Beyond Officers Row: Duty and Daily Life at the US Army Fort Vancouver

As part of the park's 2009 Public History Field School, students from Portland State University inventoried and analyzed the park's existing interpretive signs, publications and online materials. Through this process, they identified several important stories and connections to help visitors better understand the site and its many layers of history.

This three-part online exhibit, Beyond Officers Row: Duty & Daily Life at the U.S. Army's Fort Vancouver, is the result of their work. It includes articles and images interpreting social life, entertainment and recreation, gender, ethnicity, class and occupation: topics selected by the students to complement the park's existing interpretive media and broaden the opportunity for visitos to connect their interests to the park's resources and stories.

PART 1

Western Womanhood: Women's Contributions to the U.S. Army's Fort Vancouver 1849-1900

• Working Class Women in the Army Era
• Upper Class Women in the Army Era
• Western Womanhood: Ethnic Diversity at Fort Vancouver

PART 2

The Parade Ground and Beyond: Social Activities at Vancouver Barracks

• Games
• Dancing
• Bands & Music

PART 3

Meet me at the Sutler Store: Goods and Gossip at the Army's Fort Vancouver

• Army Sutlers at Fort Vancouver
• Domestic Life and the Sutler Store
• Elisha Camp: Sutler at Fort Vancouver
• The Curious Case of Mr. Camp & Capt. Grant