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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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592 results for: Maritime

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Image of Klondikers sailing down Lake Bennett, May 30, 1898
Photograph

Klondikers sailing down Lake Bennett, May 30, 1898

In the spring of 1898, the air at Bennett was filled with the sound of hammering and sawing as gold seekers cut trees and built boats to head downstream. The ice on Lake Bennett broke up on May 29, 1898. Within a week, over 1,000 boats started across the lake and down the Yukon River to the Klondike gold fields.This…
ID Number:SHS9906
Date:1898
Image of The Orcas at Lake Washington Ship Canal, February 2, 1916
Photograph

The Orcas at Lake Washington Ship Canal, February 2, 1916

The Lake Washington Ship Canal was created to move logs, coal, and other resources directly from the east side of Lake Washington to Elliott Bay. Construction began in 1911 under Hiram M. Chittenden of the Army Corps of Engineers. The formal dedication and opening of the Lake Washington Ship Canal for business was on July 4, 1917, when the SS…
ID Number:SHS10603
Date:1916
Image of Jack Adams' racing canoe, Portage Bay, Seattle, 1909
Photograph

Jack Adams' racing canoe, Portage Bay, Seattle, 1909

In 1909, Jack Adams (1853-1931), a member of the Suquamish Tribe, built a canoe for a canoe race at Seattle's Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition. Adams built the vessel from a single 48-foot log. On September 6, the canoes raced to the finish line at the foot of the fair's Pay Streak, in Portage Bay. In this photo, Adams and ten other men…
ID Number:SHS11726
Date:1909
Image of SS Pacific, SS San Salvador, and bark Harriet Hunt docked at Yesler's Wharf, Seattle, 1875
Photograph

SS Pacific, SS San Salvador, and bark Harriet Hunt docked at Yesler's Wharf, Seattle, 1875

Seattle Pioneer Henry Leiter Yesler (1810-1892) built a wharf in 1854 at the foot of Mill Street (now Yesler Way). A makeshift affair at first that would eventually extend nearly 1,000 feet into Elliott Bay, it was built next to the steam sawmill he built two years prior. This pier was the center of local maritime commerce until it was…
ID Number:SHS11765
Date:1875
Image of Native Alaskan woman working on a canoe by a river, circa 1909
Photograph

Native Alaskan woman working on a canoe by a river, circa 1909

Canoes need upkeep and repair in order to stay watertight. In this photo, an Native Alaskan woman works on the edge of her flat-bottomed craft by the side of a river. Two other canoes rest nearby on the beach. The wooden poles are probably used for drying fish. The location of the photograph is unknown, but it was most likely…
ID Number:SHS14168
Date:Circa 1909
Image of Ballard Boat Works on Salmon Bay, 1918
Photograph

Ballard Boat Works on Salmon Bay, 1918

Norwegian immigrant Sivert Sagstad founded Ballard Boat Works in 1905 at the foot of Thirty-sixth Avenue NW. Sagstad had learned boat building from his father. By the time he died in 1946, the company had built more than 300 commercial fishing vessels, tug boats, and military rescue boats. The business changed its name and relocated several times; it is now…
ID Number:SHS15167
Date:1918
Image of Steamboat
Photograph

Steamboat "W.K. Merwin" coming up Five Finger Rapids, circa 1898

At Five Finger Rapids, the Yukon River divided into five channels around four islands. This was so tricky to navigate that a permanent cable was anchored in the rocky side of one channel and ships pulled themselves through.This photo, taken around 1898 by Eric Hegg, shows the steamboat "W.K. Merwin" headed upstream. In other versions of this photo, one can…
ID Number:SHS15884
Date:Circa 1898
Image of Hydroplane Slo-Mo-Shun IV on Lake Washington, 1950
Photograph

Hydroplane Slo-Mo-Shun IV on Lake Washington, 1950

Stanley S. Sayres (1896-1956), the owner of the Slo-mo-shun hydroplanes, was in the automobile business and he became interested in speedboat racing in 1926 in Oregon. He commissioned designer Ted Jones to and the Jensen Motor Boat Company to construct the Slo-mo-shun IV. Jensen Motor Boat Company launched the 28-foot-long, 4,750-pound hydroplane in October 1949. Sayres established a world speed…
ID Number:SHS15962
Date:1950
Image of Heckmann & Hanson Ship Architects & Builders advertisement, circa 1895
Ephemera

Heckmann & Hanson Ship Architects & Builders advertisement, circa 1895

Ship architects and builders Heckmann & Hanson was established in 1893 by Norwegian immigrants C. Andrew Heckmann and Martin E. Hanson. The company grew quickly, with Mr. Hanson overseeing the shipyard and Mr. Heckmann overseeing the business. The company soon became involved in real estate at the recommendation of their lawyer Richard A. Ballinger, but by 1901 the company declared…
ID Number:SHS15988
Date:Ccirca 1895
Image of Henry Finch posing with diving equipment, Seattle, January 1924
Photograph

Henry Finch posing with diving equipment, Seattle, January 1924

In January 1924, divers from the Seattle marine engineering firm Henry Finch & Son were called in to repair a broken six-inch water main running beneath the Duwamish Waterway. This image, from an album of photographs taken for the Finches, shows Henry Silas Finch, Jr. (1887-1961), posing in diving gear at the job site. He is holding a helmet and…
ID Number:SHS18658
Date:1924
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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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