Donald Schmechel Oral History Collection
Watch oral histories with prominent figures in the Pacific Northwest including artists Jacob Lawrence and Kenneth Callahan; Governors Albert Rosellini and Dixy Lee Ray and Reverends David Colwell and Samuel McKinney.
-
View of regrade from Washington Hotel looking south, ca. 1906
Photograph appears to be taken from near the former site of the old Washington Hotel at 3rd Ave. and Stewart St. The New Washington Hotel can be seen under construction on the right side of the photo. Although the regrade started in 1903, James Moore, the owner of the Washington Hotel, refused to clear the property until 1906 when regrading of Second and Third Avenues were well underway.
Identifier: spl_dr_042
Date: 1906
View this item -
Dixy Lee Ray Interview, August 23, 1986
Dixy Lee Ray (1914-1994) was a Tacoma native, scientist and the first female governor of Washington State. She graduated from Mills College in 1937 and earned her doctorate in biology from Stanford University in 1942. After completing her education, Ray taught at the University of Washington and served as the director of the Pacific Science Center, helping to define its direction in the wake of the 1962 World’s Fair. In 1972, President Nixon appointed Ray as chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission where she remained until 1975. Ray became of the Governor of Washington in 1976.
Identifier: spl_ds_dray_01
Date: 1986-08-23
View this item -
Baist's Real Estate Atlas of Surveys of Seattle, Wash - Plate 20
Baist Real Estate atlases of Seattle were published in 1905, 1908, and 1912. The atlases show property ownership (for large tracts), plats, block and lot numbers, streets, buildings, sewers, water mains, electric railways, and steam railroads.
Identifier: spl_maps_341191.20
Date: 1905
View this item -
Dale Turner Interview, February 27, 1986
Rev. Dr. Dale Turner (1917-2006) served as the pastor of Seattle’s University Congregational Church from 1958 to 1982. Turner was born in Glen Dale, West Virginia and his family moved to Ohio shortly afterwards. Turner attended West Virginia Wesleyan College and pursued a career in coaching before deciding to change directions and study religion at the Yale Divinity School where he graduated in 1943. In 1948 he married his wife, Leone, and the couple moved to Kansas where Turner became the pastor for Lawrence’s Congregational Church and taught at the University of Kansas. In 1958, Turner moved to Seattle to become the minister for the University Congregational Church. He held the role for 24 years and was a vocal supporter of pacifism, gay rights and civil rights.
Identifier: spl_ds_dturner_01
Date: 1986-02-27
View this item -
Narcissa Latimer Denny, ca. 1885
Narcissa Latimer Denny was the daughter of Alexander and Sarah Latimer. She had four sisters: Eliza Alice Latimer Fowler (1856-1934), Harriet Ellen Latimer Stephens (1859-1938), Clara Latimer Bickford (1861-1934), and Emma Chesney Latimer Reynolds (1864-1946). Narcissa married Orion Denny on April 1, 1889.
Identifier: spl_lj_046
Date: 1885?
View this item -
Regrade construction SE of New Washington Hotel, ca. 1906
The backs of the Washington Hotel Annex (later known as Hotel Gowman and Hotel Stewart), the New Washington Hotel and the Moore Theatre are visible in distance near 2nd and Virginia intersection.
Identifier: spl_dr_039
Date: 1906
View this item -
R. Duke Watson Interview, May 8, 1986
R. Duke Watson (1915-2010) was born in Alton, Illinois. He grew up with a heavy interest in the outdoors and first visited Seattle on family trips to the West Coast. He attended the Western Military Academy and the University of Illinois where he graduated with a degree in forestry in 1937. Watson moved to the Pacific Northwest shortly after to pursue a career in the timber industry. When World War II began, Watson enlisted in the Army where he served with the Tenth Mountain Division and became a major. On his return from the war, Watson married his wife, Marillyn Black and started his own lumber wholesale business. His interest in the outdoors continued throughout his lifetime and he became one of the founders of the Crystal Mountain ski area and a significant figure in the early history of North Cascades mountaineering.
Identifier: spl_ds_rwatson_01
Date: 1986-05-08
View this item -
Narcissa, Alice, Hattie, Clara and Emma Latimer, ca. 1880
Narcissa Latimer Denny was the daughter of Alexander and Sarah Latimer. She had four sisters: Eliza Alice Latimer Fowler (1856-1934), Harriet Ellen Latimer Stephens (1859-1938), Clara Latimer Bickford (1861-1934), and Emma Chesney Latimer Reynolds (1864-1946). The three women standing in the back are Emma, Narcissa and Clara. The two women sitting are Alice and Hattie.
Identifier: spl_lj_044
Date: 1880?
View this item -
K. Alvin Merendino Interview, 1988
Alvin Merendino (1914-2011) was a noted thoracic surgeon, known for his innovative contributions to surgical techniques. Merendino was born in Clarksburg, West Virginia and attended Ohio University, Yale and the University of Minnesota to receive his undergraduate, M.D. and Ph.D. During his time in Minnesota, he worked as a research Assistant to Dr. Owen H. Wangensteen in the Experimental Surgery Laboratory. He came to Seattle in 1949 and joined the University of Washington as a professor of surgery. In 1950 he became directory of UW’s Experimental Surgical Laboratory where he remained until 1972. During his time he also became professor of surgery and chair of the Department of Surgery. 1956 Merendino became the first person on the West Coast to perform open heart surgery. His wife, Shirley, was a nurse to whom he attributed much of his career success. Together the couple had five children. In 1976, Merendino took a leave of absence from UW to take on responsibilities at the King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center in Riyadh where he soon became director of medical affairs and during a later stay, directory of the Cancer Therapy Institute and the King Faisal Medical City. He was also active in the medical community, serving as a member of the National Board of Medical Examiners and as chair of the American Board of Surgery. In 2002 Merendino and his wife, Shirley, established the Merendino Endowed Fellowship at the University of Washington to support talented and impactful surgeons.
Identifier: spl_ds_amerendino_01
Date: 1988-04-14; 1988-05-12
View this item -
Baist's Real Estate Atlas of Surveys of Seattle, Wash - Title Page
Baist Real Estate atlases of Seattle were published in 1905, 1908, and 1912. The atlases show property ownership (for large tracts), plats, block and lot numbers, streets, buildings, sewers, water mains, electric railways, and steam railroads.
Identifier: spl_maps_341191.i
Date: 1905
View this item