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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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768 results for: Businesses and Corporations

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Image of Elevator and storage bunker at Seattle Lighting Co. plant , Seattle, circa 1918
Photograph

Elevator and storage bunker at Seattle Lighting Co. plant , Seattle, circa 1918

The Seattle Lighting Company, which was the gas company for Seattle, opened a nine-acre plant on the north shore of Lake Union in 1905-06. Huge quantities of coal arrived in railroad cars and fueled the ovens that produced gas and coke, supplying Seattle with lights and home heating. This photograph looks towards Queen Anne and shows a portion of the…
ID Number:1983.10.10656.3
Date:Circa 1918
Image of Boeing
Photograph

Boeing "Model C" float plane docked on Lake Union, Seattle, 1919

Aviation pioneer William Edward "Bill" Boeing (1881-1956) was born in Detroit to German immigrants. He came to Seattle in 1908, where, during the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition in 1909, he saw a manned flying machine for the first time and became fascinated with aircraft. With a partner, Mr. Boeing created two B&W prototype float planes in 1916, both of which were rejected…
ID Number:1983.10.10793
Date:1919
Image of Launching of Alician at Todd Shipyards, Seattle, 1924
Photograph

Launching of Alician at Todd Shipyards, Seattle, 1924

Todd Shipyards (now Vigor Shipyards) was founded in 1916 as the William H. Todd Corporation through the merger of several companies, including the Seattle Construction and Dry Dock Company, the origins of which were established in 1882 when Robert Moran opened a marine repair shop at Yesler's Wharf. This image shows the launch of a new pleasure yacht, the Alician,…
ID Number:1983.10.11658.2
Date:1924
Image of Mechanics and motorcycles outside Wm. O. McKay Co. building, Seattle, November 13, 1939
Photograph

Mechanics and motorcycles outside Wm. O. McKay Co. building, Seattle, November 13, 1939

The William O. McKay Company was established in 1922 and operated a Ford and Lincoln dealership and repair facility at 609 Westlake Avenue North in Seattle for many years. This photo shows sixteen men in mechanics' coveralls standing near the service entrance of the McKay Lincoln-Mercury dealership. In front of them are four motorcycles with sidecars. Three of the sidecars…
ID Number:1983.10.13391.2
Date:1939
Image of Kenworth Touring Motor Coach, Seattle, circa 1937
Photograph

Kenworth Touring Motor Coach, Seattle, circa 1937

Kenworth Truck Company, now a subsidiary of Paccar, has been manufacturing medium and heavy-duty trucks near Seattle since 1916. The company also made fire trucks, and transit and school buses. In 1937 and 1938 Kenworth built five Kenworth Touring Motor Coaches. As of 2009, three of those are still in existence -- one in Sitka, Alaska; one in Montana; and…
ID Number:1983.10.13738
Date:Circa 1937
Image of Berger Engineering Works employee with machinery, Seattle, circa 1944
Photograph

Berger Engineering Works employee with machinery, Seattle, circa 1944

In 1932, Knute Berger started Berger Engineering Works, Inc. to build rugged equipment for shipyards, loggers, and the U.S. Navy. In 1962, Bergen Engineering merged with the company started by Edmund Smith, inventor of the salmon-butchering machine, becoming Smith Berger Manufacturing Corporation. In June, 1983 the company reorganized as Smith Berger Marine, Inc.In this image an unidentified Bergen Engineering Works…
ID Number:1983.10.14958.3
Date:Circa 1944
Image of Yellow cabs drivers posing in Volunteer Park, Seattle, 1947
Photograph

Yellow cabs drivers posing in Volunteer Park, Seattle, 1947

This image shows 31 Yellow Cab Company drivers standing with their taxi cabs in Seattle's Volunteer Park, in front the Seattle Art Museum (SAM) building (now the Asian Art Museum). In a 1947 Seattle Times advertisement, Yellow Cabs described the "man at the wheel" as "apt to be a family man...the sort of person you'd like for a neighbor. He's…
ID Number:1983.10.16437.1
Date:1947
Image of Aerial of Union Oil Co. plant and dock, Seattle, circa 1932
Photograph

Aerial of Union Oil Co. plant and dock, Seattle, circa 1932

Union Oil Company maintained a large shipping and storage facility along the northern section of Seattle's waterfront. This view looks directly east towards Belltown and shows the many storage tanks that existed at this time between Railroad Avenue and First. Signs in image: Grinnell Company - Automatic Sprinklers, Pipe, Valves, Fittings - Power Piping, Heating & Plumbing Supplies. Union Oil.Handwritten…
ID Number:1983.10.17561.1
Date:Circa 1932
Image of Washington Produce and Fruit Growers Union sales account for Fred Cyr, July 13, 1896
Ephemera

Washington Produce and Fruit Growers Union sales account for Fred Cyr, July 13, 1896

The Washington Produce and Fruit Growers Union, Inc., was established in 1895 as a cooperative of farmers who banded together to sell their produce to public markets and retailers rather than using established commission merchants who only paid farmers after the produce was sold.This sales account dated July 13, 1896, lists amounts and prices for strawberries received by Fred Cyr…
ID Number:1984.66.17.1
Date:1896
Image of Washington Produce & Fruit Growers Union stock certificate, July 1895
Document

Washington Produce & Fruit Growers Union stock certificate, July 1895

The Washington Produce and Fruit Growers Union, Inc. was established in 1895 as a cooperative of farmers who banded together to sell their produce to public markets and retailers rather than using established commission merchants who only paid farmers after the produce was sold.This stock certificate, dated July 17, 1895, gives J. B. Warren four shares in the union at…
ID Number:1984.66.18
Date:1895
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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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