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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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540 results for: Businesses and Corporations

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Image of Beer bottle for Rheinlander beer, 1934-1935

Beer bottle for Rheinlander beer, 1934-1935

In 1934, Emil Sick started Century Brewing Association located at 3100 Airport Way. Rheinlander was the flagship beer. The following year, Sick bought the rights to the name of the long-standing brewery, Seattle Brewing & Malting Company, and changed his company's name accordingly. This specific bottle, with the Century Brewing Association name, was only in use from 1934-1935.
ID Number:2009.42.3
Date:1934-1935
Image of Beer bottle for Rainier Beer, ca. 1935-1944

Beer bottle for Rainier Beer, ca. 1935-1944

Rainier Beer was first brewed in Seattle in 1878. Over the decades the company had a string of owners, including Emil Sick (1894-1964), from 1933-1977, who also owned the Seattle Rainiers minor league baseball team. The company's Rainier Beer and the brewery itself, with it’s trademark red neon "R" that sat atop the building, were popular icons in the Pacific…
ID Number:2009.42.4
Date:Circa 1935-1944
Image of Original sidewalk sign from first Starbucks shop once located at 2000 Western Avenue in Seattle, 1971

Original sidewalk sign from first Starbucks shop once located at 2000 Western Avenue in Seattle, 1971

This hand-painted sidewalk sign advertised the first Starbucks coffee shop which opened in Seattle, Washington, on March 31, 1971, by three partners: Gordon Bowker, Jerry Baldwin, and Zev Siegl. The first shop was located at 2000 Western Ave, before it was later moved to what is today considered to be the flagship store in Pike Place Market. This sign was…
ID Number:2009.47.1
Date:1971
Image of Mortician's cosmetic kit from Butterworth Mortuary, ca. 1920s-1930s

Mortician's cosmetic kit from Butterworth Mortuary, ca. 1920s-1930s

Edgar Ray (E.R.) Butterworth (1847-1921), after having started a funeral directory business in Centralia, was hired to run Cross and Co. Undertakers in Seattle in 1889. In 1892, he purchased the business and renamed it E.R. Butterworth & Sons. In 1903, the Butterworth Building was opened at 1921 First Avenue in Seattle and was praised as one of the most…
ID Number:2009.57.1
Date:Circa 1920-1930
Image of Embalming table from Butterworth Mortuary, 1886

Embalming table from Butterworth Mortuary, 1886

Edgar Ray (E.R.) Butterworth (1847-1921), after having started a funeral directory business in Centralia, was hired to run Cross and Co. Undertakers in Seattle in 1889. In 1892, he purchased the business and renamed it E.R. Butterworth & Sons. In 1903, the Butterworth Building was opened at 1921 First Avenue in Seattle and was praised as one of the most…
ID Number:2009.57.2
Date:1886
Image of Washington Mutual

Washington Mutual "School Savings" promotional calculator, ca. 2005

WaMu was incorporated as the Washington National Buliding Loan and Investment Association on Sept 25, 1889, and grew to be the United States' largest savings and loan association until its infamous collapse in 2008. This promotional calculator advertises WaMu's School Savings program.
ID Number:2009.93.2
Date:Circa 2005
Image of Hard hat commemorating the new WaMu Center, Washington Mutual Corporation headquarters, 2007

Hard hat commemorating the new WaMu Center, Washington Mutual Corporation headquarters, 2007

Washington Mutual (WaMu) was incorporated as the Washington National Buliding Loan and Investment Association on Sept 25, 1889. It grew to be the United States' largest savings and loan association until its collapse in 2008.
ID Number:2009.93.8
Date:2007
Image of 1923 Ford Model TT, UPS Delivery Truck, restored in 1995

1923 Ford Model TT, UPS Delivery Truck, restored in 1995

In 1907, Seattle teens Jim Casey and Claude Ryan started a messenger service with $100 and a bike. Merging with a competitor, they switched to trucks and - in 1919 - expanded beyond Seattle to Oakland, becoming the United Parcel Service (UPS). Those first trucks are long gone, but this vintage Ford Model T restored by expert Ron Ferguson shows…
ID Number:2009.UPStruck
Date:1923
Image of Hanging sign for The Wet Whisker, ca. 1971

Hanging sign for The Wet Whisker, ca. 1971

To help fund his education in optometry, Jim Stewart opened his first store, the Wet Whisker, in 1968 in Coupeville on Whidbey Island, Washington. In the summer of 1969, he purchased his first 12-pound Royal Roaster from a peanut vendor on the beach in Southern California. By the end of the second summer, Jim had roasted and sold nearly 500…
ID Number:2010.1.99
Date:Circa 1971
Image of Starbucks Coffee sign with green-and-black mermaid logo,

Starbucks Coffee sign with green-and-black mermaid logo, "We Proudly Serve," ca. 1990

The first Starbucks Coffee opened in Seattle, Washington, on March 31, 1971, by three partners: Gordon Bowker, Jerry Baldwin, and Zev Siegl. The moniker, "Starbucks," comes from the name of the first mate in the Herman Melville novel, "Moby Dick," and the logo, a twin-tailed siren, is representative of Seattle's maritime heritage. The first Starbucks store was located in Seattle…
ID Number:2010.1.100
Date:1990
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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
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