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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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525 results for: Government and Public Services

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Image of Suzie Ordogh and John Boyd with her permanent residency papers, Seattle, December 24, 1958
Photograph

Suzie Ordogh and John Boyd with her permanent residency papers, Seattle, December 24, 1958

In October 1956, Soviet forces invaded Hungary in response to a populist uprising. At that time, Hungarian athletes were competing in the 1956 Olympic Games in Melbourne, Australia, and 40 of them defected to the United States. Urged by her parents not to return home, freestyle swimmer Zsuszu (“Susanna," “Suzie,” “Susie”) Ordogh, age 16, was among the defectors. She was…
ID Number:1986.5.37962.1
Date:1958
Image of Suzie Ordogh signing naturalization papers inside courthouse, Seattle, April 23, 1962
Photograph

Suzie Ordogh signing naturalization papers inside courthouse, Seattle, April 23, 1962

In October 1956, Soviet forces invaded Hungary in response to a populist uprising. At that time, Hungarian athletes were competing in the 1956 Olympic Games in Melbourne, Australia, and 40 of them defected to the United States. Urged by her parents not to return home, freestyle swimmer Zsuszu (“Susanna," “Suzie,” “Susie”) Ordogh, age 16, was among the defectors. She was…
ID Number:1986.5.37963.1
Date:1962
Image of Rao family at US District Court for naturalization ceremony, August 12, 1963
Photograph

Rao family at US District Court for naturalization ceremony, August 12, 1963

Dr. Charumati Rao and her husband Dr. Krishna V.S. Rao, originally from Patna, India, became naturalized American citizens on August 12, 1963, at the U.S. District Court in Seattle. The couple, both practicing physicians, are shown here with their two sons, Lakshmi "Dixie" Rao, 11, and Krishna "Chris" Rao, 7, and Krishna V.S. Rao's father, K.S.N. Rao. The two boys,…
ID Number:1986.5.39931.1
Date:1963
Image of Demonstration for reduction in voting age, Seattle, 1969
Photograph

Demonstration for reduction in voting age, Seattle, 1969

Signs in image: We Support the 18-Year-Olds Right to Vote. 18 Year Old Vote. Support Your 18 Yr Old Vote. Handwritten on sleeve: March to promote lowered voting age by 18 year olds. Date photograph was filed at the Seattle Post-Intelligencer (date of photograph and file date may differ by a month or more): April 10, 1969.
ID Number:1986.5.50631.1
Date:1969
Image of Councilman Sam Smith addressing Women's Clubs,  March 1969
Photograph

Councilman Sam Smith addressing Women's Clubs, March 1969

Sam Smith was the first African-American person to be elected to the Seattle City Council in 1968 and was on the Council until 1991, chairing many committees and serving as Council President from 1974-199 and 1986-1989. Smith also served in the Washington State Legislature for five terms, beginning with his election from the 37th district in 1958. He was born…
ID Number:1986.5.56539.7
Date:1969
Image of Motorcycle policeman J.K. Weedin, Seattle, March 1928
Photograph

Motorcycle policeman J.K. Weedin, Seattle, March 1928

In early 1910, the Seattle police department invested $1,329 in its first three motorcycles, with seven patrolman selected as the first members of the "motor cops" squad. At the time, speeding fines were paid to King County rather than the city of Seattle, and the city hoped to pass a traffic ordinance which would allow it to keep fines for…
ID Number:1986.5G.3172.1
Date:1928
Image of Brochure promoting a rapid transit solution for Seattle, 1926
Document

Brochure promoting a rapid transit solution for Seattle, 1926

Seattle’s hourglass shape and steep hills challenged land transportation from the very beginning. By the 1920s, with continuing population growth and the popularity of automobile transportation, traffic congestion had increased drastically. Concurrently, the city’s street railway system was losing money. In 1925, the Rapid Transit Committee of the Seattle City Planning Commission put together an extensive report, proposing that a…
ID Number:1987.66.3
Date:1926
Image of Seattle Rapid Transit Report to the City Planning Commission, 1925
Book

Seattle Rapid Transit Report to the City Planning Commission, 1925

Seattle’s hourglass shape and steep hills challenged land transportation from the very beginning. By the 1920s, with continuing population growth and the popularity of automobile transportation, traffic congestion had increased drastically. Concurrently, the city’s street railway system was losing money. In 1925, the Rapid Transit Committee of the Seattle City Planning Commission put together an extensive report, proposing that a…
ID Number:1987.66.4
Date:1925
Image of Highway improvements between Duvall and Bothell, September 17, 1931
Photograph

Highway improvements between Duvall and Bothell, September 17, 1931

During the summer of 1931, workers made improvements to the highway between Bothell and Duvall, Washington. This photo, taken in September 1931, shows laborers working on a concrete culvert beneath the road. One uses a pneumatic drill powered by air from the large compressor (left). The photo was taken for the company which supplied the concrete.
ID Number:1990.39.108
Date:1931
Image of Cedar Falls Lake, circa 1915
Photograph

Cedar Falls Lake, circa 1915

Starting in 1895, the City of Seattle began to purchase land in the upper Cedar River watershed to supply water and electric power for the growing city. In 1914, workers completed a large masonry dam just below Cedar Lake (now Chester Morse Lake), and the lake became a reservoir. As the city added more land to its holdings, the people…
ID Number:1992.44.1
Date:Circa 1915
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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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