Preview up to 100 items from this collection below. Seattle is literally built on sawdust. As pioneer mill owner Henry Yesler told historian Hubert Howe Bancroft, "We commenced sawing wood under a shed in March '53; the saw dust we filled swamps with, and the slabs we built a wharf with." This collection presents some of Seattle's historical "sawdust" - unique and interesting materials from The Seattle Public Library's Seattle Collection.
How Seattle Changed Its Face, 1975
A brief summary of the history of regrading projects in Seattle, written by the City Engineering Department.
Identifier: spl_saw_2085906
Date: 1975
View this itemSouvenir of Rainier National Park, Washington, 1913
Collection of colored photographs of Mount Rainier National Park. Photographs taken by F. H. Nowell, Curtis & Miller, H. L. Toles, Asahel Curtis, and Romans Photographic Company. Booklet is undated; some photographs are copyrighted 1913.
Identifier: spl_saw_2226125
Date: 1913
View this itemIndian Geographic Names of Washington, 1908
A compilation of Washington State place names of Native American origin, written by Edmond Meany and published by the Hyatt-Fowells School, a Seattle business college. The author, Edmond Meany (1862-1935), was a University of Washington history professor who published numerous books on Washington state history and origins of geographic names.
Identifier: spl_saw_766412
Date: 1908
View this itemSeward Park, the pride of Rainier Valley, 1915
"The queen of Rainier Valley parks, the largest and finest park in the city, and one of the finest in the world is Seward park, consisting of a heavily wooded peninsula jutting into Lake Washington from land contiguous to Columbia and Hillman. It is almost surrounded by water. So far, the park is in its wild state except for a picnic ground and many charming foot paths cut out by the City Park department. The plans which the Park Department have for its ultimate improvement will not mar its pristine glory, but will rather be designed to emphasize and enhance the beauty of the natural features. Its extent is so great that no charm of hill or vale, water or sky, wood or meadow is missing. It even has a beautiful little lake nestling in its bosom. The photograph shows a portion of the picnic ground at the entrance of the park, the slightly sloping beach and excellent opportunities for bathing and boating."
Identifier: spl_saw_557542_p23
Date: 1915
View this itemTide Lands, Their Story, 1906
Sales brochure for real estate properties in the Seattle tidelands. Includes history of Seattle tidelands and descriptions of tidelands in other cities.
Identifier: spl_saw_1837754
Date: 1906
View this itemThe Story of Hooverville, in Seattle, 1935
Typescript of memoir written by Jesse Jackson, the "mayor" of Seattle's Hooverville, a homeless encampment which stood from 1931 to 1941 at the site of the former Skinner and Eddy Shipyard in Seattle's industrial district. This typescript was presented to The Seattle Public Library by the author.
Identifier: spl_saw_2718576
Date: 1935
View this itemThe Insane in Washington Territory, 1914
A history of treatment for the mentally ill in Washington Territory.
Identifier: spl_saw_556156
Date: 1914
View this itemHistory of Ballard, 1937
Brief history of Seattle's Ballard neighborhood, published by the West Coast Improvement Company, the primary real estate developer of early Ballard.
Identifier: spl_saw_2147870
Date: 1937
View this item