William Nathaniel Bell (1817-1887) and his wife, Sarah Ann (Peter) Bell (1819-1856), were members of the pioneering Denny Party, arriving in present-day West Seattle in 1851. The Bells helped to establish the settlement that became Seattle, settling north of the future downtown in "Belltown." Virginia and Olive streets are named for two of Bell's daughters, and Stewart Street honors Olive's husband, Joseph H. Stewart. In 1856 William took an ailing Sarah to California, where she died later that year. William returned to Seattle in 1870, and found that his property had become valuable. He began dealing in real estate and investments, and remained in Seattle with his second wife, Sarah's sister, Lucy (Peter) Gamble (b. 1823), until his death.
The plat map pictured here shows William Bell's Third, Fourth, and Fifth Additions to the City of Seattle, part of his original donation claim granted by the U. S. Government. The map is stamped with the name of Oliver P. Anderson, a local an engineer and draughtsman who started his own company in 1890.
Caption information source: "Bell, William Nathaniel (1817-1887)," by Junius Rochester, HistoryLink.org Essay 2015.
Physical Description: 1 map : color ; 47.25 x 24.5 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.
