Ole and Anna Moen, both immigrants from Norway, met in Minnesota in the 1880s. She was a waitress at a hotel and he played cornet in the hotel band. He moved to Seattle in 1889 and she followed two years later; they were married the day she arrived. Ole and Anna are shown here with their seven children - Carl Henry, Ed, Louise, Albert, Elmer, Agnes, and Harold. They lived at 6513 32nd Avenue NW in Ballard.

This photo is part of a collection from Carl Henry Moen, who is featured in the photo. Moen was born in Seattle in 1892. His family moved several times as he was growing up, but settled in Ballard when he was nine years old. He helped harvest and sell the produce, milk, and poultry his family raised, and also was a messenger for Western Union, dug clams, and worked for Bemis Bag Co. Eventually he left home and began a 30-year career as a sailor, crossing the Pacific Ocean over 200 times.

Moen bought his first camera in 1909; it was a 5x7 view camera that used glass plate negatives. A bedroom closet in the Moen house served as his darkroom. Most of his photos from this period are of his family and friends, showing scenes of life in Ballard in the early part of the 20th century.