Adam M. Sowards

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270 Following
243 Posts

#Writer, #historian, & (former) professor. Curious about #place, #environment, #history, and #democracy.

Author of Taking Bearings weekly newsletter, a bunch of books, and various articles, #essays, and the like--often about #PublicLands, #conservation, and #wilderness.

In and of the #PNW.

#nonfiction #creativenonfiction #cnf #naturewriting #environmentalwriting

Websitehttps://www.adamsowards.net
Newsletterhttps://www.adamsowards.net
LocationSkagit Valley
I'm getting deeper into my national parks book research, so my weekly essays are leaning more and more in that direction. This week, to celebrate its anniversary designation as a national monument: Acadia.
https://www.adamsowards.net/elitism-and-refuge-in-americas-breathing-spaces/
Elitism and Refuge in America's Breathing Spaces

Exploring the paradoxes of Acadia National Park

Adam M. Sowards — Taking Bearings

This Saturday is Flag Day, so I used my weekly essay to explore the evolving meaning of flags and the shifting nature of our allegiances. Reflect on what these symbols really represent—then and now.

https://www.adamsowards.net/pledging-allegiance/

Pledging Allegiance

Historical (and other) notes on flag culture

Adam M. Sowards — Taking Bearings

In my weekly essay, I explore a family cookbook--published in 1928--that I just received. I use it to think about history & curiosity, as well as family & the passage of time.

Mostly what I'm talking about is what we inherit & bequeath. I hope you'll read it.

https://www.adamsowards.net/in-touch-with-the-past/

In Touch with the Past

A family cookbook's legacy and the importance of continuity

Adam M. Sowards — Taking Bearings

Given the week's holiday kickoff, I used my weekly essay to think about Memorial Day via Brian Doyle's wonderful essay of the same name. I hope you spend a few minutes with it.

https://www.adamsowards.net/being-careful-in-public/

Being Careful in Public

Lessons from Brian Doyle's "Memorial Day"

Adam M. Sowards — Taking Bearings
My weekly essay posted yesterday. In it, I muse about having a sense of place. It meanders a bit in service to the argument. I hope you'll read it.
https://www.adamsowards.net/they-had-their-bearings/
"They had their bearings"

And keeping ours in a new technological age

Adam M. Sowards — Taking Bearings
William O. Douglas Essay Contest about the importance of dissent for high school and college students in select locations and schools in Washington. More details here: https://www.yvmuseum.org/william-o-douglas-award-essay
William O. Douglas Award Essay | Yakima Valley Museum

Yakima Valley Museum

In this week’s essay, I try to process how I process all the news about public lands these days as a historian of these common places.

https://www.adamsowards.net/will-the-history-of-public-lands-matter/

Will the History of Public Lands Matter?

Wondering about past, present, and future

Adam M. Sowards — Taking Bearings
Next Sunday is the 45th anniversary of the eruption of Mount St. Helens. 🌋 I wrote an essay about the eruption and the aftermath for @history.com. https://www.history.com/articles/mount-st-helens-eruption-recovery
HISTORY

The HISTORY Channel - Geschichte erleben! The HISTORY Channel ist der deutschsprachige Pay-TV-Sender für spannende Dokumentationen und macht die Faszination von Menschen und Ereignissen täglich greifbar!

HISTORY

My weekly essay takes a trip back 101 years to a big national conference discussing outdoor recreation.

https://www.adamsowards.net/defining-outdoor-recreation/

Defining Outdoor Recreation

How to think about recreation in the 1920s

Adam M. Sowards — Taking Bearings
Focusing through the Lens

Nancy Crowell’s photography captures more than just images

Adam M. Sowards — Taking Bearings