In 1855, 16-year-old Gustavus Franklin Swift founded a butchering operation in Eastham, Massachusetts, and in 1875, the successful Swift and Company meatpacking business was incorporated in Chicago. In 2007, Swift & Co. was purchased by JBS USA Holdings, Inc. and continues as of 2019 as the Swift Trade Group of JBS.
Around 1910, Swift & Co. built a branch meat-processing plant in Seattle at 201 Jackson Street. In about 1940, the company moved to 1051 4th Avenue South. When this photo of Swift & Co. Seattle plant employees was taken in 1956, the Seattle city directory lists two addresses for the company: the wholesale meats plant at the 4th Avenue S. address, and a grocery division at 3420 E. Marginal Way. It is unknown which location is represented here.
Handwritten on image: Swift & Company, Seattle, Wn. - Sept. 19, 1956, "Sessions" Photo, "B."
Physical Description: 1 photographic print : b&w ; 20 x 8 in.
Additional Information: Digital copy of this item available thanks to funding from a 2016 Institute for Museum and Library Services grant. Metadata updated as part of a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services administered by the Library Services and Technology Act, through the Washington State Library, a division of the Office of the Secretary of State.
