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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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517 results for: Museum of History

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Image of National Guard of Washington officers posing after the fire, Seattle, June 1889
Photograph

National Guard of Washington officers posing after the fire, Seattle, June 1889

The Great Fire of June 6, 1889 was a significant turning point in Seattle's history and changed both the physical and political landscapes of the City. 100 acres of Seattle's business district and waterfront were destroyed. The burned areas were guarded and patrolled by members of the Washington National Guard from Seattle, Tacoma, and Port Townsend until June 11, 1889.…
ID Number:SHS685
Date:1889
Image of Great Seattle Fire burning at waterfront, June 6, 1889
Photograph

Great Seattle Fire burning at waterfront, June 6, 1889

The Great Fire of June 6, 1889 was a significant turning point in Seattle's history and changed both the physical and political landscapes of the City. The fire started at 2:30 p.m. in a paint and woodwork shop at Front and Madison and over the course of the next 18 hours swept a southward across 100 acres of Seattle's business…
ID Number:SHS708A
Date:1889
Image of Members of the Washington National Guard in Seattle, June 1889
Photograph

Members of the Washington National Guard in Seattle, June 1889

The Great Fire of June 6, 1889 was a significant turning point in Seattle's history and changed both the physical and political landscapes of the City. One hundred acres of Seattle's business district and waterfront were destroyed. The burned areas were guarded and patrolled by members of the Washington National Guard from Seattle, Tacoma, and Port Townsend until June 11,…
ID Number:SHS710
Date:1889
Image of Madison Street Cable Railway at 3rd Avenue, Seattle, 1907
Photograph

Madison Street Cable Railway at 3rd Avenue, Seattle, 1907

The Madison Street Cable Railway provided public transportation along one of Seattle's busiest thoroughfares from 1890 to 1940. Built to connect downtown Seattle with Lake Washington, Madison Street was Seattle's steepest cable line, terminating downtown at a turntable on West Street (now Western Avenue), near the present-day ferry terminal on Puget Sound. In this image a Madison Street Cable Railway…
ID Number:SHS915
Date:1907
Image of Corner of Terry and Columbia streets on First Hill, Seattle, circa 1895
Photograph

Corner of Terry and Columbia streets on First Hill, Seattle, circa 1895

One of Seattle’s seven hills, First Hill was city’s first “neighborhood” to be settled in the 1870s. Rising 366 feet above Elliott Bay, the once-forested slope was an easy walk to the city’s commercial district. By 1883, the hill entered a new era as the retreat of its “first families,” including mayors, judges, industrialists, timber barons, and art collectors. Over…
ID Number:SHS1006
Date:Circa 1895
Image of Shorey's Books at 3rd Ave. and Cherry St., Seattle, circa 1895
Photograph

Shorey's Books at 3rd Ave. and Cherry St., Seattle, circa 1895

Legendary Seattle bookstore Shorey's was founded by newspaperman Samuel Fernald Shorey (1851-1932) in 1890 as a small magazine and cigar store at Third and James. Sam's great-nephew John W. "Bill" Todd Jr.(1914-2007) bought the store in 1939, and it was later run by his son, Jim Todd. Shorey's maintained its huge inventory even though the store had to move several…
ID Number:SHS1317
Date:Circa 1895
Image of Men posing in front of tent near Jacob Furth home, 1889
Photograph

Men posing in front of tent near Jacob Furth home, 1889

The Great Fire of June 6, 1889 was a significant turning point in Seattle's history and changed both the physical and political landscapes of the City. In this image men pose in front of a tent set up after the fire during regrading operations, in which streets were raised up to 22 feet in places, helping to level the hilly…
ID Number:SHS1359
Date:1889
Image of Woman weaving a Chilkat blanket, Alaska, circa 1904
Photograph

Woman weaving a Chilkat blanket, Alaska, circa 1904

The Chilkat are a Tlingit tribe who have lived in and around their village of Klukwan on the Chilkat River, in southeastern Alaska since time immemorial. They lived on foods available on their lands as well as trading with other tribes on the Pacific coast and inland. Settlers came to Chilkat lands in large numbers in the early 20th century,…
ID Number:SHS1773
Date:Circa 1904
Image of Seattleites posing with goods salvaged from the fire, June 1889
Photograph

Seattleites posing with goods salvaged from the fire, June 1889

The Great Fire of June 6, 1889 was a significant turning point in Seattle's history and changed both the physical and political landscapes of the City, destroying 100 acres of Seattle's business district and waterfront. The city didn't take much time to mourn; most businesses decided to rebuild where they had been, and rebuilding began almost immediately. Relief bureaus were…
ID Number:SHS2150
Date:1889
Image of Members of Seattle Police Department, Ballard Station, April, 1913
Photograph

Members of Seattle Police Department, Ballard Station, April, 1913

Ballard was an independent city from its incorporation in 1890, until a vote to annex to Seattle passed 996 to 874 on November 6, 1906. On May 29, 1907, the City of Ballard officially became simply Ballard, a neighborhood of Seattle.In the 1910s, Seattle had neighborhood police headquarters in Ballard, West Seattle, Columbia City, Densmore (now Wallingford), and Georgetown. This…
ID Number:SHS2273
Date:1913
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Land Acknowledgement

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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