For those of you who endured travel hell at the airport during the holidays, please forgive me.
I’d hate to drudge up bad memories so soon, but this
Past Postcard entry is dedicated to none other than Seatac Airport. The first card touts the $11 million airport renovation from 1949.
The second card shows a model for the “world’s first fly-in hotel” — The Hyatt House Hotel, which was right next to the airport.
The hotel opened in 1960 and actually just closed down (it was then the Radisson Hotel Seattle Airport) two years ago.
According to
this news story from the PI, the Hyatt House was a hangout for a number of famous musicians and movie stars over the years. Click on the images for full resolution.
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Front: Seattle-Tacoma Airport.
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Back: The new $11,000,000.00 Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, now serving the United States, Alaska and the Orient.
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Front: The Hyatt House Hotel
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Back: World’ s Fir st Fly-In Hotel. Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, Seattle, Washington. 125 new luxurious rooms –heated olympic size pool — banquet, dining, lounge and 24-hour coffee shop — beauty and barber shops — televisions and radio in every room — free transportation to and from Airport.
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I enjoy your blog immensely, however I believe that the postcard dates either to the opening of Sea-Tac in 1949, or soon thereafter.
http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=1004
At the end of this HistoryLink article, they quote the $11 million figure as the amount invested by the federal government, Port of Seattle and the airlines. The airport was officially dedicated on July 9, 1949.
Good eye, Neil. We’ll call it ’49 since we don’t know if it was printed then or in the early 50′s.
Cliffe
How much of the original terminal is still there–or is it all still there but they’ve built around it?
Too bad the hotel closed. Sounds like a once great place!
Interesting. I’m watching ‘The Slender Thread” right now and the finale takes place in the old Hyatt Hotel. A search (because I was pretty sure it didn’t still exist) led me to your site.
I was one of the first Director of Sales of the Seattle Hyatt and I ended up staying with Hyatt for 8 years. It took me 38 years to get back to SEATTLE when I started my own executive search business specializing in the hotel industry. I ended up hiring the last Dir of Sales for the hotel who works with me currently. If those walls could talk!!!
My dad is Jack Crouch, one of the original founders of Hyatt. I would love to hear from anyone that has worked with him. Please email me, brokerstars@gmail.com.
Thanks