1514 results for: City of Seattle
Photograph
Festival queen waving from car during parade, Seattle, circa 1950
Jessie Grimes, the International Festival Queen, waves to the crowd on Jackson Street from a Cadillac sponsored by Royal Esquires Club, a private club which still exists in Seattle’s Columbia City neighborhood. In the early 1950s, Seattle’s Filipino, Black, Chinese and Japanese communities selected a royal court to represent them for the festival. The African American community festival would later…
ID Number:2014.49.010.054.0111
Date:Circa 1950
Photograph
Group posing at Esquire dance, Seattle, April 9, 1950
The Royal Esquire Club is a private club which still exists in Seattle’s Columbia City neighborhood. Here, at a Royal Esquire dance, eight people in suits and dresses pose for a photo. The first man on the left is Frank Fair, and the first man on the right is Bruce Rowell. To his right is Dorothy. The others are unidentified.
ID Number:2014.49.010.054.0112
Date:1950
Photograph
East Madison/East Union float in the Seafair International Parade, August 5, 1952
Seattle’s 1952 Seafair celebrated the Centennial of the city’s founding. The many events included five parades in different parts of the city. The International Parade, on August 5, took place downtown, on Fourth Avenue and headed south into the Chinatown - International District.Starting that same year, Seattle’s Black community held a Mardi Gras festival that participated in Seafair. This photo…
ID Number:2014.49.11.01.107
Date:1952
Photograph
Ruby Chow float in the Seafair Parade, August 5, 1952
Seattle’s 1952 Seafair celebrated the Centennial of the city’s founding. The many events included five parades in different parts of the city. The International Parade, on August 5, took place downtown, on Fourth Avenue and headed south into the Chinatown - International District. This photo, taken from the west side of Fourth Avenue, shows the Ruby Chow float in the…
ID Number:2014.49.11.01.109
Date:1952
Photograph
Chinese Dragon Dancers in the Seafair International Parade, August 5, 1952
Seattle’s 1952 Seafair celebrated the Centennial of the city’s founding. The many events included five parades in different parts of the city. The International Parade, on August 5, took place downtown, on Fourth Avenue and headed south into the Chinatown - International District.This photo shows the Loong, a 102-foot long dragon with its dancers, as they pass the Leavitt Brothers…
ID Number:2014.49.11.01.110
Date:1952
Photograph
Joe Smith with his gun collection, circa 1948
In addition to his Seattle jazz club images, photographer Al Smith took many photos of family and friends in the city's Black community. On this occasion he photographed his close friend Joe Smith showing off his collection of hunting firearms.
ID Number:2014.49.011.024.0040
Date:Circa 1948
Ephemera
Souvenir photo folder from the Black & Tan Club, Seattle, circa 1945
Seattle's Jackson Street jazz clubs flourished from World War II up until the early 1960s, when the Civil Rights movement broke down barriers barring African Americans from living and working in the larger community. Seattle-born photographer Albert J. "Al" Smith, Sr. (1916-2008) was a familiar figure in the clubs, often taking pictures of patrons and friends, then returning the following…
ID Number:2014.49.13.05.01
Date:Circa 1945
Photograph
Dick Wilson with the Andy Kirk band at the Senator Ballroom, Seattle, February 17, 1941
Seattle-born photographer Al Smith was a familiar figure wherever jazz was played. On this occasion he photographed the Andy Kirk big band, also called the Clouds of Joy, when they played Seattle’s Senator Ballroom in downtown Seattle in early 1941. The band included tenor saxophone player Dick Wilson, who plays here wearing sunglasses. The Kansas City group had played at…
ID Number:2014.49.14.006.05
Date:1941
Photograph
Evelyn Williamson at the Trianon Ballroom, Seattle, December 1940
Seattle-born photographer Al Smith was a familiar figure wherever jazz was played around the city. On this occasion, he photographed local vocalist Evelyn Williamson as she sang with Lionel Hampton’s jazz band at the Trianon Ballroom in late 1940. Williamson, a local vocalist who sang in Jackson Street area clubs, had already recorded a number with the band. At this…
ID Number:2014.49.14.006.06
Date:Circa 1940
Photograph
Children at a party, Seattle, circa 1955
In addition to his Seattle jazz club images, photographer Al Smith took many photos of family and friends in the city's Black community. Here, he photographs a group of smiling children dressed up for a party. The girl second from left in the front row winks for the camera.
ID Number:2014.49.15.084.01
Date:Circa 1955