News

CHENEY, Wash. - Eastern Washington University Libraries will display its newest archival digital collection with a special event featuring historic photographs of Grand Coulee Dam. The opening reception for The Hubert C. "Hu" Blonk Photographic Collection will take place 2-3 p.m., Tuesday, March 29, in the Faculty Reading Room of the John F. Kennedy Memorial Library, on the EWU campus in Cheney. The public is invited to attend this opening reception.

After seven years of construction, the Grand Coulee Dam began operation in March 1941, when its first large generator began producing power. The unveiling of this photographic collection is a great way for EWU Libraries' Archives and Special Collections to mark the anniversary.

Tom Trulove, EWU professor and chair of economics, Mayor of Cheney and past member of the Northwest Power Planning Council, will be the guest speaker at the reception. University Archivist Charles Mutschler will demonstrate the archival digital collection, and refreshments will be served.

Hubert C. Blonk was a journalist who covered the construction of the Grand Coulee Dam for the short-lived Grand Coulee Record and the Wenatchee Daily World. He later served as the newspaper's managing editor. The Hubert C. Blonk Papers held by the EWU Libraries include more than 400 images, primarily from two sources: photographs taken by Blonk himself as a newspaper reporter and those supplied by government agencies documenting government projects.

The archival digital collection features selected photos from this collection. The Hubert C. Blonk Papers were donated to Eastern Washington University by Blonk's daughter, Julie Yeager, in 2006. To view The Hubert C. "Hu" Blank Photographic Collection, visit http://econtent.library.ewu.edu/cdm4/blonk.php.

Related displays in the Kennedy Memorial Library during March include: The Columbia River: Energy, Culture, and Environment, materials from the Kennedy Library's circulating collections (Lobby); Historical Postcards of the Grand Coulee Dam, on loan from Ted and LJ Otto (Lobby display case); Selected Materials from the Hubert C. Blonk Papers (Archives & Special Collections Reading Room, Lower Level); and Grand Coulee Construction: Selected Prints from the Hubert C. Blonk Photographic Collection and the Z. Vanessa Helder Watercolor Series (Lobby).

This event is sponsored by EWU Libraries. Persons with special needs may make arrangements for accommodations by calling Janice at 509.359.2264 by March 23.