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1514 results for: City of Seattle

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Image of Dexter Horton home, 3rd and Seneca, Seattle, circa 1875
Photograph

Dexter Horton home, 3rd and Seneca, Seattle, circa 1875

In 1853 Dexter Horton (1825-1904) came to Seattle with his first wife, Hannah Eliza (Shoudy) Horton (1828-1871), and their daughter, Rebecca. Developing a reputation as an honest businessman, he established the city's first real bank. Horton was also a founding volunteer in various social organizations, including the Seattle Library Association in 1873 and the Seattle Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA)…
ID Number:SHS243
Date:Circa 1875
Image of City Hall at 3rd and Jefferson, Seattle, circa 1900
Photograph

City Hall at 3rd and Jefferson, Seattle, circa 1900

In 1876, King County purchased a lot from Henry Yesler for the price of $3,500 and built the first King County building on county owned property. The two-story wood, stone and brick structure occupied the corner of Third Avenue and Jefferson Street (the present site of City Hall Park) and cost $17,000 to build. It housed the jail in the…
ID Number:SHS250
Date:Circa 1900
Image of John Leary home, 2nd and Madison, Seattle, circa 1890
Photograph

John Leary home, 2nd and Madison, Seattle, circa 1890

John Leary (1837-1905) came to Seattle in 1869 and was involved with virtually every major civic and commercial undertaking in Seattle in the 1870s and 1880s. He was the first president of the West Coast Improvement Company (WCIC), which shaped Ballard into the “Shingle Capitol of the World” (Leary Way still bears his name). Leary served three terms as a member…
ID Number:SHS258
Date:Circa 1890
Image of Henry and Minnie Yesler home, 3rd and James, Seattle, circa 1895
Photograph

Henry and Minnie Yesler home, 3rd and James, Seattle, circa 1895

In 1884 lumberman and Seattle's first millionaire, Henry L. Yesler (1810-1892), and his wife, Sarah Burgert Yesler (1822-1887) built their mansion on the block between Third and Fourth Avenues at James Street. Sarah died shortly after they moved in, and Yesler married a young cousin, Minnie Gagle Yesler (born c. 1867), who lived in the house after his death until…
ID Number:SHS267
Date:Circa 1895
Image of Members of Seattle Volunteer Fire Company No. 1, 2nd and Columbia, Seattle, 1883
Photograph

Members of Seattle Volunteer Fire Company No. 1, 2nd and Columbia, Seattle, 1883

The creation of the Seattle Fire Department (SFD) can be traced back to July 6th, 1876, when the all-volunteer Seattle Engine Company No.1 was organized. In 1883, the City Charter was amended to create and fund equipment, but not staff, for a centralized municipal fire department. The volunteer-based system persisted until pressure from the insurance industry and citizens after the…
ID Number:SHS323
Date:1883
Image of Arrival of the first log shipment via the Columbia & Puget Sound Railroad, Seattle, 1880
Photograph

Arrival of the first log shipment via the Columbia & Puget Sound Railroad, Seattle, 1880

As Seattle grew, the trees on the hills above the city were gradually cut down, and logs needed to be hauled a longer distance to the sawmills along the waterfront. In this 1880 image, dignitaries pose by part of the first shipment of logs carried into the city by the Columbia & Puget Sound Railroad. Original photo copied by Webster…
ID Number:SHS330
Date:1880
Image of Car driving on Seattle to Bothell road, February 9, 1915
Photograph

Car driving on Seattle to Bothell road, February 9, 1915

Two years after the town of Bothell was incorporated in 1909, King County improved the Bothell Highway by paving it with Warrenite in 1911, then with sand and brick in 1918, and asphalt in 1928. The road was an important connection from Seattle and nearby towns to Bothell, running north from Lake City along the northern shore of Lake Washington.…
ID Number:SHS437
Date:1915
Image of Waterfront from Beacon Hill, Seattle, circa 1898
Photograph

Waterfront from Beacon Hill, Seattle, circa 1898

The area south of downtown Seattle was originally made up of tidal flats; soil dredged from the Duwamish River and sluiced from the Denny triangle and Beacon Hill regrades was used to create this industrial area needed by area businesses and railroads. This image, taken between 1890-1900, shows what much of Seattle's waterfront looked like before the tidal flats were…
ID Number:SHS462
Date:Circa 1898
Image of Jackson Street looking east from waterfront, Seattle, circa 1892
Photograph

Jackson Street looking east from waterfront, Seattle, circa 1892

The topography of Seattle neighborhood now called the Chinatown - International District (CID) was altered drastically during the Jackson Street regrade from 1907 to 1909. About fifty-six city blocks were reshaped by the regrade, twenty-nine of them excavated and twenty-seven raised above the tide flats. On Jackson, dirt was mostly removed to lower the street nearly 90 feet at 9th…
ID Number:SHS469
Date:Circa 1892
Image of Seattle's downtown before the Great Fire, Seattle, 1883
Photograph

Seattle's downtown before the Great Fire, Seattle, 1883

n the 1880s, Seattle's business district was near Pioneer Square. Loggers, miners, and others came to this part of the city to find work, supplies, and entertainment. Others came to Seattle to attend the Territorial University, which stood on a hill above the city.This photo, taken around 1884, shows the intersection of Commercial Street (now First Avenue South) and Main…
ID Number:SHS470
Date:1880
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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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