Many of us old timers, affectionately referred to as “Diving Dinosaurs,” have been debating for many years about what we are going to do with all of this old diving stuff that we have accumulated. More than just the old diving equipment, we have magazines, photographs, videos, artifacts and lots of other memorabilia. We also have some great stories about the “good old days” of spearfishing contests, exploring old shipwrecks, discovering new dive sites, inventing new diving equipment, and creating new training methods.
Our one common desire is to establish a Northwest Diving Museum. We’ve discussed locations and logistics for a large museum that is open to the public year-round. This could be established as part of an existing museum. We’ve considered a series of smaller mini-museums that may be located at restaurants, resorts, or at any business location that would attract visitors.
This web site will serve as our on-line museum. Here we can post photos and videos, and chronicle the history of recreational and scientific diving throughout our cold-water region.
This web site is dedicated to fulfilling our mission because history is always interesting and we sincerely feel that our NW Diving History is worthy of being preserved and shared with everyone.
We appreciate your interest and thank you for visiting our web site. Make sure that you get on the newsletter list and get connected with us on Facebook.
- 200 Feet Deep Working Diving in Hood Canal –
Serious SCUBA Saves the Day!
200 Feet Deep Working Diving in Hood Canal – Serious SCUBA Saves the Day!
Written by Tory van Dyke
Ed Forsyth, the owner of COMMERCIAL DIVERS, INC, Portland, Oregon, successfully bid a diving contract for the U.S. Navy in 1978. The job was located just outside the U.S. Navy Submarine Base in Bangor, Washington, on the world-famous ...
- The Valiant Bud Valian Story – Mt. Hood’s Ski & SCUBA Diving Living Legend
Article 1243
The Valiant Bud Valian Story — Mt. Hood’s Ski & SCUBA Diving Living Legend
Early SCUBA Diving recollections of diving in the Pacific Northwest, Mexico & Belize
Written by Tory van Dyke exclusively for the NORTHWEST DIVING HISTORY ASSOCIATION
8-22-22
I have been thinking about interviewing living Ski Legend Bud Valian of Government Camp, Oregon, for many ...
- Deep, Dark, Dangerous Diving within a Magnificent Sub-aquatic Ice Water Mansion
I recently met my longtime friend again, the diving pioneer and living legend Spence Campbell, at Tom Hemphill’s NORTHWEST DIVING HISTORY ASSOCIATION meeting on April 12, 2022, at Tom’s well-furnished, neighborhood association Clubhouse. I hadn’t seen Spence for a few years and took the opportunity to sit down next to him at the meeting in ...
- Three Days Underwater Working Inside 150-feet of 54-inch diameter Pipeline
Underwater pipeline work is both physically and psychologically challenging and demanding. The SCUBA-equipped working diver, free from the constraints of lifeline, communication and air-hose umbilical attachments associated with surface-supplied hard hat diving, has the ability to make deep penetrations into underwater pipeline systems. However, the SCUBA diver is 100% self-contained, as he carries with him ...
- Now Available: History of Diving on the Oregon Coast
Arcadia Publishing has officially released the book “History of Diving on the Oregon Coast”, and it’s available now.
This book can be ordered now by clicking the Buy It Now button above, which includes shipping to addresses within the U.S. Books purchased using this method are also autographed by the authors.
You may also order it from Amazon.com by clicking ...
- Video: Scuba Diving the Oregon Coast, 1969
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=km_VLj6IZWc
The Oregon coastline is beautiful, rugged, and unspoiled. Even today, a relatively small number of scuba divers explore the near offshore rocks, reefs, and wrecks, but those who do are treated to some amazing diving.
Scuba diving is not new here; divers have been exploring the Oregon coast since the sport first grained traction in the ...
- An Interview with Dive Industry Veteran Sal Zammitti
The Northwest Diving History Association’s mission is to record and preserve the history of the people that contributed to the development of scuba diving. To help preserve this history, the Association has interviewed many dive industry veterans and history makers, and are making those videos available to anyone interested.
One of the history makers that we’ve ...
- Shunned in His Lifetime, Diving Pioneer Gets Credit Due
While scuba diving is enjoyed worldwide today, few enthusiasts may be aware that the origins of their hobby can be traced to a pioneering Japanese immigrant in prewar Australia.
Yasukichi Murakami (1880-1944) is credited with single-handedly developing advanced models of diving gear that substantially expanded the scope of the activity before the introduction of scuba.
Hailing from ...
- The Grand Child Experience
It was on my second dive of the Sea Use III-A mission that I had a “grandchild experience! That is an experience you call tell your grandchildren one day when you really want to hold their attention. It was the first dive of the day. Kirby Johnson and I were the divers.
The morning was beautiful ...
- Diving Perspectives: An interview with Zale Parry
Zale Parry doesn’t celebrate her own birthday. She shares, “being ageless is wonderful.”
What she does celebrate is diving!
Zale is a Pisces; the constellation and astrological sign named the Latin plural for fish. As the Greek legend goes, Pisces originates in the tale of Aphrodite and Eros, who leapt into the sea and transformed themselves into fish to escape ...
