The creation of the Canada-US border in the Pacific Northwest is often presented as a tale of two nations, but beyond the macro-political dynamics is the experience of individuals. Before and After the State examines the imposition of a border across a region that already held a vibrant, highly complex society and dynamic trading networks. Allan McDougall, Lisa Philips, and Daniel Boxberger explore fundamental questions of state formation, social transformation, and the (re)construction of identity to expose how the devices and myths of nation building affect people's lives.

"A study of the Lummi Indians of northwestern Washington and the political and economic forces that have determined their changing fortunes over the past 150 years. Daniel Boxberger has made excellent use of documentary sources, oral history, and his own observations. . . . The book is compelling and well documented; it is also understated, frequently allowing the actions of the myriad contending interest groups to speak for themselves." "--Ethnohistory"

"Boxberger knows his subject. He displays an impressive understanding of the technical development of fishing, and he repeatedly uses his interviews with Indians to inform and test archival and secondary sources." "--American Indian Quarterly"

"By focusing on the history of control over productive resources (in this case salmon, methods of harvest, processing, capital investment, and markets) Boxberger shows how the Lummi slid from independence and self-sufficiency to dependency, underdevelopment, and poverty. . . . Not only is it an excellent, in-depth study of the Lummi case, it can also serve as a metaphor for the larger question of Native American treaty rights and the resource provisions of agreements." "--Pacific Historical Review"

Daniel L. Boxberger is professor of anthropology at Western Washington University, Bellingham.