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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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117 results for: Mining

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Image of Rainier Fuel Company advertising card, circa 1904
Ephemera

Rainier Fuel Company advertising card, circa 1904

The Rainier Fuel Company operated in Seattle from roughly 1900 to 1950, selling fuel, such as coal and lumber, for heating homes. This advertising card includes a map of Seattle where the company delivers coal with their delivery fees. The back shows prices for various grades of coal from local coal mining, a significant industry in the region since the…
ID Number:2022.38.13
Date:Circa 1904
Image of Pacific Car and Foundry plant, Renton, 1954
Photograph

Pacific Car and Foundry plant, Renton, 1954

The Pacific Car and Foundry Company got its start in Seattle in the early 1900s building railroad cars for the logging industry. The company expanded quickly and, in 1905, bought land in Renton for a new plant. Now known as PACCAR, the company has factories in five countries, making heavy-duty trucks and other vehicles, railcars, and mining equipment.This photo of…
ID Number:Lib1993.20.193
Date:1954
Image of Employees working in lead manufacturing plant, Seattle circa 1950
Photograph

Employees working in lead manufacturing plant, Seattle circa 1950

Beginning about 1917, the Northwest Lead Company operated at 1744 Fourth Avenue South in Seattle. The plant manufactured lead products for the plumbing trade, mainly from lead produced by the Bunker Hill Mining Company of Kellogg, Idaho, which had acquired the plant in 1920. This image shows employees working with sheets of lead at the Seattle plant. Caption information source:…
ID Number:Lib1995.5.6
Date:Circa 1950
Image of Employees working in lead manufacturing plant, Seattle circa 1950
Photograph

Employees working in lead manufacturing plant, Seattle circa 1950

Beginning about 1917, the Northwest Lead Company operated at 1744 Fourth Avenue South in Seattle. The plant manufactured lead products for the plumbing trade, mainly from lead produced by the Bunker Hill Mining Company of Kellogg, Idaho, which had acquired the plant in 1920. This image shows employees at work at the Seattle plant. Caption information source: The Seattle Sunday…
ID Number:Lib1995.5.8
Date:Circa 1950
Image of Employees working in lead manufacturing plant, Seattle circa 1950
Photograph

Employees working in lead manufacturing plant, Seattle circa 1950

Beginning about 1917, the Northwest Lead Company operated at 1744 Fourth Avenue South in Seattle. The plant manufactured lead products for the plumbing trade, mainly from lead produced by the Bunker Hill Mining Company of Kellogg, Idaho, which had acquired the plant in 1920. This image shows employees at work at the Seattle plant. Caption information source: The Seattle Sunday…
ID Number:Lib1995.5.9
Date:Circa 1950
Image of Arthur Denny's Renton Coal Company stock certificate, August 7, 1875
Document

Arthur Denny's Renton Coal Company stock certificate, August 7, 1875

The Denny-Renton Clay and Coal Company was founded in 1892 by Arthur A. Denny (1822-1899) when he bought out predecessor company Puget Sound Fire Clay Company. Clay's popularity over wood as a building material grew substantially after the Great Seattle Fire in 1889. It is unclear if the Renton Coal Company is connected to the Denny-Renton Clay and Coal Company.…
ID Number:MS.COLL.1426
Date:1875
Image of Juneau, Alaska, June 1897
Photograph

Juneau, Alaska, June 1897

Juneau, Alaska, was settled in 1880 and named after Joseph Juneau, one of the early discoverers of gold in the area. By 1901, Juneau was an important gold mining center and the capital of Alaska Territory.This 1897 photo of Juneau shows a street and businesses in the growing city. Loggers have cut the trees on some of the nearby hills,…
ID Number:SHS30
Date:1897
Image of White Pass & Yukon, laying at Bennett, track, 1899
Photograph

White Pass & Yukon, laying at Bennett, track, 1899

On July 6, 1899, construction workers finally completed the White Pass & Yukon Route railroad line through White Pass to Lake Bennett, British Columbia. It took fourteen months to build the 40-mile railway line from Skagway, Alaska.This photo by Eric Hegg shows the laying of the last track on the White Pass & Yukon Route railroad between Skagway, Alaska, and…
ID Number:SHS40
Date:1899
Image of Group of miners using conveyor and rockers, circa 1899
Photograph

Group of miners using conveyor and rockers, circa 1899

Around 1898, gold was found in inland creekbeds near what would become Nome. It wasn't until early 1899, when word leaked out that gold had been discovered in beach sand, that the Nome gold rush truly began. Extracting gold from beach sand called for different methods. Conveyors and rockers worked more efficiently than sluices and panning.This 1899 or 1900 photo…
ID Number:SHS414
Date:Circa 1899
Image of Photo of map of Seattle before fire, 1889
Photograph

Photo of map of Seattle before fire, 1889

Seattle in the 1880s was a rapidly growing city, aided in no small part by the 1883 connection with the Northern Pacific Railway Company. Lumber and coal were the primary industries, but the growth of fishing, wholesale trade, shipbuilding, and shipping also contributed to the town's economic expansion and population growth. The Seattle City Census of 1888 records population at…
ID Number:SHS483B
Date:1889
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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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