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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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154 results for: Transportation

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Image of Trunk belonging to Roberta Frye, ca. 1890

Trunk belonging to Roberta Frye, ca. 1890

Roberta Gertrude Frye was born in Seattle around 1870, the daughter of George Frederick Frye and Louisa Catherine Denny. She attended Goucher College in Baltimore for one year. She used this trunk when traveling from Seattle to Baltimore and back. Ms. Frye was an avid local historian and authored "Four Wagons West, the Story of Seattle," among other works.
ID Number:1964.3230.62
Date:Circa 1890
Image of Dietz lantern for fire engine pumper American LaFrance, ca. 1907

Dietz lantern for fire engine pumper American LaFrance, ca. 1907

The LaFrance Fire Engine Company was established in the 1830s in Elmira, New York, and manufactured fire engines, ladder trucks, ambulances, and rescue vehicles. The company opened a Canadian plant in Toronto, Ontario, and eventually moved headquarters to South Carolina, before ceasing operations in 2014. This lantern comes from a LaFrance engine pumper that was used by the Seattle Fire…
ID Number:1964.3281.1a
Date:Circa 1907
Image of Full model of ferry boat Kalakala made by Mr. Lou Proctor, ca. 1930s

Full model of ferry boat Kalakala made by Mr. Lou Proctor, ca. 1930s

The builder's model was made by Lou Proctor in 1933 while temporarily laid off from the Boeing Company's model shop. This model was used in lieu of drawings; lines were lifted directly from the model for construction of the stylish streamlined superstructure. The Kalakala, in operation on Puget Sound from 1935-1967, was designed and built to be fast, to look…
ID Number:1965.3540.8
Date:Circa 1930-1940
Image of Train schedule chalkboard for Northern Pacific Railway Company, ca. 1890-1930

Train schedule chalkboard for Northern Pacific Railway Company, ca. 1890-1930

This train schedule chalkboard was posted in the Northern Pacific Railway Company station in Elma.
ID Number:1965.3695.3
Date:Circa 1890-1930
Image of Trunk lined with newspapers from the Washington Territory, 1875-1876

Trunk lined with newspapers from the Washington Territory, 1875-1876

The interior of this trunk is covered with several 1875 and 1876 issues of the Daily Pacific Tribune, a newspaper produced in Olympia from 1869-1878. The Pacific Tribune originated from the Overland Press, founded in 1861, and it was the first daily newspaper for the Washington Territory.
ID Number:1966.4041.8
Date:Circa 1875
Image of Model of Skyride, Seattle World's Fair, 1962

Model of Skyride, Seattle World's Fair, 1962

The Skyride, sponsored by Union Oil Company, was a Midway gondola ride that carried people 60 feet or more above ground from the Gayway to the International Mall on the fairgrounds, a distance of about 1400 feet. Each gondola held up to three passengers. The maker of this model added a comical touch with Peanuts characters. After the fair, the…
ID Number:1967.4246
Date:Circa 1962
Image of Suitcase, ca. 1940

Suitcase, ca. 1940

The luggage tag on this suitcase reads, "Mrs. H. B. Lear / Vista Alegra, Este 58 / Vibora, Havana, Cuba." The well-worn suitcase belonged to Lilla M. Mora y Ramirez. Lilla graduated from the University of Havana and married Harry Bonnell Lear, president of the University National Bank in Seattle. He became Board Chairman of Seattle's Pacific National Bank in…
ID Number:1968.4388.2
Date:Circa 1940
Image of Bench from the MV Crosline ferry, ca. 1925-1950

Bench from the MV Crosline ferry, ca. 1925-1950

The MV Crosline was a 65-car motor ferry, built in 1925 by Marine Construction Company in Seattle, for the Crosby Direct Line Ferry Company. It ran the Alki-Manchester Ferry route on Puget Sound until 1942, when it was purchased and transferred to Vancouver, British Columbia. After World War II, the ferry was purchased by the Washington State Highway Department fo…
ID Number:1969.4652
Date:Circa 1925-1950
Image of Washington State motorcycle license, 1974

Washington State motorcycle license, 1974

From 1935 to 1981, all passenger car license plates were assigned a letter code based on their county of issuance. There were 40 codes used: one for each of the 39 counties in Washington state, and a special code for mail-order plates. The "ZZ-999" plate number corresponds to the county of Asotin. By 1981, several heavily populated counties had exhausted…
ID Number:1974.5901.1
Date:1974
Image of Life preserver ring from the SS President Grant/Seattle, ca. 1948

Life preserver ring from the SS President Grant/Seattle, ca. 1948

The USS Grant (AP-29) was a U.S. transport ship from the 1920s through World War II.
ID Number:1974.5920.1
Date:Circa 1948
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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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