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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 First Avenue and Spring Street, Seattle, circa 1911
Photograph

First Avenue and Spring Street, Seattle, circa 1911

Amos Brown (1833-1899) was an prominent Seattle lumberman and real estate owner in the late 1800s. He built the family house featured at the center of this photograph around 1870 after his marriage. The house survived the Great Seattle Fire, and other buildings and businesses were built around it, until the house's demolition in 1914. Signs in image: Grand Pacific.…
ID Number:1983.10.6280
Date:Circa 1911
Image of Front Street at Madison Street, circa 1891
Photograph

Front Street at Madison Street, circa 1891

Seattle's Front and Madison Streets recovered quickly after the Great Fire of 1889. In this photo, taken about 1891, a shoe store, a restaurant, and other businesses occupy new brick buildings. Streetcars run along Front Street's trestle, and cable cars climb Madison's steep hills. Billboards advertise business investments and Levi's clothing. The towers of Providence Hospital (left) and Central School…
ID Number:1983.10.6300.1
Date:Circa 1891
Image of Seattle's downtown before the Great Fire, 1883
Photograph

Seattle's downtown before the Great Fire, 1883

In 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:1983.10.6343
Date:1883
Image of Times Square Building, 1920
Photograph

Times Square Building, 1920

The Times Square Building was the headquarters of The Seattle Times. It was also the location for the Webster & Stevens photography studio from 1917 to 1928. The open area in front of the building was named after Times Square in New York City and was a popular gathering place.This photo shows the wide front end of the triangular Times…
ID Number:1983.10.6468.2
Date:1920
Image of Hotel Waldorf, Seattle, circa 1921
Photograph

Hotel Waldorf, Seattle, circa 1921

The Hotel Waldorf, on the northeast corner of 7th Avenue and Pike Street, was during its last decades an inexpensive apartment building. It was demolished for the expansion of the Washington Trade Center. Signs in image: [...l] Brighton. Pure Milk Dairy - Ice Cream. Hotel Waldorf. Millinery. Shoe Repairing - Shoe Store. Chauncey Wright Restaurants Co. Candies. American Furniture Co.…
ID Number:1983.10.6493
Date:Circa 1921
Image of Waterfront from Moran's shipyard, circa 1900
Photograph

Waterfront from Moran's shipyard, circa 1900

Seattle's waterfront was busy in the early 1900s. Rafts of logs floated near the sawmills, ready to be cut into lumber. Some ships waited to be loaded with lumber or coal. Others carried passengers and cargo between Puget Sound, San Francisco, and other ports. In 1900, the editor of the Seattle Times predicted that Seattle would become the center for…
ID Number:1983.10.6762.2
Date:Circa 1900
Image of Great Northern Dock, Seattle, circa 1911
Photograph

Great Northern Dock, Seattle, circa 1911

Railroad magnate James J. Hill formed the Great Northern Steamship Co. in 1900 and began building two ocean-going steamers, the "Minnesota" and the "Dakota", to carry trade goods between Seattle and Japan. The Great Northern Docks at Smith's Cove was the bustling center of this Pacific trade. The trains traveled over the bay on trestles, then continued on their way…
ID Number:1983.10.6764
Date:Circa 1911
Image of Interlake School, Seattle, 1911
Photograph

Interlake School, Seattle, 1911

When the Interlake School was constructed in 1904, the Wallingford neighborhood was growing very rapidly. The architect designed an addition in the central rear section that was built four years later. The name of the school refers to its location midway between Lake Union and Green Lake. In the 1920s, Interlake was the largest elementary school in Seattle. It closed…
ID Number:1983.10.6843
Date:1911
Image of New Spokane Street Bridge, circa 1917
Photograph

New Spokane Street Bridge, circa 1917

In 1917, the city built a new swing bridge to carry Spokane Street traffic to West Seattle. The roadway passed 28 feet above the West Waterway of the Duwamish River. The bridge tender watched water traffic from a little cabin on the side of the bridge. When ship traffic approached that was too tall to fit under the span, the…
ID Number:1983.10.7210.1
Date:Circa 1917
Image of Grocery wagons on Marion Street, circa 1905
Photograph

Grocery wagons on Marion Street, circa 1905

Before the opening of Seattle's Pike Place Market in 1907, farmers sold their fruit and vegetables to the customer through brokers or other middlemen. Much of this wholesale produce trade took place in the so-called Commission District, in the area of Railroad and Western Avenues and Columbia and Marion Streets. Once the wholesalers took their commissions, customers paid more and…
ID Number:1983.10.7360
Date:Circa 1905
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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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