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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.

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157 results for: Transportation

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Image of T-Shirt with cartoon,

T-Shirt with cartoon, "Welcome to Washington, Californians Right Lane," 1989

This shirt is representative of a late-80s, early 90s backlash against rapid growth in Seattle and the influx of newcomers, many of whom were from California. Local columnist Emmett Watson was one of the champions of this backlash, writing about his fictional organization “Lesser Seattle” which opposed civic boosterism, urban renewal, and unbridled growth. The 1990 Almost Live! sketch “The…
ID Number:2022.Tshirt
Date:1989
Image of Friends of the Monorail T-shirt, ca. 1997-2000

Friends of the Monorail T-shirt, ca. 1997-2000

Interest in expanding Seattle’s 1962 monorail line throughout the city gained momentum with signature-gathering petitions in 1994. The “Friends of the Monorail” were the main organizers and instigators of the campaign. In 1997, in spite of almost total opposition by the political establishment, city voters approved Initiative 41 for monorail expansion. Three years later voters approved an additional measure for…
ID Number:2023.Monorail.1
Date:1997-2000
Image of Leather license plate from a Seattle hack, 1911

Leather license plate from a Seattle hack, 1911

This license plate, dated to 1911, is from a hack (or cab) driven by the donor's great uncle Sylvester Ambrose (Doc) Hildebrand that drove customers from the east end of Madison Street into downtown Seattle. Hildebrand would work all week then, for the weekends, he would row from the Madison neighborhood, across the west end of Lake Washington, to his…
ID Number:2024.26.1
Date:1911
Image of Tricycle from the J.P. Patches television show, ca. 1960

Tricycle from the J.P. Patches television show, ca. 1960

Chris Wedes' playful clown character J.P. Patches, affectionately known as the "Mayor of the Dump," hosted one of America's longest-running local children's television programs. The show aired on KIRO-TV in Seattle from 1958-1981 and broadcast over 10,000 episodes in its 23-year run. J.P. Patches often rode this tricycle around the set, comically banging into props and tumbling to the ground.
ID Number:2024.38.1
Date:Circa 1950-1960
Image of Bemis Bag Co. Two-in-One Envelope Bag, ca. 1920

Bemis Bag Co. Two-in-One Envelope Bag, ca. 1920

The Bemis Bag Company was founded in St. Louis, Missouri in 1858. By the early 20th century, the company operated eight bag factories in various parts of the United States, including Seattle, making burlap and cotton bags for grain, flour, feed and many other products.This "Two-in-one Bag Envelope" is one of the many products made by Bemis. The company is…
ID Number:2024.42.1
Date:Circa 1920
Image of Azimuth circle from the logging schooner Wawona, 1929

Azimuth circle from the logging schooner Wawona, 1929

The three-masted schooner Wawona sailed from 1897 to 1947 as a lumber carrier and fishing vessel based in Puget Sound. An azimuth circle fits over a ship's compass and is used for celestial navigation. This device, made by Ritchie & Sons for the Sperry gyroscope, was installed in the Wawona in 1929 by J. E. Trafton and his sons, Elsworth…
ID Number:2025.21.1
Date:1929
Image of Temperature gauge from the ferry Kalakala, ca. 1930s

Temperature gauge from the ferry Kalakala, ca. 1930s

The Kalakala, in operation on Puget Sound from 1935-1967, was designed and built to be fast, to look "futuristic", to showcase revolutionary construction technologies, and to express a buoyant confidence in Seattle's irrepressible progress even in the depths of the Great Depression. This gauge was most likely used to monitor the temperature of the engine.
ID Number:2026.13.2
Date:Circa 1930-1940
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