3221 results for: Seattle Post-Intelligencer, The
Photograph
Power lines from Grand Coulee Dam, July 1942
From the start, Grand Coulee Dam was controversial. Private electric companies opposed such a huge government involvement in the power industry. Many taxpayers didn't want to pay for a dam they believed would generate more electricity than the country needed. By the end of World War II in 1945, the availability of cheap hydroelectric power had spurred the growth of…
ID Number:PI22078
Date:1942
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Irrigation canal near Pasco, May 15, 1948
Although the Columbia River carries a huge volume of water through eastern Washington, rainfall in the area is low and the land is very dry. Columbia River Project planners dreamed of a system of dams and channels which would give farmers a steady supply of water to grow wheat, sugar beets and other crops. After the completion of the Grand…
ID Number:PI22145
Date:1948
Photograph
Sign outside Millionair Club offering free Sunday supper, Seattle, circa 1925
In 1921, Seattle businessman Martin G. Johanson founded The Millionair Club to help the city's unemployed help themselves. Johanson managed the organization which provided nourishing meals and acted as a clearinghouse for temporary jobs. He gave the organization its name because he said that helping others made him feel like a millionaire. He dropped the "e" in the organization's name…
ID Number:PI22381
Date:Circa 1925
Photograph
Martin Johanson sweeping steps at The Millionair Club, circa 1925
In 1921, Seattle businessman Martin G. Johanson founded The Millionair Club to help the city's unemployed help themselves. Johanson managed the organization which provided nourishing meals and acted as a clearinghouse for temporary jobs. The Millionair Club still serves Seattle's unemployed with meals, clothing, job training, temporary jobs and medical referrals.This photo, taken in the 1920s, shows Martin Johanson sweeping…
ID Number:PI22382
Date:Circa 1925
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Demonstrators with signs outside Seattle Chamber of Commerce during WPA strike, Seattle, 1937
In 1936, the federal Works Progress Administration hired some 9,000 unemployed King County residents on 271 different projects ranging from improving roads and parks to serving school lunches. Congress reduced funding for the WPA in 1937, causing nationwide layoffs. In Seattle, some workers stormed the WPA offices to protest the layoffs. Others staged sitdown strikes or picketed on downtown sidewalks.This…
ID Number:PI22387
Date:1937
Photograph
Woman serving soup to WPA strikers, Seattle, 1937
In 1936, the federal Works Progress Administration hired some 9,000 unemployed King County residents on 271 different projects ranging from improving roads and parks to serving school lunches. Congress reduced funding for the WPA in 1937, causing nationwide layoffs. In Seattle, some workers stormed the WPA offices to protest the layoffs. Others staged sitdown strikes or picketed on downtown sidewalks.…
ID Number:PI22389
Date:1937
Photograph
Migrant family in makeshift housing, September 22, 1940
On September 22, 1940, a King County deputy sheriff found a family camped by the side of West Marginal Way. Harry Cooper had left North Dakota with his seven children, hoping to find a job in the Pacific Northwest. When found, the family had had nothing to eat for three days but some vegetables brought by neighbors.This photo shows the…
ID Number:PI22392
Date:1940
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Edwin Hill repairing roof of shack in Hooverville, Seattle, November 1939
During the Depression of the 1930s, over 600 unemployed and homeless people lived in shacks on vacant land just south of downtown Seattle. They built their homes from scrap lumber and other materials which they found along the waterfront. This area, and similar places throughout the United States, were called Hoovervilles after President Herbert Hoover whom many people blamed for…
ID Number:PI22393
Date:1939
Photograph
Naval officers watching Hooverville shack burn, June 6, 1942
During the Great Depression of the 1930s, many unemployed and homeless people throughout the United States built shantytowns on vacant lots. The settlements were called Hoovervilles, after President Herbert Hoover whom many blamed for the depression. In Seattle, shantytowns grew in the waterfront areas south of downtown Seattle and north near Smith Cove. When the United States entered World War…
ID Number:PI22395
Date:1942
Photograph
Chinese Lion Dance, circa 1930
Chinese American communities often hold a Lion Dance at the time of the lunar new year or when a new business opens. In Seattle during Chinese New Year, the lion dances through the Chinatown - International District and stops in front of businesses to wish them a prosperous year. The businesses offer the lion red envelopes of money, wrapped in…
ID Number:PI22398
Date:Circa 1930