Samish Library

The Samish Indian Nation Library is a resource for Samish citizens who wish to learn more and perhaps conduct research about native culture, language, history, and other aspects of native life. While our collection here focuses on Northwest Coast (including First Nations), we also have books on Plains, Southwest and Woodlands tribes.

Samish Indian Nation Library has books that pertain to Northwest Coast native culture, history, art, spirituality, language, native plants and their uses, famous native artists, native crafts (including how-to books), and other aspects of native life. We also have books on local history (Skagit County and surrounding areas).

Currently, our library has over 3,000 titles available for checkout. This includes including a children’s and young adult section and a wide selection of DVDs. Our collection is growing, and we are continuously adding new titles! Books and DVDs are checked out for a month at a time. Samish Citizens and residents of the greater Fidalgo area may check out books from the Samish Library.

Our hands go up to Samish citizen Jan Flagg who has built our library collection from the ground up. Jan has an amazing talent for recognizing and purchasing books that compose our collection.

To set up a patron account and to check out materials from Samish Indian Nation Library, contact our Library Assistant.

Libby Digital Library

We now have free e-books and audiobooks available! Click here to learn about the Libby app.

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Fall 2021

Nov 4, 2021, 10:55 by Cheryl Chatt, Samish Library Assistant

Hello again and welcome to this edition of Reader’s Window!

As we say farewell to summer and head into fall, we have an announcement of an exciting gift that was recently given to our library. Samish citizen Abigail Bergan, representing her non-profit organization Papaji’s Pages, has given a gift of funds to be used for “sustaining and expanding educational resources for the tribal community.”

Abigail is the granddaughter of Romaine Soucy, (Samish) and the great-great niece of Father Gerald (Papaji) Hofstee, SVD, a Divine Word Missionary. Father Hofstee served as a missionary in India for over 50 years and Papaji’s Pages was founded to carry on the legacy of his passion for education.

With this generous gift, we were able to make substantial additions to our library collection!

With educational and cultural purposes in mind, books were purchased that pertained to our cultural classes, local history, and a significant addition to our children’s collection.

Just to tempt you, here are some of the titles that were purchased with Abigail’s gift:

Homewaters: A Human and Natural History of Puget Sound by David B. Williams

Craft of the Dyer: Colour from Plants and Lichens by Karen Leigh Casselman

Spinning with a Drop Spindle by Christine Thresh

Northwest Native Harvest by Carol Batdorf

Ancestor Approved: Intertribal Stories for Kids edited by Cynthia Leitich Smith

We Are Puget Sound: Discovering & Recovering the Salish Sea by David L. Workman in partnership with Washington Environmental Council.

These are just a sample of the selection of new books that will be hitting the shelves soon. Our hands go up to Abigail, and to Papaji’s Pages for thinking of Samish, and Samish Indian Nation Library in particular. This generous gift will benefit all ages of Samish readers for a long time to come. Hóy7sxwq’e, Abigail!

Take good care, be well, and enjoy this fall and all the beauty that it brings,

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