Roadside History of Idaho, by Betty Derig, Mountain Press Publishing Company, Missoula, Mont., 1996, $30 cloth, $18 paper.
Meriwether Lewis and William Clark entered what is now Idaho on August 12, 1805, and the next year, on their return trip from the coast, they spent more than six weeks in the area with the Nez Perce. Lewis and Clark discovered something that a lot of folks have found out since–Idaho, with its rich heritage, has a lot to offer history-minded travelers. The area was part of Oregon country at first, divided between Washington Territory and Oregon Territory in 1853, all made part of Washington Territory in 1859 (when Oregon became a state), and called Idaho Territory in 1863 before becoming the state of Idaho in 1890. Some of the notable visitors to follow Lewis and Clark were Jesuit missionary Pierre Jean De Smet; Mormon leader Brigham Young, who founded Idaho’s oldest town, Franklin, in 1860; stagecoach operator Ben Holladay; merchant Cyrus Jacobs, who helped lay out the town site of Boise (it became the capital in 1865); and General O.O. Howard, who was chasing and fighting the Nez Perce in 1877. In this 11th volume in Mountain Press’ excellent “Roadside History” series, Idaho-born Betty Derig tells the Gem State’s compelling and sometimes sparkling story in engaging fashion. Plenty of historic black-and-white photos and an Idaho chronology are included.
