506 results for: Government and Public Services
Ephemera
"What holds Seattle back?" handbill, 1921
The Building Owners and Managers Association Seattle King County (BOMA) is a professional trade association established in 1912 by members of the Office Building and Commercial Real Estate Industry.This handbill was published by BOMA on July 1, 1921, to protest a three-cent car fare raise proposed by Seattle public officials.
ID Number:2018.3.3.12
Date:1921
Ephemera
"Save your schools, vote "NO" on 64, vote "YES" on 69" flier, 1932
Two hotly contested initiatives were on the November 8, 1932 ballot in Washington State: The Washington 40-Mill Tax Levy Limit Initiative, also known as Initiative 64, was approved by 61% of voters, limiting property taxes to 2 percent of assessed value; and the Washington Income Tax for Schools Initiative, also known as Initiative 69, which won 71 percent of the…
ID Number:2018.3.3.13
Date:1932
Ephemera
"Horse car days are gone!" leaflet, 1937
Seattle’s transportation system grew out of a mixture of privately-owned cable car lines, streetcars, and buses. When the city took these over in 1918, it turned out to be a financial disaster. By 1936, the infrastructure was aging, and the system was $4 million in debt. The city explored alternatives and, in 1937, promoted a plan to modernize the system…
ID Number:2018.3.3.14
Date:1937
Ephemera
Initiative measure no. 61 flier, 1932
Washington state voters had approved a Prohibition initiative in 1914, several years before the 18th Amendment to the US Constitution, enforced by the Volstead Act, outlawed alcohol nationwide. By 1932, as in much of the rest of the country, Washington citizens were turning against Prohibition. That year, State Initiative 61 was approved by voters, which removed regulations on the importation,…
ID Number:2018.3.3.15
Date:1932
Ephemera
Dollars for bread instead of dollars for taxes flier, 1933
John Francis Dore (1881-1938) served as Mayor of Seattle twice during the Great Depression. Thousands of people were out of work, and many families had lost their homes, overwhelming the traditional city, county, and private relief agencies. Confidence in the economic and political systems was shaken and Mr. Dore won the mayoral election on March 8, 1932 when he proposed…
ID Number:2018.3.3.16
Date:1933
Ephemera
"Don't be deceived by the down town landlords" leaflet, 1912
The Municipal Plans Commission of Seattle, established in 1910, hired civil engineer Virgil G. Bogue to prepare a strategic development plan for the city. Bogue’s 1911 proposal was very ambitious, including a Civic Center in the Denny Regrade area, a park and boulevard system, separation of railroad tracks from streets, and a variety of other municipal improvements. The plan, as…
ID Number:2018.3.3.17
Date:1912
Ephemera
Firemen's Third Annual Ball invitation, December 1893
The Seattle Fire Department Relief Association was organized in May 1891 after the death of Herman Larsen, Seattle's first firefighter killed in the line of duty. The fire department raised money for Larsen's funeral expenses, and decided to form a relief organization to help firefighters and their families in the event of death, illness or injury. The Seattle Fire Department…
ID Number:2018.3.3.76
Date:1893
Poster
National Recovery Administration member display piece, circa 1934
The National Recovery Administration (NRA) was a New Deal agency established by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933. The NRA was created by the National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA) and allowed industries to write "codes of fair competition" to reduce "destructive competition," setting minimum wages and maximum weekly hours, as well as minimum prices at which products could be sold.…
ID Number:2018.3.3.103
Date:Circa 1934
Ephemera
Be Ready to Rely on Your 3-Day Food Supply, circa 1955
The Emergency Food Supply brochure pictured here was distributed to Seattle and King County residents by King County Civil Defense Department (now Department of Public Defense). It was issued by the Washington State Department of Civil Defense, probably in the 1950s when Seattle was considered a potential Major Target Area for a thermonuclear attack (hydrogen bomb). The instructions include a…
ID Number:2018.3.3.104
Date:Circa 1955
Ephemera
Daily pedestrian traffic map, Seattle, April 1921
The map shown here, created by the Engineers Department, City of Seattle, illustrates average daily pedestrian traffic in the Seattle Downtown Business District for April 1921. The map extends from Blanchard Street to King Street and Railroad Avenue to 8th Street, with a scale running from 2,000 people to 50,000 people taken between 7:00 am and 6:00 pm. Handwritten on…
ID Number:2018.3.8.3
Date:1921