Old Photos Tell The Story of a City: Seattle

You know what they say: a picture is worth a thousand words. This statement rings especially true when it comes to the great cities of our nation.

Disasters

Being primarily a lumber town, many of Seattle’s buildings were constructed out of wood. This proved disastrous in 1889, when an assistant in a woodworking shop accidentally sparked what would become known as The Great Seattle Fire.

“Start of the Great Seattle Fire of June 6, 1889.” From the University of Washington Libraries Digital Collections via Wiki Commons

When it was all said and done, the fire (which burned for several hours) had destroyed 120 acres (25 city blocks), and caused as much as $20 million in damage ($527 million in today’s dollars). Miraculously, nobody died in the fire.

“Start of the Great Seattle Fire of June 6, 1889.” From the University of Washington Libraries Digital Collections via Wiki Commons
“Aftermath of Seattle fire of June 6, 1889 looking east at the ruins of the Occidental Hotel at corner of James St. and Yesler Way.” From the University of Washington Libraries Digital Collections via Wiki Commons

Despite all the damage, the city continued to grow. Businesses decided to rebuild on top of their destroyed locations, this time using brick or steel. Concurrently, city streets were raised up to 22 feet in places, to help level the city built on hills. Seattle also established their first professional fire department as a result of the fire. However, fires weren’t the only thing this city had to worry about.

“Rainier Valley flood, 1914.” From Seattle Municipal Archives via Flickr
“House damaged in Perkins Lane landslide, 1954.” From Seattle Municipal Archives via Flickr.

Floods, landslides, and of course, earthquakes.

“Earthquake damage in Pioneer Square, 1949.”
“Earthquake damage on bridge, 1949.”
“Damage to the Union Pacific Railway 1965 quake.”

We can’t talk about the bad times without celebrating the good times! Hit the NEXT PAGE BUTTON to see some of the fun things to do in Seattle throughout the years
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