Welcome to my website! For forty years I have been researching and writing about the early history and traditional cultures of the Native American peoples of the Pacific Northwest. This website is an introduction my research and the books that have resulted from it. I look forward to sharing this information with you.
— Robert T. Boyd
My first update concerns the late 1700s smallpox epidemic (chapter two), and a new discovery of my own that gives added weight to the hypothesis that smallpox first entered the region via a coastal contact. The source is an important … Read More
When UW Press announced to me back in September 2020 that they wanted to reissue “The Coming of the Spirit of Pestilence” in paper, they didn’t allow me to revise and update (probably wise, since it would take a while … Read More
After a long hiatus, I’m back on my website with great news! Both The Coming of the Spirit of Pestilence and Indians, Fire and the Land in the Pacific Northwest are scheduled for republication during 2021. The Coming of the Spirit of … Read More
I’m a bit late posting this, but here’s the link to my May 18 op ed in the Oregon City News, “Celebrate Native heritage at Willamette Falls”: portlandtribune.com/cr/28-opinion/306897-183016-celebrate-native-heritage-at-willamette-falls It’s my second media suggestion (after the October 2015 Oregonian op ed) … Read More
The Oregon Encyclopedia has just published my “Wapato (Wappato) Valley Indians,” and “Portland Basin Chinookan Villages in the 1800s” (with Henry Zenk). If you want the basics on Portland Native peoples, read these! Both provide thumbnail sketches of that data … Read More
After a year’s work, our article on “Chinookan Villages of the Lower Columbia” just came out in the Spring 2016 Oregon Historical Quarterly. Authors are Henry Zenk, Yvonne Hajda, and myself. I’ve known Henry and Yvonne for over thirty years, … Read More