July 2010, I attended “Empires of the Wind: Exploration of the United States Pacific West Coast,” one of the National Endowment for the Humanities Landmarks of American History and Culture workshops for teachers. During my week in San Diego, I learned much about this often overlooked part of American history and am pleased to be able to share what I learned with other school librarians across the country.

From a European perspective, North America’s Western coast was one of the most remote places on Earth, yet its location and perceived riches would make it a focus of at least four countries’ expansionist designs. It bordered the “Spanish Lake” of the Pacific, but Spain paid it scant attention, concentrating instead on Mexico’s mineral riches and lucrative Manila trade. Other European powers quickly recognized opportunities for empire and trade. Russia viewed Alaska and the Pacific Northwest as an extension of its vast nation and a valuable source of furs. England saw supply ports for its growing empire and commercial opportunity in the region. British and Russian incursions along the coast provoked Spain, which established a string of missions in California as a buffer for its Mexican holdings, but was unable to prevent Russian and British claims farther north. However, sailing distances from Europe remained so daunting that the region’s development was desultory at best.

It would be the Americans who changed the dynamic in the Pacific West. After the Revolutionary War, American seamen developed a thriving China and whaling trade. Those traders saw the region’s deep ports and natural resources as ripe for American “enterprise.” A growing stream of Americans, confident and unshakable in their “Manifest Destiny” to rule the entire continent, flowed into California and the Oregon Territory, displacing indigenous Native Americans and settlers from several nations. Oregon’s boundaries were settled by diplomacy, and the Mexican War provided the pretext for John Frémont to seize California without firing a shot.

Although the region became part of the United States, its diverse culture and heritage were heavily influenced by its international past, and this unique culture and history are certain to resonate with students.

Elementary School

BERGIN, Mark. You Wouldn’t Want to Travel with Captain Cook!: A Voyage You’d Rather Not Make. 2006. ISBN 978-1-439-52364-3; ISBN 978-0-531-12446-8. STEWART, David. You Wouldn’t Want to Explore with Sir Francis Drake: A Pirate You’d Rather Not Know. 2005. ISBN 978-1-439-52363-6; ISBN 978-0-531-12393-5. ea. vol: illus. by David Antram. Scholastic. PLB $18.95; pap. $9.95. Gr 3-5–Based on the accounts of men who sailed with Cook and Drake, these books combine limited text with captioned, caricature-style cartoons to provide a lighthearted but realistic look at the exploits and achievements of the expeditions and the perils of shipboard life. Gross and gruesome details will attract and hold readers’ attention.

BIAL, Raymond. Missions and Presidios. (American Community Series). Children’s Press. 2004. PLB $29. ISBN 978-1-417-65015-6. Gr 3-5–Bial introduces readers to the vast Spanish colonial presence in early America, describing how missions and presidios in Florida, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California served the empire’s dual goals of conquest and Christianization and left an enduring cultural legacy, particularly in the Southwestern United States.

DOMNAUER, Teresa. Westward Expansion. (A True Bk.) Children’s Press. 2010. PLB $26. ISBN 978-0-531-20586-0. Gr 3-5–Domnauer covers the entire American frontier period in this introduction, focusing on the diversity of the groups and individuals who ventured across the continent and the changes they brought to Native peoples. Large, captioned illustrations, interesting factoids, and a “True Statistics” summary page are included.

GENDELL, Megan. The Spanish Missions of California. (A True Bk.). Children’s Press. 2010. PLB $28. ISBN 978-0-531-20580-8; pap. $6.95. 978-0-531-21243-1. Gr 3-5–With an appealing and readable layout and colorful, captioned photographs and maps, this introductory overview describes why and how these missions were established, their patterns of work and worship, and their devastating effects on Indian culture. Readers also learn about surviving missions and how they influenced California culture and agriculture.

PARKER, Lewis K. John Jacob Astor and the Fur Trade. (Reading Power Series). Rosen/PowerKids Press. 2003. PLB $21.25. ISBN 978-0-823-96447-5. Gr 3-6–Astor was among the first to recognize the potential of the Pacific fur trade, and his fur profits became the foundation of a vast fortune. Simple biographical information is presented in an attractive format that includes large print, high-quality period illustrations, contemporary photos, and maps.

SONNEBORN, Liz. The Chumash. (Native American Histories Series). Lerner. 2007. PLB $27.93. ISBN 978-0-822-55912-2; pap. $8.95. ISBN 978-0-822-55912-2. Gr 3-6–The Chumash tribe thrived on the Pacific’s bounty in California’s mild climate, but its people were decimated by European diseases and forced labor in Spanish missions. Sonneborn describes the origins, traditions, and culture of the Chumash, who still survive and are enjoying a contemporary renaissance.

YIN. Coolies. illus. by Chris Soentpiet. Philomel. 2001. RTE $17.99. ISBN 978-0-399-23227-5; pap. $7.99. ISBN 978-0-142-50055-2. Gr 3-5–Leaving China to support their family, Shek and his younger brother travel to America, where they work building the transcontinental railroad. Known as coolies, they endure backbreaking labor, discrimination, and danger but never lose faith in one another or the promise of a better life. Arresting illustrations capture the scope and drama of the siblings’ adventures.

Middle Grade Fiction

GARLAND, Sherry. Valley of the Moon: The Diary of María Rosalia de Milagros, Sonoma Valley, Alta California, 1846. (Dear America Series). Scholastic. 2001. Tr $10.95. ISBN 978-0-439-08820-6. Gr 5-8–Rosa, an orphaned mestizo servant, records her work and the rhythms of life in a California rancho, the search for her own family roots, and the growing turmoil caused by the Americans who are pouring into California to overthrow Mexican rule and claim the land.

O’DELL, Scott. Island of the Blue Dolphins. 1960. Tr $16. ISBN 978-0-395-06962-2; pap. $6.99. ISBN 978-0-547-32861-4. –––– . Zia. 1995. pap. $6.99. ISBN 978-0-547-40633-6. ea vol: Houghton. Gr 5-8–Karana, a California Indian girl, is left behind when her tribe abandons its island home after a devastating battle with Aleuts who hunt furs for the Russians. Living alone for 18 years, she maintains her traditional ways, but her rescue brings her into the changed world of the Spanish missions. In Zia, Karana’s niece leaves a Spanish mission to rescue her aunt. Both struggle with the restrictions and constraints of mission life.

Middle Grade Nonfiction

ARONSON, Marc & John W. Glenn. The World Made New: Why the Age of Exploration Happened and How It Changed the World. National Geographic. 2007. Tr $17.95. ISBN 978-0-792-26454-5; PLB $27.90. ISBN 978-0-792-26978-6. Gr 5-8–The authors explain how the age of European exploration ushered in the modern era of mobility, trade and exchange, and scientific advances while leaving a tragic legacy of decimating disease and the colonial domination of indigenous peoples. Large, attractive period illustrations and maps supplement the text.

AYKROYD, Clarissa. Exploration of the California Coast: The Adventures of Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo, Francis Drake, Sebastián Vazcaíno, and Other Explorers of North America’s West Coast. (Exploration and Discovery Series). Mason Crest. 2003. PLB $19.95. ISBN 978-1-590-84043-6. Gr 4-7–The remote California frontier became an international conflict point when British vessels began to explore and lay claim to regions under Spanish control. Aykroyd profiles the explorers, discusses their voyages, and explains how they affected the international balance of power and triggered Spanish colonization of California.

CROMPTON, Samuel Willard. Francis Drake and the Oceans of the World. (Explorers of New Worlds Series). Chelsea House. 2006. PLB $30. ISBN 978-0-791-08615-5. Gr 5-8–Crompton places Drake’s life and voyages into the context of British-Spanish enmity during the Age of Exploration, when his piracy terrorized Spanish settlements and his probes of Spanish possessions in the Pacific Northwest provoked Spanish action. Students looking for substantial report material will find it here.

CURRIE, Stephen. Thar She Blows: American Whaling in the Nineteenth Century. (People’s History Series). Lerner. 2001. PLB $26.60. ISBN 978-0-822-50646-1. Gr 6 Up–Currie objectively examines the lives of the “First American Tourists” who roved the globe on whalers, describing the thrill and danger of chasing and killing these animals, the difficult and poorly paid onboard work, the toll that whaling took on sailors and their families, and the end of the whaling era. Black-and-white photographs add interest.

DOAK, Robin. Voices from Colonial America: California, 1542-1850. National Geographic. 2006. Tr $21.95. ISBN 978-0-792-26391-3; PLB $ 32.90. ISBN 978-0-792-26861-1. Gr 5-8–Primary-source excerpts and period illustrations augment this account of early California. The author describes how international interest in the region pushed Spanish settlement, details the lives of the Europeans and indigenous peoples during the Spanish and Mexican periods, and explains how the American takeover and discovery of gold changed California’s culture, population, and economy.

DOHERTY, Kieran. Explorers, Missionaries, and Trappers: Trailblazers of the West. (Shaping America Series). Oliver Press. 2000. PLB $22.95. ISBN 978-1-881-50852-6. Gr 7 Up–This research-friendly collective biography profiles the lives and deeds of eight individuals who were instrumental in the exploration and settlement of the American West and places their actions into the larger context of the competition between the countries that sought to control the region. Period illustrations, maps, and sidebars supply additional information.

FABER, Harold. John Charles Frémont: Pathfinder to the West. (Great Explorations Series). Marshall Cavendish. 2003. PLB $32.79. ISBN 978-0-761-41481-0. Gr 6-8–The impetuous Frémont, acting under secret orders from President Polk, seized Mexican California and its riches for the United States at the outbreak of the Mexican War without firing a shot. Faber examines the explorer’s outsized life and feats and his significance in American expansion into the Pacific West.

HARNESS, Cheryl. The Tragic Tale of Narcissa Whitman and a Faithful History of the Oregon Trail. illus. by author. National Geographic. 2006. Tr $16.95. ISBN 978-0-792-25920-6. Gr 5-8–Missionary Narcissa Whitman was one of the first American women to journey to Oregon. Her story is interwoven with background about American exploration, the Northwest fur trade, and the burgeoning American settlement that brought the Oregon Territory into the United States. Varied black-and-white illustrations include maps, time lines, and drawings.

ISSERMAN, Maurice. Exploring North America 1800-1900. ISBN 978-1-604-13194-9. VAIL, Martha. Exploring the Pacific. ISBN 978-1-604-13197-0. ea. vol: rev. ed. (Discovery and Exploration Series.) Chelsea House. 2010. PLB $35. Gr 6-8–The first book summarizes the commercial and expansionist goals that were the driving force for Jefferson’s “other explorers,” the fur traders of the northwest; John C. Frémont’s annexation of California; and the American influx into Alaska. The author also analyzes how exploration contributed to scientific and geographical knowledge and encouraged the conservationist movement. Vail traces the paths of Pacific explorers from early indigenous inhabitants to imperialistic Europeans to brash Americans in search of commerce and empire, who, in doing so, developed and employed advances in scientific knowledge and technology.

KEREMITSIS, Eileen. Life in a California Mission. (The Way People Live Series). Lucent. 2003. PLB $30.85. ISBN 978-1-590-18159-1. Gr 5-8–The lasting cultural and agricultural importance of Spanish missions is conveyed in this objective overview that details the daily lives of the friars, officials, and baptized Indians who labored there and discusses the rapid decline of the missions when the newly independent Mexico awarded the mission land to settlers.

LAWLOR, Laurie. Magnificent Voyage: An American Adventurer on Captain James Cook’s Final Expedition. Holiday House. 2002. Tr $22.95. ISBN 978-0-823-41575-5. Gr 7 Up–Excerpts from James Ledyard’s sensational published account and other primary sources are used to depict shipboard conditions, visits to exotic ports, and the fruitless search for an Alaskan Northwest Passage on Cook’s final voyage. Ledyard’s acquaintance with Thomas Jefferson and efforts to cultivate Jefferson’s interest in the Pacific Northwest are also explored.

LILLY, Alexandra. Spanish Colonies in America. (We the People Series). Compass Point. 2009. PLB $27.99. ISBN 978-0-756-53840-8. Gr 4-6– Interspersed with full-color paintings, maps, and photographs, this clear summary follows Spanish explorers whose search for riches laid claim to vast regions for Spain and the missions and outposts they established. The empire’s disastrous effect on indigenous peoples and the enduring Spanish contributions to the American economy and culture are also considered.

MORRISON, Taylor. The Coast Mappers. Houghton. 2004. Tr $17. ISBN 978-0-618-25408-8. Gr 5-8–In 1850, the U.S. Coast Survey sent George Davidson to chart America’s Pacific Coast. This attractive account, which includes many of Davidson’s original drawings, describes how his surveyors overcame enormous challenges to create maps that opened the region to international trade and gives readers a unique perspective on the region’s maritime history.

MURPHY, Jim. Gone A-Whaling: The Lure of the Sea and the Hunt for the Great Whale. Clarion. 1998. Tr $18. ISBN 978-0-395-69847-1; ebook $8.95. ISBN 978-0-547-34630-4. Gr 6-9–Excerpts from primary sources enhance this detailed examination of whaling from prehistory to the present. Murphy focuses on the practices and excesses of its 18th- and 19th-century heyday, while period illustrations and sidebar descriptions of whale species help readers better understand life on whaling ships and its environmental consequences.

VAN METER, Larry. Yerba Buena. (Colonial Settlements in America Series). Chelsea House. 2007. PLB $30. ISBN 978-0-791-09338-2. Gr 6-10–Early European explorers sailed past the narrow entrance to San Francisco’s immense harbor, but when the Spanish discovered the port they named Yerba Buena, it quickly became an important trade center as well as a strategic buffer against British and Russian encroachment. Van Meter’s history pays particular attention to the damaging impact on the indigenous population.

WILLIAMS, Jack S. & Thomas L. Davis. Craftsmen and Craftswomen of the California Mission Frontier. ISBN 978-0-823-96280-8. ––––. Indians of the California Mission Frontier. ISBN 978-0-823-96281-5. ––––. Padres of the California Mission Frontier. ISBN 978-0-8239-6283-9. ––––. Sailors, Merchants, and Muleteers of the California Mission Frontier. ISBN 978-0-823-96282-2. ––––. Soldiers and Their Families of the California Mission Frontier. ISBN 978-0-823-96285-3. ––––. Townspeople and Ranchers of the California Mission Frontier. ISBN 978-0-823-96284-6. ea vol: (People of the California Missions Series). Rosen. 2004. PLB $29.25. Gr 4-8–Clear writing, ample background information, and an attractive format that features period art, maps, and contemporary photos distinguish these detailed examinations of the groups living in California during the mission and rancho periods, giving readers valuable insight on how this critical period influenced the development and culture of the region.

High School

DANA, Richard Henry, Jr. Two Years Before the Mast: A Personal Narrative. Nabu Press. 2010 pap. $33.75. ISBN 978-1-172-30509-4. Adult/High School–Leaving Harvard in 1834 to serve as a seaman on a ship that transported leather hides from California to New England, Dana later penned his classic account of shipboard life and impressions of rancho-era California as a land ripe for the “hands of an enterprising people,” encouraging American migration to the region.

LAKE, Alison. Colonial Rosary: The Spanish and Indian Missions of California. Swallow Press. 2006. Tr $39.95. ISBN 978-0-804-01084-9; pap. $19.95. ISBN 978-0-804-01085-6. Adult/High School–Lake’s readable history of mission-era California examines the Franciscan religious zeal that often created conflict with Spanish and Mexican governments and settlers, the devastation the missions inflicted on California’s indigenous peoples, and how mission agriculture and industry became the foundation for California’s development.

On the Web

For Students:

“California as I Saw It”: First-Person Narratives of California’s Early Years, 1849-1900. lcweb2.1oc.gov/ammem/cbhtml/cbhome.html. American Memory Collection. Library of Congress. (Accessed 7/24/11). Gr 5 Up—This collection of readings and period illustrations includes the section “Early California History: An Overview,” which provides well-written and objective background about the geography, people, and political and religious organization of the region before it came under American control.

California History Online. californiahistoricalsociety.org/timeline/main.html. California Historical Society. (Accessed 7/24/11). Gr 5 Up—This site’s easy-to-use interactive time line features brief main and subtopic essays by historian James J. Rawls about the diverse groups and nations that influenced the region as well as period illustrations from the society’s collection.

California Missions Resource Center. www.missionscalifornia.com. Pentacle Press. (Accessed 7/24/11). Gr 5 Up—Although this site does sell publisher products, the mission histories are supplemented with detailed information about individual settlements and an interactive “Ask the Experts” section. User friendly and informative.

Columbia River History Project. www.nwcouncil.org/history/Default_Thematic.asp. Northwest Power and Conservation Council. (Accessed 7/24/11). Gr 5 Up—Although lacking in visual appeal, the entries on this site provide encyclopedic coverage of the environmental, social, and economic history of the Columbia River Basin region, including exploration, international competition and conflict, fur trade, missionaries, and indigenous peoples.

Parallel Histories: Spain, the United States, and the American Frontier. international.loc.gov/intldl/eshtml/eshome.html. National Library of Spain and the Library of Congress. (Accessed 7/24/11). Gr 7 Up–Only partially finished, this cooperatively produced site offers bilingual text and complete reproductions of Spanish and American documents, maps, and illustrations that examine Spain’s exploration, colonization, and international interactions in what is now the United States.

For Teachers:

Age of Exploration. marinersmuseum.org/education/age-exploration. The Mariners’ Museum. Newport News, VA. (Accessed 7/24/11). With some sections currently under revision, this site offers a large collection of readings, lesson plans, activities, period maps, and illustrations about the Age of Exploration and its political, scientific, and cultural consequences.

Californio to American: A Study in Cultural Change. cr.nps.gov/nr/twhp/wwwlps/lessons/8californio/8californio.htm. National Park Service. U.S. Department of the Interior. (Accessed 7/24/11). Founded in 1790, Rancho Los Alamitos is one of the few surviving Spanish colonial sites. Here teachers will find lesson plans and classroom materials to help students understand how the Rancho and California changed as it passed from Spanish to Mexican to American control.

Media Picks

California Up Close (Series). 5 DVDs. approx. 20 min. ea. Discovery Education (store.discoveryeducation.com). 2006. $219.95. Includes: Native Americans and European Explorers; Spanish California; Westward Expansion and Statehood; Modern California; California Today. Gr 5-10–This comprehensive set looks at California’s geography, history, culture, and government, discussing its original indigenous inhabitants; the Europeans who vied for it as a colonial prize; the Americans who seized it from Mexico, made it a state, and developed its natural resources.

History Alive for Students: Living in Spanish Colonial America. DVD. 22 min. Discovery Education (store.discoveryeducation.com). 2000. $39.95. Gr 4-8–Living-history footage illustrates the construction and operation of the California missions, showing how the crops and industries of the self-sustaining missions became the foundation of California’s later development even as they transformed the culture and livelihood of the region’s Native Americans.

In Pursuit of a Dream. DVD. 89 min. with tchr’s. guide. Prod. by Oregon-California Trails Assn. Dist. by Landmark Media (landmarkmedia.com). 2011. single site: $69; school district: $250. Gr 7 Up–Twenty-four teens spend two weeks traveling in a wagon train on the Oregon Trail in this interesting and entertaining film. They face the physical and emotional challenges of the journey, meet and trade with Native Americans and other people, and savor the satisfaction and pride they feel upon their arrival in Oregon.

The Map of the Great Explorers, Pts. 1 & 2. 2 DVDs. approx 25 min. ea. Prod. by Grant Angle Dist. Dist. by Landmark Media (landmarkmedia.com). 2009. $250 set, $175 ea. Includes: Part 1: Columbus, Vespucci, Magellan; Part 2: Cook, LaPerouse. Gr 7 Up–This outstanding production follows the voyages of Spanish, British, and French explorers and explains how the Golden Age of European exploration contributed to geographical and scientific knowledge.

Pioneer Spirit: Wagon Trails and the Oregon Trail. DVD. 26 min. Prod. by Fabian-Babar. Dist. by Discovery Education (store.discoveryeducation.com). 2001. $59.95. Gr 5-8–Maps, period illustrations, and living-history footage illustrate this comprehensive history of the early Pacific Northwest. Among the topics covered are the international competition for the region, the lucrative fur trade and missionary outreach that opened it for settlement, and the flood of Americans who quickly claimed it for the United States.