Tag: Seattle Municipal Archives

Comptroller File 159643 contains a July 8, 1938, letter from Mrs. Ellie Barnhart of White Center complaining about fireworks being shot off near her home in White Center. She begins by declaring, “I am a tax payer…and I want protection.” The letter notes that she wrote with the same complaint the previous year, but that [...]

In 1960, officials from the Century 21 Exposition were in discussions with Seattle city officials over the construction of a 550-foot tower “to be used for restaurant purposes” on the grounds of the upcoming World’s Fair. Joseph Gandy, president of the Exposition, claimed that the proposed structure would be “of tremendous excitement, interest, and value” [...]

Clerk File 14547 contains the following report from Police Chief John Sullivan, dated April 24, 1902: “I beg leave to report to your honorable body that on the night of April 23rd, 1902, H.H. Wilkins Jr. and a party of friends entered the Goo Goo Saloon and Concert Hall, on the southwest corner of 2nd [...]

The century 21 Exposition, also known as the Seattle World’s Fair, was held between April 21 and October 21, 1926 and drew almost 10 million visitors. Though the fair was primarily administered by the non-profit private Century 21 Exposition, Inc., the government of Seattle was deeply involved in development and execution. The Mayor’s Office spearheaded [...]

High unemployment during the Great Depression led to scrutiny of families with more than one wage earner, particularly if one of those employed was a woman. A 1930 letter to a local newspaper complained that the wife of a fireman of the writer’s acquaintance “works in a store and lets two children run wild. The [...]

Earth Day is celebrated globally on April 22 to shine a spotlight on environmental issues with education and action.  Attitudes about recycling, composting, and solid waste have changed significantly since the first Earth Day in 1970.  Landfills were a primary means of disposal of solid waste in Seattle through the mid-1980s. The University Dump, now [...]

Opening of Lincoln Park Swimming Pool, July 27, 1925 This pool was dug out of dirt with a retaining wall of rocks along the sides. It filled with salt water from Puget Sound. A muddy bottom and control valves that did not always contain the water eventually required a pool made of concrete and tile. [...]