History
The human presence in the area containing the North Cascades National Park Service Complex dates back more than 4,000 years.
Plan Around History
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History Details
The human presence in the area containing the North Cascades National Park Service Complex dates back more than 4,000 years, when glaciers began receding and enabled early Native American people to move inland. It's believed that the Nlaka'pamux, Chelan, Okanogan, Wenatchi, and Skagit tribes came to the area to collect stones and minerals before migrating to the Puget Sound for the winter. By 1811, Scottish fur trappers begin exploring the North Cascades, following the trail blazed by the Lewis and Clark Expedition a decade earlier, and major explorations were conducted to find passes through the Cascades that would lead to the coast. There is, however, little evidence to suggest that these explorations were successful; the area remained largely unexplored until the late 19th century, when railroads became the primary focus of American developers and rumors of gold drew prospectors to the region. The rough terrain and remote streams proved inhospitable to prospectors, however, and although silver and lead were abundant, little gold was ever discovered. The North Cascades remained largely untouched, except by small mining operations, until the development of the Skagit River Hydroelectric Project by utility company Seattle City Light in the 1920s. The creation of the three hydroelectric dams -- Ross Dam, Gorge Dam, and Diablo Dam --flooded the low-lying areas of the Skagit River, forever changing the area's landscape and creating the popular Ross, Gorge, and Diablo Lakes. The development of the area as a U.S. National Park occurred slowly over the course of nearly 70 years, as sections were designated as Forest Reserves and Primitive Areas by the U.S. Forest Service, and eventually made part of the National Park system in 1969.
Difficulty
Open
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Region
Learn About the Park
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