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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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3379 results for: Seattle Photographic Co.

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Image of Spelger & Hurlbut Hardware delivery wagon, Seattle, circa 1900
Photograph

Spelger & Hurlbut Hardware delivery wagon, Seattle, circa 1900

Spelger & Hurlbut was a hardware firm run by business partners Frank P. Spelger (1864-1942) and Frederick Ward Hurlbut (1863-1936). The two men first formed their partnership in Louisville, Kentucky, and brought their business to Seattle in 1890, opening their first store at Fifth Avenue and Pike Street. In 1930 the partners retired and sold their firm to Ernst Hardware…
ID Number:SHS15944
Date:Circa 1900
Image of Seattle's first motor-driven sightseeing bus, Seattle, 1907
Photograph

Seattle's first motor-driven sightseeing bus, Seattle, 1907

In 1907, Seattle residents and visitors could climb on the city's first motor-driven sightseeing bus. The vehicle carried passengers to The Meadows racetrack and other destinations. The bus was also used to show visitors the sights at the 1909 Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition (AYPE).
ID Number:SHS16180
Date:1907
Image of Football team sitting on steps at South School, circa 1896
Photograph

Football team sitting on steps at South School, circa 1896

Until the 1910s and 1920s, the curriculum of Seattle's public primary and high schools didn't include athletic programs. School athletic activities were sponsored by a group of private citizens. The low importance given to sports may explain why the South School football players in this early photograph are wearing so many different kinds of clothing. This photo shows South School's…
ID Number:SHS16508
Date:Circa 1896
Image of Coxey's Army in Seattle, 1894
Photograph

Coxey's Army in Seattle, 1894

The 1893 nationwide depression threw many Americans out of work. In 1894, the Commonweal of Christ, made up of groups of unemployed people from all over the country, marched to Washington D.C. They wanted the government to create jobs and reform the money system. People called these groups Coxey's Army, after Jacob Coxey, the movement's leader. Congress did not pass…
ID Number:SHS16535
Date:1894
Image of John Henry Smith, Seattle, circa 1921
Photograph

John Henry Smith, Seattle, circa 1921

Typed on verso: Smith, John Henry, active in I.W.W., 1913-25. Born in England, he immigrated to Canada shortly after the turn of the century, coming to Seattle about 1910. A hod carrier by trade, he became active in I.W.W. circles about 1913. He married Helen L. Livingston in 1913. They had two daughters, Helen (1914) and Edna (1916). Smith died…
ID Number:SHS16652
Date:Circa 1921
Image of Lucas in tent, 1898
Photograph

Lucas in tent, 1898

Seattleite Asahel Curtis left for the Klondike in 1897 and stayed two years, taking photos for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. In 1898, Curtis took this photo of a man named Lucas resting outside his tent. Inside the tent, two pots heat on top of a small woodstove; the chimney of the stove passes up through the roof of the tent. The…
ID Number:SHS16668
Date:1898
Image of Motorcycle police squad outside station, Seattle, October 22, 1914
Photograph

Motorcycle police squad outside station, Seattle, October 22, 1914

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. In this 1914 photo, a motorcycle squad of 15 officers shows off its new Indian brand motorcycles. Executives of the Seattle Police Department stand to the right of the fleet: left to right,…
ID Number:SHS16707
Date:1914
Image of Asahel Curtis and companion on Skagway Trail, circa 1897
Photograph

Asahel Curtis and companion on Skagway Trail, circa 1897

Seattleite Asahel Curtis left for the Klondike in 1897 and stayed two years, taking photos for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. With today's tiny cameras and one-hour printing, it is easy to forget that he and the other gold rush photographers had to haul hundreds of pounds of glass photographic plates, heavy equipment, and chemicals through the wilderness and find places to…
ID Number:SHS16720
Date:Circa 1897
Image of Postcard of monorail test track, Seattle, 1911
Photograph

Postcard of monorail test track, Seattle, 1911

In this image, a portrait of William H. Boyes appears above a test track he demonstrated in 1911 in the tide flats of Seattle. Boyes sold shares in his Pacific Railway Company for the proposed monorail electric system operating passenger and freight trains between Elliott Bay in Seattle and Commencement Bay in Tacoma. A groundbreaking ceremony was held on May…
ID Number:SHS16810
Date:1911
Image of Moritz Thomsen family, Seattle, circa 1914
Photograph

Moritz Thomsen family, Seattle, circa 1914

Born in what is now Denmark, Moritz Thomsen (1850-1932) arrived in Seattle in 1896 to build a second flour mill for Centennial Mills (now Krusteaz Brand). A tireless industrialist, Thomsen at one time was president of 14 corporations, including the Centennial Mill Company, and the Denny-Renton Clay & Coal Company.In this image, Thomsen is pictured here with his family in…
ID Number:SHS17070
Date:Circa 1914
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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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