VintageSeattle.org

A very cool new blog popped up recently from Seattle Times illustrator and Vintage Seattle reader Gabi Campanario, El Blog De Gabi Campanario. Gabi has been posting some really awesome sketches and I especially loved the House That Got Away feature. Also check out his Fairview Home sketch (I profiled the homes here) and the Minor Ave homes (which were what Jonathan Hanlon was actually writing in about). Give Gabi’s blog a look — you’ll be impressed.

Fairview home in South Lake Union. Sketch by Gabi Campanario.

Minor Ave homes in South Lake Union. Sketch by Gabi Campanario.

Ah hell naw, Dawg? Ah hell yes, Dawg! Sorry — had to get that out of my system. In the past we’ve explored Vintage Vegas and Chicag-ey. Now I want to draw your attention to Doug Dawgz Blog covering vintage Oklahoma City. Where Didi and I post piecemeal, Doug lays down the epic posts. Case in point: this stockyard post. Check it out and don’t be afraid to add it to your bookmarks. Here are two panoramic views of Oklahoma City from 1910. Oh and Doug, no bad blood with your city stealing our Sonics away. Seriously.

Panoramic view of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma circa 1910. Image courtesy Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

Panoramic view of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma circa 1910. Haines Photo Co.; April 21, 1910. Image courtesy Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

Links To The Past is back from the dead. Big week of news, mostly Ballard Googie related.

• Surprise: Denny’s Declared Landmark
  “Call it a Grand Slam of Googie proportions.” So begins the Seattle Times article on the Manning’s Cafeteria building becoming a landmark. Here come the puns.
• Ballard Denny’s Site Spared From Demolition: It’s A Landmark
  The PI chimes in with their take on the Manning’s story. But why does everyone keep referring to the building as “Denny’s”? That’s pretty innapropriate, kind of like calling the Alaska Building the Marriott Building.
• Googie Or Not, It’s A Landmark
  Knute’s take on the situation. Finally, “Denny’s” is left out of the headline.
• The Ballard “Upset”- Manning’s/Denny’s
  Blogger Peggy Sturdivant attended the heated Landmark Board meeting and reports on her experience. Definitely worth a read.
• Postcard Penned In 1929 Arrives In Boston Mailbox From Seattle
  You see one of these stories every once in a while — “wallet lost in 1940 finds its way back to owner 68 years later!” But this one has a postcard from Seattle arriving from 1929. Cool.
• Museum Of Flight Showing 75 Years Of Flying In Style
  Looks like the Museum of Flight has a nifty exhibit showcasing vintage flying styles. I need to make it down there — sounds interesting. Check out the slideshow for a taste. Great stuff.
• Bulletin: 3811 California Advances To Next Landmark Round
  West Seattle Blog reports on the Charlestown Court four-plex landmark nomination being approved. The next step is a public hearing on April 2nd. Sadly, this duplex probably won’t be so lucky.

What’s this? Links To The Past back for a second week. Say it ain’t so! It is so.

• Smith Tower Condos: Only The Top 12 Floors
  Plans to turn all of Smith Tower in condos have been scaled back, now with just the top 12 floors going condo. The sign of a slow market?
• Denny’s Fans Hunger For A Historic Grand Slam In Seattle
  Fine fine, the article title is cheeky but I have to admit to getting a chuckle from it. The visibility of the Denny’s Debate widens as the LA Times chimes in.
• Restore Vs. Raze
  Local Seattle preservationist and author Lawrence Kreisman calls a city without old buildings, a man without a memory. Great read.
• School Is Transformed Into Museum, Housing
  The Colman School Building has been transformed for a new century. I’m marking this one down for visit.

Links To The Past is finally back after weeks of very little preservation news. Onward.

• Sunset Bowl To Close In April
  This 50+ year old Ballard bowling institution is making way for (can you see where this is going?) apartments.
• Score One For Googie
  The Norton Building and Ballard Denny’s are being heard for official landmark designation today.
• Landmarks Board: Former Ballard Denny’s Worth Saving
  The PI weights in on the “Great Googie Debate” as well as the developers. Guess what they say?

Let’s take this slow holiday weekend to explore outside of Seattle, shall we? Uncle Jack Levine is running the Very Vintage Vegas Blog and doing a kick arse job of it with Las Vegas being an even younger city than Seattle. As he writes on his site, the 1950’s are considered “old” in Las Vegas. Jack is a realtor who has helped people find vintage (and other) housing in Vegas for the past 17 years. There’s also a great feature on the blog highlighting the worst MLS listing photographs and is it hilarious. Didi also posted regarding this dolphin shower curtain shot that had me in stiches. Just awesome. Give Jack’s Blog a click. And just to illustrate how young Vegas is, take a look at this city panorama from 1910. In 1911, the city had just 800 residents. That’s some serious growth in a relatively short amount of time.

Panoramic photograph of Las Vegas, Nevada. Circa 1910. Image courtesy Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

Links To The Past is back this week after a layoff during slow news.

• The Warpath Not Taken
  Mossback ponders how differently history might have played out had we taken a different tack with Native Americans.
• Historic Tacoma Bridge Closed
  Not quite Seattle, but close enough. The Murray Morgan Bridge was shut down for safety reasons.
• What’s Going to Happen To Oddfellows Hall?
  Local developers have purchased the historic Oddfellows Hall and citizens are concerned about the future of this icon.
• Treasured Dance Hall Sold; Some Anxious About Next Step
  The Seattle Times steps into the ring on the Oddfellows Hall issue.

I’m coming to you live from San Francisco, California (here attending a friend’s wedding). Here’s a roundup of what’s happening history and nostalgia-wise back home in Seattle.

• Last Days Of The ICE Age
  Walt Crowley’s last guest columnist piece for the Seattle Times before his death.
• Walt Crowley Memorial Draws A Big Crowd
  The PI reports on the Walt Crowley memorial service and looks back at his life.
• Remembering A ‘Citizen Of Seattle’
  Mossback weighs in on the Walt Crowley memorial.
• A Painful Reminder For Seattle In The War
  Crosscut considers what we can learn from the new Ken Burn’s miniseries The War, as related to our part of the world.
• Old Ballard’s New Hero Digs In As Retail Project Envelops Her Home
  Is Edith Macefield sticking to her principles or just being flat out stubborn? The picture that accompanies this story is really great.
• History Should Be Shared
  Jerry Large of the Seattle Times dwells on some local statues and what they mean to us now.

Just found out about Vintage Seattle reader Didi’s blog on Chicago called Bright Lights Dim Beauty of Chicago. Give it a read, it’s a nice chance to step out of Seattle for a bit and explore the history of another great city. Be sure to read her post on Suicide Secrets Of The Stevens Hotel — reminds me of the Stephen King movie I just saw called 1408. I’m thinking the Your History feature is a good way to find out about other parts of the US of A, so let’s keep this as a regular thing. And now for a Chicago themed visual. Click on the image for a high-res view.

Bird’s Eye View Of The World’s Columbian Exposition, Chicago, 1893. Image courtesy Library of Congress Geography and Map Division Washington, D.C.

Bird’s Eye View Of The Business District Of Chicago. Image courtesy Library of Congress Geography and Map Division Washington, D.C.

After last week’s deluge of nostalgia, preservation, and history — this week is much lighter.

• Jean Godden: Saying Goodbye To Our Friend, Walt Crowley
  Seattle City Councilmember Jean Godden says goodbye to HistoryLink’s Walt Crowley.
• It’s (Not) The End For The Last Exit
  Mossback breaks the news that the building of the Seattle landmark coffee shop is going down for the count. And then reports that it’s not.
• On Architecture: These Local Designs Are Simply Dispiriting
  The PI critiques some of Seattle’s more underwhelming architectural feats including The Westin Towers.
• Crowley Penned A Plan For HistoryLink’s Future
  Days before his death, Walt Crowley wrote a “Just in case” letter to his wife detailing his plan for HistoryLink and his replacement.

Well, well, well. Quite a lot of Seattle history and nostalgia to report this week. The Seattle PI wrote up a great series covering the last 100 years of the city. Speaking of last week’s links — I rushed out to the Bridge Motel on 99 late this week hoping to capture it before it was taken down. No dice. It was a pile of rubble. A shame. Other sad news to report this week is the passing of Walt Crowley of HistoryLink.org.

• 1907-2007: A Century Of Change In Seattle
  Though the past 100 years have seen great change in the city, some things remain unchanged. Casey McNerthney kicks off a great series from the PI.
• Seattle Bulked Up By Gobbling Tiny Cities
  Tracing the history of Seattle’s many annexations through the years. Learn the multiple meanings of “Free Ballard!”
• Moore Theatre Was Once Anchor Of Vibrant Arts Scene
  Was once and still is! Read up on the history of the Moore Theatre complete with an audio slideshow.
• Church Of The Epiphany Is A Constant In Changing Area
  This Seattle church has seen it all: firebombing, death by poisoning, epiphanies, and much much more.
• 100 Years At Childrens Hospital: No Ill Child Turned Away
  Another Seattle institution still grinding away after all these years. Children’s Hospital is now one of the leading children’s hospitals in the world.
• Does Seattle Have Too Many Historic Landmarks?
  Mossback asks the question and, as you may guess, the Ballard Denny’s is at the fore.
• Walt Crowley, Historian, Part Of City History, Dies At 60
  It is a sad day. Seattle has lost one of its great historians, Walt Crowley. The Seattle PI also reports on his life.
• 1907 Denny Mansion Opens Its Doors For Tours
  I was able to make it out today to the Denny Mansion to take some pictures. Will try to get them posted soon. The PI also has a story on it.

New updates have been a little slow this week as I’m out of town visiting family in Pennsylvania. Regular updates should resume later tomorrow or Tuesday night. Until then, here are this week’s Links To The Past.

• Artists Bid Farewell To A Seedy City Landmark
  Aurora’s vintage Bridge Motel, built in 1954 is about to meet with the wrecking ball. A group of local artists will give it a proper send-off.
• Fate Of Historic Building Set For Oct. 1
  The Mukilteo City Council is going to be voting on the fate of the historic Rosehill Community Center, formerly Rosehill School built in 1928. Outside of Seattle, but important.
• Gas Works To Stay Open Despite Pollution Work
  Environmental inspectors will be drilling holes around Gasworks in order to locate pockets of tar that were buried when the plant was turned into a park. Gasworks operated as a gas plant from 1906 to 1956.
• New Vision For Denny Park Includes Playground, Crime-Fighting Lights
  One of Seattle’s oldest parks may be getting $190,000 to build a children’s play area and improved lighting. The old park has been plagued by crime.

Ron Paul is *still* in the news, how about that.

• MOHAI Forges Ahead With Proposed Move To South Lake Union
  The City’s Finance and Budget Committee unanimously approves a resolution urging MOHAI to continue “due diligence” with their move to SLU.
• The Decline Of Gathering Places
  Pet Jackson explores the decline of third places like the Elks Club in Everett.
• Discovery Park Deal Nears Approval
  The City of Seattle and the Navy are nearing a deal to demolish military housing and sell the prominent houses of “Officers’ Row” built in 1904.
• Ron Paul For President In 2008
  The Hunt For Red November? Give me a break and go for Ron!

Had to skip over Links To The Past last week as there wasn’t a whole lot going on. But don’t you worry, we’re back and better than ever before.

• Past Still Present At Renovated Queen Anne Library
  An original Queen Anne Carnegie Library gets a coat of fresh paint, among other things. Just visited the Carnegie Library building in Ballard last week to snap some pictures.
• Proposal Limits Use Of Seattle Land Zoned Industrial
  Nickels has a proposal that will limit the amount of office / retail space allowed in industrially zoned areas. Liebman is unfazed.
• Queen Anne Church Rescued
  The historic 1926 Seventh Church of Christ, Scientist building on Queen Anne is saved from the wrecking ball. The PI has more on the salvation of the church.
• Barn Again!
  King County has a new program that offers barn owners grants, low-interest loans, and tax incentives to fix up their barns.
• Ron Paul For President In 2008
  While that old DA (who hasn’t even declared yet) may be besting him in the polls, Ron Paul is standing his ground.

If you can’t get enough Northwest history blogging, then I’ve got something for you. I recently came into contact with John Chilson and his excellent Portland, Oregon history blog Stumptown Confidential. He describes the site goal as a documenting Portland “architecture, history, and culture through photos, postcards, and words.” Now there’s a concept I can appreciate! It’s very well done — so give it a look over. If you didn’t know, “Stumptown” was a nickname given to Portland in the early days when rapid growth left untold numbers of tree stumps exposed, ready to be paved over. While you are exploring our neighbors to the South, also check this Portland Building Ads blog out. Just don’t go there if you’re scared of ghost signs. We will continue next week with the second half of my Live Historic tour, but until then let’s enjoy some hi-res Portland imagery. Click on the thumbnail if you want to inspect.

Panorama of Portland, Oregon from 1890 with Mount Hood in the background. Image courtesy National Archives.