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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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3378 results for: Seattle Photographic Co.

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Image of Alfred M. Hubbard, Seattle, circa 1924
Photograph

Alfred M. Hubbard, Seattle, circa 1924

During Seattle's Prohibition years in the 1920s, Roy Olmstead became one of the largest and most successful bootleggers in King County. Learning how the trade operated from involvement in raids and arrests while serving as a Seattle Police Lieutenant, Olmstead noted the lack of organization of many bootleggers and began his own operation. His operation eventually grew to include many…
ID Number:SHS17299
Date:Circa 1924
Image of Boeing plant, Seattle, April 16, 1918
Photograph

Boeing plant, Seattle, April 16, 1918

The Boeing Airplane Company got its first big military order when its "C" model seaplane was accepted as a trainer by the U.S. Navy during World War I. The company opened a new plant on the west side of the Duwamish River, south of Seattle, to handle all this new business. This photo, taken in April 1918, shows the new…
ID Number:SHS17645
Date:1918
Image of Officers of last Volunteer Fire Department, circa 1889
Photograph

Officers of last Volunteer Fire Department, circa 1889

The creation of the Seattle Fire Department (SFD) can be traced back to July 6th, 1876, when the all-volunteer Seattle Engine Company No.1 was organized. In 1883, the City Charter was amended to create and fund equipment, but not staff, for a centralized municipal fire department. The volunteer-based system persisted until pressure from the insurance industry and citizens after the…
ID Number:SHS17710
Date:Circa 1889
Image of Engine House #3, Seattle, May 11, 1911
Photograph

Engine House #3, Seattle, May 11, 1911

From 1890 to 1904, the Seattle Fire Department’s Engine House No. 3 stood in what is now the Chinatown - International District. In 1904, it was replaced by a new Station 3, at the intersection of Terry Avenue and Alder Street, in what is now Yesler Terrace. This 1911 image shows Fire Station 3 in its heyday. Three fire wagons,…
ID Number:SHS17728
Date:1911
Image of PT&T operators working at Garfield Exchange, Seattle, circa 1921
Photograph

PT&T operators working at Garfield Exchange, Seattle, circa 1921

Telephone service in Seattle began with 90 customers in 1883. One of Seattle's original service providers, Sunset Telephone-Telegraph Company (later Pacific Telephone & Telegraph Company, then AT&T) built a new exchange building in 1921 to help handle what was by then 83,347 customers, making half-a-million local telephone calls every day. The Garfield Exchange was built on Queen Anne Hill at…
ID Number:SHS17731
Date:Circa 1921
Image of Ice cream delivery wagon, circa 1880
Photograph

Ice cream delivery wagon, circa 1880

Ice cream was a popular summer dessert even before electric refrigeration. Recipes for flavored sweet cream and iced creams appeared in many 18th century English and American cookbooks. Fruit such as lemon, raspberry, and orange were popular flavorings, as well as vanilla, honey, pistachio, and chocolate. The first commercial production of ice cream in the Pacific Northwest was begun in…
ID Number:SHS17804
Date:Circa 1880
Image of Worker making saddle at Duncan & Sons, Seattle, December 23, 1918
Photograph

Worker making saddle at Duncan & Sons, Seattle, December 23, 1918

Duncan & Sons was a harness and saddle manufacturing business located at 212 Second Avenue South. Their familiar model horse stood above the entrance to the business for many years, only recently to disappear when the company closed. In this photo, a worker rivets coat straps to the body of a cavalry saddle. It is part of a series of…
ID Number:SHS19314
Date:1918
Image of Ibsen family water skiing on Lake Washington, Seattle, circa 1955
Photograph

Ibsen family water skiing on Lake Washington, Seattle, circa 1955

Water skiing pioneer Donald Sylvester Ibsen (1910-1993) was a star athlete at Roosevelt High School, and made his first pair of water skis the summer he graduated, in 1928. Within 10 years he had started the Olympic Water Ski Club and created a water ski team to perform shows around the Northwest. He also appeared on the pages of Life…
ID Number:SHS19348
Date:Circa 1955
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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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