Summary

As Idaho's state historian, the question Keith Petersen heard most was, "How did Idaho get such a strange shape?" That curiosity is fitting, because those peculiar borders have held enormous influence on much of Idaho's political, economic, and cultural history, and have prompted repeated efforts to connect the north and south. In Inventing Idaho, Petersen answers that popular inquiry, dividing the state's intriguing border story into six sections that illuminate the fascinating events and people-often U.S. presidents and politicians who never set foot in the region-involved in establishing the boundaries between Idaho and its neighbors: Canada, Oregon, Montana, Nevada, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. He explains their roots in the French and Indian War, how the state's name can be traced back to a late-night 1863 Senate proposal, what might happen to a criminal in the "Zone of Death," and how a gold rush, geographic barriers, political interests, and more factored into border decisions. In addition, he discusses ramifications Idahoans have faced ever since, as well as various attempts to deal with them. Book jacket.