Pacific Northwest History
The City of Seattle
This is one of the greatest days in the history of Seattle, but it is only a beginning for soon this city will have one of the greatest markets in the world. ...It is here to stay and there is no influence, no power, no combination and no set of either political or commercial grafters that will destroy it.
-An excerpt from the dedication at Pike Place Market in 1907,
by Thomas P. Revelle.
(citations at bottom of page)
Online Collections
The resources linked below are collections from various local institutions that house info on local history.
- The National Archives at SeattleThis website has a lot of information on the history of Seattle and the surrounding areas and includes many online collections.
- Seattle Historical SocietyWith an aim to education, advocate, and preserve, the Historic Seattle website provides collections of information and services.
- Tacoma Historical SocietyThe Tacoma Historical Society has many exhibits and Tacoma-centric artifacts, as well as some online exhibits and information about the city's past. *Includes sources on Seattle & King Co.
- Tacoma Public Library: Northwest RoomThe collection includes photographs, obituary information, historical building indexes, and northwest people databases.*Includes sources on Seattle & King Co.
- UW Digital ArchivesFind information, documents, and photographs on an array of Pacific Northwest related topics in the UW Digital archives.
- King County Archives - Online ExhibitsSearch through a dozen or so different, largely primary source collections on different topics pertaining to King County.
General History, Architecture, and More
Featured Articles
Linked below are articles both from the library's collection as well as online sources, such as the larger collections linked in this guide. Here you will find a mix of topics pertaining to the history of Seattle. Be sure to also consider the "People Groups & Immigration" pages in this guide to location specific Seattle & King Co. history resources on different populations of people, in addition to the "Trade, Industry & Transportation" pages.
- Brief History of SeattleFrome the Seattle Municipal Archives
- Mastering Nature: The Rise of Seattle, 1851-1930From the Center for the Study of the Pacific Northwest
- Seattle Culture & Local History - Seattle Public Library"Collections include postcards, maps, photographs, periodicals and documents that illustrate the history, geography, buildings, industries, populations and neighborhoods that built and grew Seattle."
- 150 Years: Seattle- from the Seattle TimesA timeline of the city's history with names, dates, places, and historic images and maps
- A photographic Heritage of Seattle & Surrounding areasKing County Snapshots presents King County, Washington, through more than 12,000 historical images carefully chosen from thirteen organizations' collections. These cataloged 19th and 20th century images portray people, places, and events in the county's urban, suburban, and rural communities.
- Seattle VoicesA collection of recordings, proceedings, transcripts, etc. on various topics in Seattle history from the Seattle.gov website
- SeattleFrom the Encyclopedia of World Biography
- Seattle, WashingtonFrom the Encyclopedia of American Environmental History
- Seattle (LGBTQ)From the Encyclopedia of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender History in America
- Seattle, Chief (Sealth)From the Encyclopedia of American Environmental History
- Seattle Culture & Local History - Seattle Public Library"Collections include postcards, maps, photographs, periodicals and documents that illustrate the history, geography, buildings, industries, populations and neighborhoods that built and grew Seattle."
- Space Needle at World's FairPrimary source account from the American Decades Primary Sources
- Seattle City Directories - Seattle Public LibraryThis "contains a selection of early Seattle, Puget Sound, Washington State, and Pacific Coast directories beginning in 1867 and ending in 1940."
- Quick City Info - Seattle - Seattle Municipal ArchivesIncluding historic landmarks, info on past mayors, ordinances, parks, population info beginning in 1870, and much more
- Century 21 Exposition (Seattle, 1962)From the St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture
- Olmsted Digital CollectionA digital collection from the Seattle Municipal Archives Digital Collections
Neighborhoods & parks
- Neighborhood Inventories - Historic SeattleInformation about the districts in Seattle, from the "Historic Seattle" website
- Cities and Towns - Topic searchFrom HistoryLink.org - search a list of articles about various cities in Washington state and the pioneers and natives who lived there.
- Sherwood Park History Files - Seattle Municipal ArchivesThis webpage has lists of historic info about many of Seattle's parks. Includes hand-drawn and historic maps, and info about park superintendents and commissioners.
Civil Rights and Political Activism
Featured Articles
Linked below are articles both from the library's collection as well as online sources, such as the larger collections linked in this guide. Here you will find a mix of topics pertaining to the history of civil rights and race issues, other political issues, strikes and protests, and much more. Remember to consider the other pages in this guide to find specific info on different people groups, as well as trade/industry-related issues.
- The Museum of History and Industry - SeattleFocused on the history of industry in the area, the museum website provides online exhibits and additional info.
- A brief history of LGBTQ Activism in Seattle - Seattle Civil Rights & Labor History ProjectFrom the LGBTQ Activism in Seattle History Project
- The Black Panther Party: Seattle and the NationFrom BlackPast.org
- Strikes! Labor and Labor History in the Puget SoundA collection of primary and secondary source materials on Labor history in the area - from the Special Collections at the University of Washington Libraries
- Seattle General Strike ProjectGet info on the Seattle strike of 1919 - includes photos and other primary documents, as well as information on labor unions and civil rights activists and events in the area.
- Anti-Chinese Activism — SeattleFrom HistoryLink.org
- Seattle Riot (1886)From " Revolts, Protests, Demonstrations, and Rebellions in American History: An Encyclopedia"
- Prohibition in SeattleAn article from Seattle.gov
- Mapping Inequality: Redlining in New Deal AmericaClick on Tacoma or Seattle on this interactive map that shows housing and population information from the 1930s and 1940s from the American Panorama website
Yukon-Alaska Expedition
Featured articles and collections.
- The Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition - UW Special CollectionsSearch through articles and images from this world's fair that was held in Seattle.
- Alaska-Yukon Exposition (Seattle, 1909)From the St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture
- Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition Digital Collection -Seattle Public Library a photographicThe Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition Digital Collection features books, pamphlets, invitations, reports, speeches, maps, articles and more. It includes items from the collection of the Museum of History and Industry (MOHAI).
- When the World Came to Campus: Alaska Yukon Pacific Exposition 1909View this online collection of articles and primary source materials about the "Legacy of the Alaska Pacific Exposition"
Source citations for this page:
[Pike Place Market, Seattle - early 1900s]. (n.d.). Pike Place Market. http://pikeplacemarket.org/ history
Pike Place Market Preservation and Development Authority. (2017, November 30). 110th Anniversary of the Market's Dedication. Pike Place Market. Retrieved March 17, 2021, from http://pikeplacemarket.org/blog/110th-anniversary-markets-dedication
Featured Books & eBooks
Click on the book, or title, below to learn more
Answering Chief Seattle
Available in print and electronically
Seattle in black and white: The Congress of Racial Equality and the fight for equal opportunity
Also in Print: F899 .S49 N464 2011
Native Seattle: Histories from the crossing-over place
Available in Print and Electronic form
- Chief Seattle
- Henry Yelser
- David Denny
- Isaac Stevens
- Arthur Denny
- John Low
- Asa Shinn Mercer
- David "Doc" Maynard
- Henry Atkins
- John W. Nordstrom
- Olmsted Brothers
- Eddie Bauer
- William Boeing
- Bill Gates
- Jeff Bezos
- Hudson Bay Company Trading
- The Whitman Massacre, 1847
- Great Seattle Fire, 1889
- The Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition in 1909
- Klondike Goldrush (Seattle was a major stop-over before Alaska)
- Northern-Pacific Railroad moves to Seattle
- Women's voting rights 1910-1920
- The Prohibition
- The Great Depression
- Everett Massacre, 1916
- The Flu Pandemic of 1918
- Boeing begins building plans circa WWII
- Seattle World's Fair in 1962, as known as the Century 21 Exposition
- University of Washington Campus, created for the Alaska-Yukon Pacific Exposition
- Space Needle & city monorail, created for the 1962 world's fair
- Pike Place Market
- Microsoft
- Starbucks
- Boeing
- Smith Tower
- Pioneer Park
Looking for articles from newspapers, magazines, and journals?
Remember to click on the Articles in the TCC Databases tab located in this guide to see a list of suggested databases. There you can find articles about the history of the Pacific Northwest. And be sure to check the other tabs in this guide, such as the People Groups & Immigration or Trade, Industry & Transportation for more Tacoma/Pierce County-related articles on a variety of topics.
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This openly licensed content allows others to cite, share, or modify this content, with credit to TCC Library. When reusing or adapting this content, include this statement in the new document: This content was originally created by Tacoma Community College Library and shared with a CC BY SA 4.0 license.
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