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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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1312 results for: Seattle Center

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Image of Harborview Hospital, Seattle, February 27, 1931
Photograph

Harborview Hospital, Seattle, February 27, 1931

Harborview Hospital's large, Art Deco building has dominated Seattle's skyline since it opened in 1931. Harborview was modeled after large teaching hospitals in the east, and was intended to be both a public city hospital and a statewide health center. This photo shows Harborview Hospital, now Harborview Medical Center, as it looked in early 1931 on First Hill. Handwritten on…
ID Number:1983.10.4370
Date:1931
Image of Northwest Mutual Building, Seattle, May 6, 1935
Photograph

Northwest Mutual Building, Seattle, May 6, 1935

The United Shopping Tower at Third Avenue and Pine Street in downtown Seattle was designed as a vertical shopping building for different retailers. In 1932, the shopping center closed and became the Northwestern Mutual Insurance Building. In 1974, Northwestern Mutual left the building and by 1980, the building was the headquarters of Olympic Savings and became known as the Olympic…
ID Number:1983.10.4524
Date:1935
Image of Aurora Bridge and ship canal, August 7, 1935
Photograph

Aurora Bridge and ship canal, August 7, 1935

Seattle's George Washington Memorial Bridge (commonly called the Aurora Bridge) was dedicated on February 22, 1932, on the bicentennial of the first president's birth. The governor of the state and a Canadian representative used a two-person saw to cut the official "ribbon," a large Douglas fir. This photo, taken in 1935, shows the main span of the Aurora Bridge above…
ID Number:1983.10.4538.2
Date:1935
Image of Waterfront and tidal flats from Beacon Hill, circa 1898
Photograph

Waterfront and tidal flats from Beacon Hill, circa 1898

Tidal mudflats once extended all the way to the foot of Seattle's Beacon Hill. Roads and railroad tracks were built over the flats on wooden trestles. Developers bought these tidelands and filled it in for sawmills, shipyards, flour mills, and other waterfront industries.This photo by Anders Wilse, probably taken in 1898, shows what much of Seattle's waterfront looked like before…
ID Number:1983.10.6049.2
Date:Circa 1898
Image of Downtown Seattle from courthouse, Seattle, circa 1898
Photograph

Downtown Seattle from courthouse, Seattle, circa 1898

This photo was taken from the old King County courthouse on Seventh and Jefferson. Visible in the view is the Henry Yesler residence at left center; the Burke Building at right center; and the Methodist-Episcopal Church at far right. Original photo by Anders Wilse was acquired by Webster & Stevens. Handwritten on sleeve: Business Section from Court House.Webster & Stevens…
ID Number:1983.10.6055
Date:Circa 1898
Image of View of Seattle, looking northwest from 12th St. and Dearborn, circa 1882
Photograph

View of Seattle, looking northwest from 12th St. and Dearborn, circa 1882

Much of Seattle was built on land reclaimed from Elliott Bay and the mouth of the Duwamish River. Muddy tide flats once extended all the way to the foot of Beacon Hill. Roads and railroad tracks were built over the flats on wooden trestles. Regrades in the early 20th century flattened Seattle’s hills and also provided more material for reclaimed…
ID Number:1983.10.6089
Date:Circa 1882
Image of Yesler's Wharf after a blizzard, January 1880
Photograph

Yesler's Wharf after a blizzard, January 1880

Seattle's record snowstorm began on January 5, 1880. Eight days later, the snow was a record 5 feet 4 inches deep. In this photo, the snow covers the rooftops, ship spars, and hillsides. The owner of the wooden building in the center tried to prop up his building with poles, but the snow was so heavy that the roof collapsed.…
ID Number:1983.10.6117.1
Date:1880
Image of Looking south from Denny Hill, 1882
Photograph

Looking south from Denny Hill, 1882

On a sunny summer afternoon in 1882, a person looking south from Seattle's Denny Hill would have had this view. Seattle was still a frontier city of wood frame houses on the recently cleared hillsides above Elliott Bay. The steamers that landed at Yesler's Wharf (right center) were the city's lifeline to the rest of the United States and to…
ID Number:1983.10.6143.1
Date:1882
Image of Budlong's boathouse, circa 1886
Photograph

Budlong's boathouse, circa 1886

Webster & Stevens made copies of the work of a number of earlier Seattle photographers. Some, like this one, show what Seattle looked like a few years before the great fire of 1889.This photo, taken around 1886, shows Budlong's Boathouse on Front Street (now First Avenue) at the foot of Marion Street. The sailboats and other small watercraft that crowd…
ID Number:1983.10.6184
Date:Circa 1886
Image of Seattle view looking northwest, circa 1885
Photograph

Seattle view looking northwest, circa 1885

This view looks north and slightly west from around Seventh and James. At left are the mansions of James Colman and M.V.B. Stacy. The home of James McNaught, where the Seattle Public Library is today, is visible in the left center. The large structure on the right horizon is Central School, which was built in 1883 and burned in 1888.…
ID Number:1983.10.6234
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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