We have an exhibit on now called “Curators’ Choice” which features items selected by six of our curators as their favorite from our permanent collection. Ed Nolan, our head of Special Collections, included an old photo of Seattle in his selection. He talks about it in KUOW’s Sound Focus. You can listen here: http://www.kuow.org/defaultProgram.asp?ID=14786. He describes the photo and the many firsts that it captured.
Abigail Azote
Washington State History Museum
Via E-Mail 5/1/2008
Abigail Azote
Washington State History Museum
Via E-Mail 5/1/2008
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| Robinson panorama photograph of Seattle, Wash., dated 1869. Courtesy of the Washington State Historical Society. |
Anyone know the exact spot where this was taken? Jackson St? King St.?
Nice to see that the second oldest photo of Seattle is a panorama!
If this is the second oldest photo of Seattle, what is the oldest?
Was wondering the same thing as Scott — any idea on where the photo is taken from approximately? Presummably it is looking north (since Elliott Bay is on the left). Is the tree covered hill in the middle left of the picture Denny Hill long before regrade? BTW, the link to the KUOW site does not appear to be working (at least at the moment).
Alex:
I believe this is the oldest, from 1865:
http://www.nps.gov/archive/klse/hrs/hrs1-2.jpg
Cliffe
I am looking for information on an specific office building that was torn down in 1987-1988 in Downtown Seattle. It was the Bogardus Building located on 3rd Ave between University and Union Streets. Anyone having any information, photos please post them or send them to me at youngs411@comcast.net My maiden name was Bogardus and I have great interest in this building as I was told many of my relatives were in real estate.
Thank you!
Lisa
I had never looked at the National Park Service for Seattle History. One of these days I’ll have to tour some of the locations listed here: http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/travel/seattle/seatlist.htm
(It’d actually be kind a fun to do a Vintage Seattle Meet-up!)
Dear Scott, Bradford, Alex, Bryan, Cliff, Lisa, Jana and Ron it is best to call Robinson’s 1869 pan as the second general panoramic view of the city – or in that case town. The first was done by Sammis, who was also the first resident photographer – although not for long. Robinson was from Victoria. He moved about and was a man of many interests and talents. It is rare for Pacific Mag., The Sunday Seattle Times, to give more than part of one page for the “now and then” feature I do on Sundays – since January 1982 – but they did for Robinson. It was Ed Nolan who introduced me to it in 1996. I consider it – if we must – the “most revealing” photo of Seattle ever recorded. You can see it printed across the centerfold of the Sept. 8, 1996 issue of Pacific. They even used color! And The Times also printed the Sammis view for comparison. Both were taken from Snoqualmie Hall at the southwest corner of Commercial Street (First Ave. S.) and Main Street.
You can also go to our blog dorpatsherrardlomont and search the Pictorial History of the Seattle Waterfront, which so far is only about one-sixth up, but the remainder is written and only waiting on time & motivation to put it up. The Sammis view is shown and “explained” in Chapter three. You will also see or learn that there are many more photos of Seattle taken before Robinson’s 1869 visit when took his pan and also a view looking north on Commercial Street from near Main Street, so by many accounts it cannot count as the second photo.
I regret that the part of this Waterfront History that treats on the Robinson pan is not yet up in the blog-web or web-blog, but someday. Perhaps I can find some reason for putting it up in conjunction with another Seattle Now and Then, the weekly that we publish on dorpatsherrardlomont every Sunday that the Times also prints them. Frequently, we then add other now-thens out of our archive.
It was Ron Edge who found this conversation and alerted me to it. Ron’s Edge Clippings can also be found on dorpatsherrardlomont. Questions?