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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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We have many more items in our collections and not everything you see online is on view at the museum. We have additional materials online at the University of Washington’s Digital Collections.

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525 results for: Government and Public Services

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Image of Roberto Maestas being escorted out of mayor's office, Seattle, April 5, 1973
Photograph

Roberto Maestas being escorted out of mayor's office, Seattle, April 5, 1973

Seattle had a growing Latino population in the late 1960s, and activists had been pressing the city for a building in which to establish a Chicano community center. Tired of having their requests ignored, in October 1972 they took over the abandoned Beacon Hill School on 16th Avenue South and renamed it El Centro de la Raza. After a 75-day…
ID Number:2000.107.117.04.02
Date:1973
Image of Roberto Maestas speaking to city council members, Seattle, June 11, 1974
Photograph

Roberto Maestas speaking to city council members, Seattle, June 11, 1974

Seattle had a growing Latino population in the late 1960s, and activists had been pressing the city for a building in which to establish a Chicano community center. Tired of having their requests ignored, in October 1972 they took over the abandoned Beacon Hill School on 16th Avenue South and renamed it El Centro de la Raza. After a 75-day…
ID Number:2000.107.117.04.03
Date:1974
Image of Amanda Van Orden protesting Metro pollution, Seattle, May 18, 1989
Photograph

Amanda Van Orden protesting Metro pollution, Seattle, May 18, 1989

In this image Yelm resident Amanda Van Orden was one of 400 protesting outside the Metro Council chambers at 720 Third Avenue in downtown Seattle. The demonstration was in support of salmon in the Nisqually River rather than the proposed runoff from a Metro plan to spray sewage sludge on 2,200 acres of Thurston County forest land near the river.…
ID Number:2000.107.124.28.01
Date:1989
Image of Metro drivers inspecting prototype kneeling bus, Seattle, March, 1975
Photograph

Metro drivers inspecting prototype kneeling bus, Seattle, March, 1975

In this image, the Rohn Industries Transbus, one of three prototype transit buses built by U. S. firms for possible production in the 1980s, gets the once-over from Metro drivers as it "knelt" on its air suspension system, allowing near-level entry up a front door wheelchair ramp. At the time Metro, was planning to replace its fleet of buses and…
ID Number:2000.107.124.28.02
Date:1975
Image of Sam Mason coordinating Metro traffic communications, Seattle, December 14, 1987
Photograph

Sam Mason coordinating Metro traffic communications, Seattle, December 14, 1987

In this image, Sam Mason, traffic coordinator for Metro Transit, operates one of the communication consoles that connects headquarters with metro drivers, mechanics, and the police. Caption information derived from captions written by Post-Intelligencer staff and attached to the back of the photograph
ID Number:2000.107.124.31.01
Date:1987
Image of Artists posing with their political ad campaign on Metro bus, Seattle, October 23, 1984
Photograph

Artists posing with their political ad campaign on Metro bus, Seattle, October 23, 1984

In this image, members of Working Artists for a Democratic Alternative (WADA) stand near “Take the Mask Off,” their campaign to support the Mondale/Ferraro presidential campaign, featuring a graphic of President Reagan removing a smiley-face mask to reveal a monster. The ad campaign was carried by more than two dozen Metro Transit buses in King County and was available as…
ID Number:2000.107.124.31.02
Date:1984
Image of Nancy Lightfoot making the first phone call from a bus, Seattle, September 11, 1985
Photograph

Nancy Lightfoot making the first phone call from a bus, Seattle, September 11, 1985

In September 1985, cellular telephones were installed on four Washington State ferries and five Metro buses for a trial period of four and three months, respectively. The phones required a credit card to use, and cost a dollar for a two-minute local call, with 50 cents for each additional minute. In this image passenger Nancy Lightfoot places one of the…
ID Number:2000.107.124.31.03
Date:1985
Image of Metro cashier unfolding dollar bills, Seattle, September 24, 1984
Photograph

Metro cashier unfolding dollar bills, Seattle, September 24, 1984

In this image, Metro cashier Forrest Wright unfolds dollar bills that have been stuffed into the fare boxes on buses. He said he could easily do without Metro riders who fold a dollar bill into a triangle. "The tricky part for me is to find which side of the triangle opens so I don't tear the bill," he said. Caption…
ID Number:2000.107.124.31.05
Date:1984
Image of Metro passengers waiting at temporary bus shelter, Seattle, March 6, 1982
Photograph

Metro passengers waiting at temporary bus shelter, Seattle, March 6, 1982

In this image Metro passenger Angela Nieto and her daughter Sophia wait for a bus inside a plywood bus shelter built by volunteers at 39th Avenue South and South Othello Street, near the Holly Park housing development. Fed up with Metro Transit delays in building a bus shelter, neighborhood residents built their own shelter, which City officials then complained didn't…
ID Number:2000.107.124.32.01
Date:1982
Image of George Turner demonstrating a wheelchair lift aboard a Metro bus, Seattle, April 14, 1985
Photograph

George Turner demonstrating a wheelchair lift aboard a Metro bus, Seattle, April 14, 1985

In this image George Turner, chairman of the Metro Elderly and Handicapped Advisory Committee, demonstrates a wheelchair lift aboard a Metro bus. Metro received a $1,000 award from the National Organization on Disability for its work in making it easier for the elderly and mobility impaired to get around on public transportation. Caption information derived from captions written by Post-Intelligencer…
ID Number:2000.107.124.33.01
Date:1985
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