• Visit
    • Museum Accessibility
    • Community Access
    • Group Visits and Tours
    • Programs
      • History Café
      • MOHAI Mercantile Literary Series
      • First Thursday
      • Denny Lecture
      • Al Young Educator of the Year
      • Everyday Heroes
    • MOHAI Mercantile
    • Gourmondo at MOHAI
  • Exhibits
  • Events
  • Collections and Research
    • Collections Search
    • Themed Collections
    • Research Library
    • Image Ordering
    • Donate an Artifact
    • Curator’s Fellowship
  • Support
    • Donate
    • Membership at MOHAI
    • Gift Memberships
    • Corporate Support
  • Education
    • Field Trips
      • Self-Guided School Year Explorations
      • Creating Our Community
      • Cracking the History Code: Salish Stories
      • Cracking the History Code: Settling Around the Sound
      • Hands on History
      • Self-Guided Summer Field Trips
      • Homeschool Group
    • Portable Museum Program
    • Scholarships
    • Education FAQ
    • Primary Source Analysis
    • Online Curricula
    • Teen Programs
    • Idea Lab
    • Discovery Packs
    • Summer Camps
  • About
    • Annual Reports
    • The MOHAI Blog
    • Contact MOHAI
    • Opportunities
    • Leadership
    • Private Events
  • Donate
  • Tickets
  • Membership
HomeCollections and ResearchCollections Search

Collections Search

Explore stories in Northwest history through highlights from MOHAI’s collections. Search by keyword below or browse the entire online collection by entering the asterisk symbol (*). Filter your search by type of materials.

Download lower resolution images directly from an item page. MOHAI offers high-resolution digital reproductions of photographs and other materials from our collections for personal and professional use.

We have many more items in our collections and not everything you see online is on view at the museum. We have additional materials online at the University of Washington’s Digital Collections.

MOHAI Statement on Harmful Content

Search by Collection

Not finding what you are looking for?
Ask the MOHAI Collections Staff

183 results for: European American Settlement

Share:
Image of Desk of Arthur Denny, ca. 1850-1860

Desk of Arthur Denny, ca. 1850-1860

Arthur Denny used this, his personal desk, as the mail distribution desk when he was appointed Seattle's first postmaster on August 27, 1853.
ID Number:1968.4366.2
Date:1850-1860
Image of Oil painting,

Oil painting, "The Denny Farmhouse in the Swale," by Emily Inez Denny, 1906

The daughter of one of Seattle’s founding families, Emily Inez Denny (1853 – 1918) was both a painter and writer. Greatly influenced by seeing the drawings of Sarah Willoughby as a student at the Washington Territorial University, she took on painting as a life-long pursuit. Emily's parents, David Denny and Louisa Boren married in 1853 in Seattle and lived in…
ID Number:1968.4387.1
Date:1906
Image of Side chair that belonged to David Denny, 1840-1880

Side chair that belonged to David Denny, 1840-1880

David Thomas Denny (1832-1903) was the younger brother of Arthur Denny and spouse to Louisa Boren. David, John Low, and Lee Terry arrived in the Puget Sound, specifically Alki Point, prior to the rest of the Denny Party in order to find a place to settle and build a cabin. David, along with his brother, were significant contributors to the…
ID Number:1968.4387.8
Date:1840-1880
Image of Broadax head that belonged to David T. Denny, ca. 1850-1890

Broadax head that belonged to David T. Denny, ca. 1850-1890

This broadax head belonged to David Thomas Denny (1832-1903). While his older brother Arthur was considered the official leader of the group of settler known as the “Denny Party,” David was the first member to arrive in the future city of Seattle in 1851. David Denny staked a claim to the future site of Seattle Center and in 1853 married…
ID Number:1969.4645.3
Date:Circa 1850-1890
Image of Plate with Sweet Briar Bride pattern, ca. 1903

Plate with Sweet Briar Bride pattern, ca. 1903

This plate features a handpainted scene of David T. Denny and Louisa Boren Denny paddling a canoe on Puget Sound with Mt. Rainier in background. It is part of a commemorative set that was made to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Louisa Boren Denny's wedding. She was nicknamed the "Sweet Briar Bride" for the sweet briar plants she brought with…
ID Number:1969.4645.4
Date:Circa 1903
Image of Celery vase from the David T. Denny family, ca. 1850-1880

Celery vase from the David T. Denny family, ca. 1850-1880

Celery is native to the Mediterranean, but in the early 19th century farmers began to cultivate it in England. It didn’t grow easily and so was considered a luxury food. Glass celery vases became fashionable in England and the United States as a way to turn stalks of celery into a dinner table centerpiece. This one belonged to the family…
ID Number:1969.4645.6
Date:Circa 1850-1880
Image of Powder flask, ca. 1850

Powder flask, ca. 1850

This powder flask belonged to Angus Mackintosh, born in Ontario, Canada in 1839, fought with the Union Army in the Civil War, and came to Seattle in 1876. He worked in real estate and had a mill on the waterfront that was destroyed in the Seattle Fire of 1889. He then went on to found a merchants bank, lumber company…
ID Number:1969.4687.1
Date:Circa 1850
Image of Pepperbox pistol, ca. 1830s

Pepperbox pistol, ca. 1830s

The Allen style pepperbox pistols were one of the best selling handguns of their day. The pepperbox design was the main competitor to the Colt percussion pistol at that time. According to history records, many of these pistols were sold to emigrants heading west in 1849. Manufactured from the 1830s to right after the Civil War, this style was inexpensive…
ID Number:1969.5072.25
Date:Circa 1830
Image of Cherry wood settee, ca. 1860

Cherry wood settee, ca. 1860

This settee with reupholstered cushions, was made by Charles Terry, one of the original white settlers in Seattle. The wood is from the first cherry tree grown on the Terry Farm once located on Lake Washington.
ID Number:1970.4966
Date:Circa 1860
Image of Trade bead necklace, ca. 1910

Trade bead necklace, ca. 1910

This necklace was collected by Aubrey Archer in the early part of the 20th century. His father, Finch R. Archer, was the Alotting Agent for the Quinault, Queets, and Hoh tribes from 1906 to 1912. He was in charge of alotting these government land to these tribes. Aubrey worked with his father during school vacations.
ID Number:1970.4971.2
Date:Circa 1910
Previous 1 … 11 12 13 14 15 … 19 Next

Land Acknowledgement

MOHAI stands on the historic and contemporary lands and shores of the Duwamish, Suquamish, Muckleshoot, and other Coast Salish Nations. We acknowledge the forced displacement of Native Communities from this land while honoring the endurance of the Duwamish people who still live here.
Address: 860 Terry Ave N, Seattle WA, 98109
Phone: 206 324 1126
  • Plan a Visit
  • Directions and Parking
  • Accessibility
  • Group Tours
  • About

Sign up to Receive our Newsletter

"*" indicates required fields

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Copyright 2026, Museum of History & Industry. All Rights Reserved