peak, California
  A fire lookout is built at the top of Lassen Peak, California, in the spring of 1913. It it destroyed by volcanic eruption on October 12, 1914.
  
  
  
• 1914-1917 - Eruption of Lassen Peak, California.
  • May 30, 1914:   Small phreatic explosions begin on Lassen Peak, California, the beginning of an eruption which was to last 3 years.
  • May 19, 1915:   During an eruption of Lassen Peak, California, an avalanche of hot rocks from the lava flow spills onto snow and triggers a lahar that extends more than 9 miles from the volcano.
  • May 22, 1915:   The most destructive eruption of Lassen Peak, California, occurrs ... a pyroclastic flow devastates forests as far as 4 miles northeast of Lassen's summit and lahars sweep down several valleys radiating from the volcano ... an ash plume rises nearly 30,000 feet above the peak ... winds scatter the ash as far as Nevada, 300 miles to the east.
  
  
  
  
• 1914 to 1915 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • June 1914 -- Eruption of Lassen Peak
  • May 1915 -- Eruption of Lassen Peak
  • August 1915 -- Eruption of Lassen Peak
  
  
  
  
• Summer 1915 - Crater Lake Lodge opens
  Crater Lake Lodge in Crater Lake National Park, Oregon, opens for visitors. The Lodge overlooks the rim of Crater Lake and provides a panorama view of the lake and a spectacular view of Wizard Island.
  
  
  
• 1915-1935 - Fire Lookout, Mount Hood, Oregon
  A fire lookout is built at the summit of Mount Hood, Oregon. The lookout was abandoned in 1935 and it slipped off the summit in 1941.
  
  
  
• August 9, 1916 - Lassen Volcanic National Monument established
  The U.S. Congress passes a bill establishing Lassen Volcanic National Park which President Woodrow Wilson then signs it into law.
  
  
  
• July 1, 1917 - Paradise Inn opens, Mount Rainier, Washington
  On July 1st, 1917, Paradise Inn in Mount Rainier National Park in Washington State opens on schedule. The original 2-story structure was built using local materials including cedar shingles, native rock, and weathered timbers salvaged from a fire in 1885.

• 1920 -- Newspaper Clippings
  Collection of newspaper clippings refering to eruptions, etc., of the Cascade Range volcanoes. Quite a few of these have never been verified as actual eruptions or activity, and may infact be forest fires, imaginations, and/or rumors. Scroll page to find entry.
  • 1920 -- Crater Lake information
  
  
  
• 1921-1929 - Fire Lookout, Mount St. Helens, Washington
  A fire lookout is built at the summit of Mount St. Helens, Washington. Construction began in 1918 and finished in 1921. The lookout was abandoned around 1929, and all that was left by the time of the major eruption of Mount St. Helens on May 18, 1980, was the foundation.
  
  
  
• 1922-1924 - Fire Lookout, Mount Adams, Washington
  A fire lookout is built at the summit of Mount Adams, Washington. Construction began in 1918 and finished in 1921. The lookout was staffed for 2 years and then abandoned. The lookout is still there.
  
  
  
• November 21, 1925 - Lava Beds National Monument created

• September 28, 1937 - Timberline Lodge dedicated, Mount Hood, Oregon
  President Theodore Roosevelt dedicates Timberline Lodge. The Lodge, located on the southern slope of Mount Hood, Oregon, was built by the Works Projects Administration (WPA), an agency established by President Roosevelt as part of his "New Deal" to counteract the Depression.   "I am on the slopes of Mount Hood where I have always wanted to come. ... Here, to Mount Hood, will come thousands and thousands of visitors in the coming years." -- Franklin D. Roosevelt, Sept. 28, 1937

• 1975-1976 - Thermal Activity at Mount Baker, Washington
  "Eyewitness reports of small ashy plumes and active steam vents on Mount Baker dating as far back as the mid-1800's were clear evidence that the ice-covered volcano had one of the most active geothermal systems among Cascade volcanoes. When new fumaroles and unusually dark vapor plumes appeared abruptly in March 1975, however, people in the Northwest became concerned about an impeding eruption and possible avalanches and lahars from Sherman Crater, a vent just south of Mount Baker's summit. Despite a tenfold increase in the release of heat by the volcano during the next 12 months, which resulted in extensive changes to the ice cover in Sherman Crater and produced minor releases of ash, no eruption occurred. The thermal activity was not accompanied by earthquakes, which generally precede most eruptions, and since 1976, the volcano has not showed additional signs of activity." -- Brantley, 1994, "Volcanoes of the United States", USGS General Interest Publication

• 1980 - Eruption of Mount St. Helens
  • May 18, 1980:   Eruption of Mount St. Helens, Washington ... 1,314 feet of the summit is removed leaving behind a 1.2 x 1.8-mile-wide crater nearly 1/2 mile deep ... an ash plume reaches about 80,000 feet in less than 15 minutes and ash spreads across the U.S. in 3 days ... detectable amounts of ash cover 22,000 square miles ... the blast destroys 4 billion board feet of timber (enough to build 300,000 homes) and lahars destroy 27 bridges and neary 200 homes ... 57 people loose their lives, including David A. Johnston, a USGS geologist for whom the David A. Johnston Cascades Volcano Observatory is named.

  • May 25, 1980:   Mount St. Helens, Washington, erupts ash and forms an eruption column that rose to a maximum altitude of 9 miles with variable winds dispersing ash over southwestern Washington and neighboring Oregon, producing small to moderate ash falls in communities that had been spared the ash fall of May 18 ... at least one pyroclastic flow accompanied the vertical ash ejection.

  • June 12, 1980:   Mount St. Helens, Washington, again erupts, generating ash falls to the south-southwest and pyroclastic flows down its north flank ... probably within hours following the explosive activity very stiff magma begins to ascend in the vent, slowly oozing onto the crater floor, and forms a bulbous lava dome about 1,200 feet in diameter and 150 feet high ... this dome was confirmed by observers on June 15, when visibility over the volcano improved.

  • July 22, 1980:   Mount St. Helens, Washington, erupts in three explosive pulses during the afternoon and evening ... plumes of ash rise to altitudes of between 6 and 11 miles ... the events destroy most of the dome formed in mid-June, and pyrociastic flows pour through the north breach of the summit crater and override earlier flows of May and June ... no dome develops after the end of the explosive activity.

  • August 7, 1980:   Mount St. Helens, Washington, with ash to nearly 43,000 feet ... small pyroclastic flow on the north ... a new lava dome began building in the crater on August 8th.

  • October 16-18, 1980:   Mount St. Helens, Washington, erupts again ... the August dome is destroyed ... ash plumes to nearly 46,000 feet with ash dusting Portland, Oregon ... small pyroclastic flows ... following the final burst on October 18, a new lava dome emerges from the floor of the crater and grows at a dramatic rate through the afternoon and evening. By the following morning it obtains its ultimate size of more than 650 feet in diameter and 130 feet in height ... this dome is the base for the dome seen today.
  
  
  
  
• May 18, 1982 - Cascades Volcano Observatory established
  The USGS office at Vancouver, Washington, is formally designated the David A. Johnston Cascades Volcano Observatory (CVO), in memory of the Survey volcanologist killed 2 years earlier. CVO is staffed by about 90 permanent and part-time employees-geologists, geophysicists, hydrologists, geochemists, technicians, and supporting personnel. CVO not only maintains a close watch on Mount St. Helens, but also serves as the headquarters for monitoring other volcanoes of the Cascade Range in Washington, Oregon, and northern California. In recent years, the CVO staff has also participated in studies of eruptions or unrest at other volcanoes in the western United States and elsewhere in the world.
  
  
  
• August 27, 1982 -- Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument
  President Ronald Reagan signs into law a measure setting aside 110,000 acres around the Mount St. Helens' volcano Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument.

• 1990 -- Newberry National Volcanic Monument created, November 1990