By early 1924, there were about 5000 Russians living in Seattle, most of whom arrived as refugees
fleeing the Russian Revolution and Civil War of 1917-1922. Many were well-educated, including professionals, former government and military officers, or former aristocrats. The Russian community in Seattle centered on the Orthodox church on Lakeview Boulevard, which hosted classes on citizenship and the English language. The community also published a newspaper called the Russian Gazette, with an English first page and the rest in Russian.

This photograph shows a group of Russian refugees arriving in Seattle on July 6, 1923 from Yokohama on the steamship President Jackson, which was part of the Admiral Line. Most of the 313 Russians aboard were students from the Russian National Students' Association, though they also included two Russian Orthodox priests, an official from the prerevolution government, a naval officer, a baron, and the head of the Students' Association.

Caption information source: "Russ refugees reach here in long flight," Seattle Post-Intelligencer, July 7, 1923, page 3.
Caption information source: "Russian immigrants in Seattle number 5,000 on February 17, 1924," by David Wilma, HistoryLink, retrieved from https://historylink.org/File/3602.