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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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183 results for: European American Settlement

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Image of Oil painting of cliffs and steamer by Harriet Foster Beecher, 1882

Oil painting of cliffs and steamer by Harriet Foster Beecher, 1882

Born in Indiana, Harriet Foster Beecher (1853-1918) traveled to the West Coast to attend the San Francisco School of Design. She moved to Seattle in 1880 and married Captain Herbert Foote Beecher. In 1881, Beecher opened what is thought to be Seattle’s first art studio. She painted Indigenous life in oils and watercolors, portraits of Seattle pioneers, and landscapes. Beecher…
ID Number:1953.303.4
Date:1882
Image of Watercolor painting of a house near tide pools, 1894

Watercolor painting of a house near tide pools, 1894

The artist of this watercolor, Mary Hadley Foster Fletcher (1834-1922), was the mother of artist Harriet Foster Beecher and lived with her daughter and family in Port Townsend. Beecher was a talented and prolific artist, and Mary may have been inspired by her daughter to paint as well. MOHAI has a sigificant collection of Harriet Beecher's works.
ID Number:1953.303.12
Date:1894
Image of Oil portrait of Ezra Meeker by Harriet Foster Beecher, 1914

Oil portrait of Ezra Meeker by Harriet Foster Beecher, 1914

Ezra Manning Meeker (1830-1928) was born in Iowa and traveled the Oregon Trail eventually settling in what would become Puyallup, Washington, in 1862. He grew hops for brewing beer and he was known as the "Hop King of the World," as his agricultural business made him a wealthy man. Unfortunately, an infestation of hop aphids in 1891 destroyed his crops…
ID Number:1953.303.13
Date:1914
Image of Oil portrait of Ezra Meeker by Harriet Foster Beecher, 1914

Oil portrait of Ezra Meeker by Harriet Foster Beecher, 1914

Portrait of Ezra Meeker (1830-1928) in his old age. Meeker had been an early white settler of the area who traveled from Iowa and farmed hops in Puyallup. He later advocated for the preservation of the Oregon Trail, which he and his family had used to travel west, and is credited with spearheading its preservation. The artist, Harriet Foster Beecher…
ID Number:1953.303.14
Date:1914
Image of Portrait of Monsignor Francis X Prefontaine, ca. 1868

Portrait of Monsignor Francis X Prefontaine, ca. 1868

Father Francis X. Prefontaine (1838-1909) was born in Quebec and arrived in Seattle in 1867. He was the city's first resident priest and built Seattle's first Roman Catholic church, Our Lady of Good Help, located on Third Avenue and Washington Street. In 1877, he bought a soap factory and this became the site of the Sisters of Providence first hospital…
ID Number:1953.360
Date:Circa 1868
Image of Glass butter dish, ca. 1850

Glass butter dish, ca. 1850

This dish was brought across the plains in a covered wagon by the Boren and Denny families, early white settlers in Puget Sound.
ID Number:1953.368
Date:Circa 1850
Image of Single-bladed pocket knife, ca. 1880

Single-bladed pocket knife, ca. 1880

This pocket knife belonged to Arthur Denny, head of an early white settler family and a founder of Seattle.
ID Number:1953.651
Date:Circa 1880
Image of Split cedar shingle and pieces of bark from the Denny House on Alki, 1851

Split cedar shingle and pieces of bark from the Denny House on Alki, 1851

In 1851, Arthur Denny, at the age of 29, led a contingent of his family west from Illinois to the Pacific Northwest, where he helped found the city of Seattle. This shingle, donated by a descendent of those early settlers, was a part of the original cabin built by the Dennys when they first arrived on what was later called…
ID Number:1953.651.1
Date:1851
Image of Handmade pocket purse, ca.1847

Handmade pocket purse, ca.1847

This beaded purse belonged to Mary Ann Denny and was made around 1847. Born Mary Ann Boren, she was part of the first white family to settle in what was to become Seattle.
ID Number:1953.651.A.1
Date:1847
Image of Razor owned by Arthur Denny, 1861

Razor owned by Arthur Denny, 1861

In 1851, Arthur Denny, at the age of 29, led a contingent of his family west from Illinois to the Pacific Northwest, where he helped found the city of Seattle.
ID Number:1953.651.B
Date:Circa 1861
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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
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