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Seattle’s Great Storm of 1916

February 22nd, 2008 @ 12:23 am by Cliffe | Sorted Photo Exposureborder
Deran Ludd comes through again! Just one week after sending in this cool Art Deco postcard, he just sent in a collection of photos from Seattle’s 1916 blizzard. This is the same storm that, in late January/early February 1916, collapsed the dome of St. James Cathedral. From February 1st to 2nd of that year, 21.5 inches of snow fell — which is still a record for the city. Check them out! And big thanks to Deran Ludd once again for sending these in.
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The view from Yesler Way, showing Smith Tower. Photograph courtesy Deran Ludd.
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Unknown street. Photograph courtesy Deran Ludd.
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Trolleys stuck in the snow at night. Photograph courtesy Deran Ludd.
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Creative residents build a snowman downtown. Photograph courtesy Deran Ludd.
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Digging out from the snow on a downtown street. Photograph courtesy Deran Ludd.
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The Coliseum Theater inundated with snow, 1916. Photograph courtesy Deran Ludd.
1916_snow_seattle_07.jpg
Seattle’s original post office on 3rd Ave. Photograph courtesy Deran Ludd.

9 Responses:

  1. Christopher Michael wrote:

    Wow, those are some great photos.

  2. Ben Lukoff wrote:

    Where are they from? Have they been published?

  3. Cliffe wrote:

    Mostly picture postcards I believe. Deran?

  4. John Eddy wrote:

    That unknown street, that wouldn’t happen to be First, would it? Did The Atwood move? I’ll have to take a look down there next time I’m downtown-ish.

  5. Manuel Wanskasmith wrote:

    Check out my photo from a year ago, same view as the first one in this post. The INS-CO-NY and the Pioneer Square Hotel buildings are still standing. 91 years.
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/manwhoyells/432560730/in/set-72157600302968508/

  6. Deran wrote:

    I was roaming around the UW’s online photo database, which has lots of Seattle realted images, and I found this one:

    http://content.lib.washington.edu/cgi-bin/viewer.exe?CISOROOT=/imlsmohai&CISOPTR=2108

    This is a Ashael Curtis shot from earlier on Feb 2, also of the Coliseum. I’ve never figured out who the photographer of the night shot is.

    The UW photographic database is a great way spend some time.

  7. Cliffe wrote:

    Nice photo, Manuel. What kind of gear do you use?

    Cliffe

  8. Manuel Wanskasmith wrote:

    Oh, just a Canon Digital Rebel XT. I believe that shot was with a 28-105mm lens. The trick was attending the WSDOT viaduct inspection tour, which provided that unique vantage point.

  9. Didi wrote:

    All the people who complain about snow with our modern conveniences should really transport themselves back during this era to experience the REAL inconvenience.

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