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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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1514 results for: City of Seattle

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Image of Young Indigenous woman named Tasha seated by a tent, circa 1900
Photograph

Young Indigenous woman named Tasha seated by a tent, circa 1900

From the late 1860s to the early 1890s, hop farming was an important activity in the valleys of the Puget Sound region, including Puyallup, White River, and Snoqualmie. Indigenous workers came from throughout the Pacific Northwest, Canada, and Alaska (but especially from regional tribes like the Puyallup, Snoqualmie, Muckleshoot, Duwamish, Sammamish, Lummi, and Nisqually) as a seasonal labor force to…
ID Number:SHS4880
Date:Circa 1900
Image of Indigenous canoes docked at the Seattle waterfront, circa 1892
Photograph

Indigenous canoes docked at the Seattle waterfront, circa 1892

In 1865 the Board of Trustees of Seattle passed Ordinance No. 5 banning Indigenous people from living in the city unless they worked for a non-Indigenous resident and lived on their employer’s property. Despite this attempt to enforce separation between Indigenous people and the settlers, Seattle depended on Indigenous people. Settlers relied on Native people for domestic work and for…
ID Number:SHS5118
Date:Circa 1892
Image of Seattle skyline and suffragists, 1915
Photograph

Seattle skyline and suffragists, 1915

The print pictured here features two panoramic images, one of the Seattle skyline, with many landmarks identified, and the other of a large group of people posing together on a city sidewalk. Most of the individuals are women, and several are proudly displaying copies of The Suffragist, a weekly newspaper published by the Congressional Union for Woman Suffrage. Handwritten on…
ID Number:SHS5211
Date:1915
Image of Trackless trolley or electric bus, Seattle, circa 1943
Photograph

Trackless trolley or electric bus, Seattle, circa 1943

As the 1940s approached, Seattle began to modernize its transportation system, replacing its aging trolleys and streetcars with motorized buses and “trackless trolleys” (electric buses powered via overhead lines). In 1941, the last Seattle streetcar made its final run. Streets were repaved as the streetcar tracks throughout the city were torn up and sold as scrap. This image, likely taken…
ID Number:SHS5566
Date:Circa 1943
Image of Dr. David S. Maynard, Seattle, circa 1868
Photograph

Dr. David S. Maynard, Seattle, circa 1868

Dr. David S. "Doc" Maynard arrived in Seattle in 1852. His original plans to salt salmon for the San Francisco market failed, but he set up Seattle's first store, selling medicine and general merchandise in his salting works on First Avenue and Main Street. It was Doc Maynard who proposed naming the new city Seattle after Chief Si'ahl (Chief Seattle)…
ID Number:SHS5595
Date:Circa 1868
Image of Group wearing flu masks outside R.C. Erskine & Company, Seattle, 1918
Photograph

Group wearing flu masks outside R.C. Erskine & Company, Seattle, 1918

In the fall of 1918, the worldwide influenza epidemic hit Seattle. The flu was sudden and deadly. The city's health commissioner banned dances and closed theaters, churches, and schools. At the height of the epidemic, anyone going out in public was required by law to wear a mask made of six layers of gauze. This was supposed to keep the…
ID Number:SHS6338A
Date:1918
Image of Newspaper boy with mask standing in front of closed theatre
Photograph

Newspaper boy with mask standing in front of closed theatre "closed" sign on box office, Seattle, 1918

In the fall of 1918, the worldwide influenza epidemic hit Seattle. The flu was sudden and deadly. The city's health commissioner banned dances and closed theaters, churches, and schools. At the height of the epidemic, anyone going out in public was required by law to wear a mask made of six layers of gauze. This was supposed to keep the…
ID Number:SHS6338B
Date:1918
Image of Adding floors to the County-City Building, circa 1930
Photograph

Adding floors to the County-City Building, circa 1930

In 1916, the new King County Courthouse and Municipal Building, also called the County-City Building, opened on Third Avenue in downtown Seattle. The building, designed by Seattle architect Augustus Warren Gould, was five stories tall, with a partial sixth story for the use of the city engineer. In 1929-1931, architect Henry Bittman's six story addition expanded Gould's original building upwards.This…
ID Number:SHS6523
Date:Circa 1930
Image of Sarah Yesler, circa 1865
Photograph

Sarah Yesler, circa 1865

Sarah Burgert married Henry Yelser in Ohio. Once he was settled in Seattle, she traveled out to join him. Sarah Yesler was active in many civic groups including the Ladies' Relief Society, which helped the needy, and the Ladies' Library Board, which founded Seattle's public library in the home of one of the members. Mrs. Yesler was Seattle's first librarian.…
ID Number:SHS6663B
Date:Circa 1865
Image of Early mill on Lake Washington, circa 1885
Photograph

Early mill on Lake Washington, circa 1885

In the 1870s, thick forests covered the shores of Lake Washington, east of Seattle. As logs were cut, they were floated to small sawmills like this one and cut into lumber, which was used to build the growing city.
ID Number:SHS6671
Date:Circa 1885
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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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