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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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257 results for: Washington Territory

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Image of Columbia St. from Yesler's wharf, Seattle, circa 1875
Photograph

Columbia St. from Yesler's wharf, Seattle, circa 1875

Predating the settlement that became the city of Seattle, the Duwamish had a winter village of approximately 8 longhouses situated along the central waterfront, roughly at the intersection of present-day First Avenue South and Yesler Way. Henry Yesler established his steam-powered sawmill at the foot of Mill Road (now Yesler Way) in October 1852, and by around the 1860s, the…
ID Number:1980.6923.106
Date:Circa 1875
Image of The Potlatch Tickle
Music, notated

The Potlatch Tickle

The music for "The Potlatch Tickle (A Seattle Rag)" was composed by Donald A. Robertson, arranged by Carl A. Weber, and published by the Empire Music Publishing Company of Seattle. A native of Germany, Carl Alfred Weber (1863-1929) came to Seattle about 1910 and opened a music studio where he taught and arranged music. Donald Alexander Robertson (1888-1934) was a…
ID Number:1980.7097A.28
Date:1911
Image of Gatzert and Schwabacher families, Seattle, circa 1882
Photograph

Gatzert and Schwabacher families, Seattle, circa 1882

This photograph shows the Gatzert and Schwabacher families circa 1890. Brothers Louis (1837-1900), Abraham (1838-1909), and Sigmund (1841-1917) Schwabacher were Bavarian-born Jewish merchants who owned several businesses bearing their family name, first in San Francisco, then in Walla Walla, Washington, and later in Seattle and other cities across the west. Their sister Babette married German immigrant Bailey Gatzert (1829-1893) in…
ID Number:1980.7166.1.1
Date:Circa 1882
Image of Abraham Schwabacher and granddaughter Babette Eckstein, circa 1908
Photograph

Abraham Schwabacher and granddaughter Babette Eckstein, circa 1908

Abraham Schwabacher (1838-1909) was one of three brothers that were important in the economic development of the Washington Territory and later Washington State. The Schwabacher brothers owned several businesses bearing their family name, first in San Francisco, then in Walla Walla, Washington, and later in Seattle. Abraham married Sarah (Lehrberger) Schwabacher (1847-1942), and their daughter, Mina Alice Schwabacher (1878-1942), married…
ID Number:1980.7166.1.12a
Date:Circa 1908
Image of Sarah Schwabacher birthday dinner menu, March 24, 1927
Ephemera

Sarah Schwabacher birthday dinner menu, March 24, 1927

Sarah (Lehrberger) Schwabacher (1847-1942) was married to Abraham Schwabacher (1838-1909), one of three brothers that were important in the economic development of the Washington Territory and later Washington State. The Schwabacher brothers owned several businesses bearing their family name, first in San Francisco, then in Walla Walla, Washington, and later in Seattle. Sarah and Abraham Schwabacher's daughter Mina Alice Schwabacher…
ID Number:1980.7166.4.2
Date:1927
Image of Map of the City of Seattle and Adjacent Territory, Bogue Map No. 3, 1911
Cartographic material

Map of the City of Seattle and Adjacent Territory, Bogue Map No. 3, 1911

Virgil Gay Bogue (1846-1916) was a civil engineer, originally from Norfolk, New York, who after working briefly as assistant engineer in Brooklyn, New York, and 10 years working with railroads in Peru, came to the Washington Territory in the 1880s as an employee of the Northern Pacific Railway. After a stint at the Union Pacific Railroad, Bogue started his own…
ID Number:1981.7231.17
Date:1911
Image of Schwabacher Bros. & Co. employees posing outside store, Seattle, 1889
Photograph

Schwabacher Bros. & Co. employees posing outside store, Seattle, 1889

The Schwabacher Brothers, Louis Schwabacher (1837-1900), Abraham Schwabacher (1838-1909), and Sigmund (Sig) Schwabacher (1841-1917), were pioneering Bavarian-born Jewish merchants, important in the economic development of the Pacific Northwest. They owned several businesses bearing their family name, and opened an branch in Seattle in 1869. Within a short time, the firm became Puget Sound's major wholesaler of canned goods, dry goods,…
ID Number:1981.7279.1
Date:1889
Image of White Pass & Yukon Route leaflet, circa 1910
Ephemera

White Pass & Yukon Route leaflet, circa 1910

When gold was discovered in the Yukon in 1897, prospectors had to make the dangerous journey on foot from the Alaska coast to the gold fields, some 550 miles into the Canadian interior. After the building of the first section of the White Pass & Yukon Route railroad in 1898-1899, the trip, which had formerly taken days, could now be…
ID Number:1981.7290.3
Date:1910
Image of View of the University of Washington's Metropolitan Tract , circa 1918
Photograph

View of the University of Washington's Metropolitan Tract , circa 1918

The University of Washington was established in 1861 as the University of the Territory of Washington. Located in what is now downtown Seattle, this ten-acre site is still owned by the university. It contains such familiar present-day landmarks as Rainier Square, the Olympic Hotel, and the Fifth Avenue Theater. This photo, taken in about 1918, looks east along University Street…
ID Number:1983.10.1049
Date:Circa 1918
Image of Seattle's first church, circa 1885
Photograph

Seattle's first church, circa 1885

In 1855, a group of Methodists dedicated Seattle's first church. It was a plain white building, commonly known as the "White Church." The Methodist Episcopal congregation grew quickly over the next few years. They sold the church in 1887 and built a larger one several blocks away.In this photo, the White Church stands behind its picket fence at Second Avenue…
ID Number:1983.10.6031
Date:Circa 1885
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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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