July 15th, 2010 by Cliffe | Sorted Photo Exposure |
4 Comments »
Ready or not, here comes Part 4 of the World’s Fair Sliding feature. If you need to catch up — just click
here,
here, and
here. Thanks once again to Josh Salwitz discovering and sending in this motherload of vintage Seattle Center construction photos.

Seattle Center and Space Needle under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center and Space Needle under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center and Space Needle under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center and Space Needle under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center and Space Needle under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center and Space Needle under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center and Space Needle under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center and Space Needle under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.
July 12th, 2010 by Cliffe | Sorted Photo Exposure |
9 Comments »
We’re starting the week off right with a vintage shot from Max R. Jensen. You may know the Washington Building as Puget Sound Plaza these days. It opened in the early 1960′s and was designed in part by legendary architect Minoru Yamasaki. Click below for the high res and
click here for the modern day.

Washington Building — Seattle’s newest major office building is a prominent landmark on Seattle’s skyline. Its 22 story gleaming glass and white marble exterior makes it a distinctive structure especially when illuminated after dark. The three story section fronting Third Avenue houses the new Seattle downtown Post Office. Color photo by Max R. Jensen.
July 8th, 2010 by Cliffe | Sorted Photo Exposure |
21 Comments »
From the Washington State Digital Archives comes this crystal clear shot of Pike Street circa 1902. There’s a lot to take in from this bustling scene: multiple modes of transportation, stores, signage, a whole lot of wires. Post your best guess for the modern day angle — who can place it more accurately? Click for the ultra high res.

Shows upper Pike Street, Seattle, Washington, 1902. Includes Broadway Pike cable car, horses and wagons, cars, Hotel Reynolds, Golden Shear[?] Bakery, Hotel Ethyl, Seren & Baldridge Tailors, and pedestrians. Photographed by Webster & Stevens. Image courtesy Washington State Digital Archives.
July 6th, 2010 by Cliffe | Sorted Photo Exposure |
12 Comments »
I hope everyone had an enjoyable July 4th weekend. Now we’re back and better than ever as we continue to present a goldmine of Seattle Center construction slides discovered by VS reader Josh Salwitz. He was kind enough to send them in for all to see. This particular set highlights the Space Needle being built. Click the images for the higher res copy.

Seattle Center and Space Needle under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center and Space Needle under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center and Space Needle under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center and Space Needle under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center and Space Needle under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center and Space Needle under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center and Space Needle under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center and Space Needle under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.
July 2nd, 2010 by Cliffe | Sorted Photo Exposure |
6 Comments »
It’s Max R. Jensen friday here at Vintage Seattle — where we celebrate the work of the prolific Emerald City photographer. This shot looks to be from the late 1970′s, showing a familiar Jensen angle. Click for the high res and have a great July 4th weekend, everyone!

The Seattle, Washington skyline is dominated by the 600 ft. Space Needle and skyscrapers of the Downtown Business District. On the right are the beautiful arches of the Pacific Science Center, and part of the busy harbor. Majestic Mt. Rainier dominates the horizon. Color Photo: Max R. Jensen.
June 28th, 2010 by Cliffe | Sorted Photo Exposure |
4 Comments »
Today we move on with Part 2 of our World’s Fair Sliding feature — if you missed Part 1 just
click here. As I excitedly told you last week, my inbox was stuffed with some fantastic images submitted by VS reader Josh Salwitz. He’d hit the jackpot while doing an art project by finding a batch of Seattle World’s Fair photos at the Salvation Army. Here are eight more shots. As always, click on the image for higher res.

Seattle Center under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.
June 25th, 2010 by Cliffe | Sorted Photo Exposure |
12 Comments »
Vintage Seattle contributor Allen always has a challenge for us here. His greatest hits include
The Great Seattle Train Station Mystery,
Have You Seen This House?, and
Seattle Speed Racer. Well, Allen is back and needs your help solving a mystery. He writes:
I have a mystery photo That I hope can be solved. I purchased this online and it was listed as Seattle but the seller wasn’t sure. The back of the photo has “Magnolia Bluff” written on it in pencil. I’d love to find out exactly where this was taken.
Allen

Photo with “Magnolia Bluff” written in pencil. Date unknown. Image courtesy Allen.
June 23rd, 2010 by Cliffe | Sorted Photo Exposure |
15 Comments »
I’m pretty excited today, folks. Vintage Seattle reader Josh Salwitz just sent in the motherload of privately taken ’62 World’s Fair snapshots. Not only are there beautifully clear color shots from the fair itself but also the construction of Seattle Center. He has done us all a huge favor and scanned the slides that he purchased at the Salvation Army for a mere $1.50. Sometimes history catches a lucky break. Let’s start with 6 from the lot. Josh writes:
Hi there! I just ran across your blog through Google and have been enjoying all the vintage pictures. While looking through your site it occurred to me that you may be interested in some vintage Seattle images that came into my possession. I recently purchased a number of slides from a local Salvation Army store for an art project I was working on and upon looking at them I found that they were photo’s from the construction of the Seattle Center and the Worlds Fair. I scanned in a majority of the slides [...]
Josh Salwitz

Seattle Center under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.

Seattle Center under construction, 1961-1962. Photo courtesy Josh Salwitz.
June 21st, 2010 by Cliffe | Sorted Photo Exposure |
6 Comments »
Yeesh — what a rotten start to summer. With all the bundling up I’ve been having to do at night (in June!) I’m getting tempted to do as the photo shows: bolt! The vintage shot shows a Boeing 720 Jetliner ditching Sea-Tac for warmer weather. Click for the high res.
United Air Lines’ Boeing 720 Jetliner on take-off from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Majestic Mount Rainier (14,408 ft. elevation) in background. Color photo by Max R. Jensen.
June 16th, 2010 by Cliffe | Sorted Photo Exposure |
12 Comments »
Not much pavement came in between
this moment in time and today’s photo showing the Space Needle. These were shot in 1966 by Marion Dean Ross. Is
this roughly the same view? Click for higher res.
 |
| Space Needle, photographed May 1966 by Marion Dean Ross. Image courtesy Visual Resources Collection, Architecture & Allied Arts Library, University of Oregon Libraries. |
June 14th, 2010 by Cliffe | Sorted Photo Exposure |
10 Comments »
June 9th, 2010 by Cliffe | Sorted Photo Exposure |
7 Comments »
Hot on the heels of his
last submission, Marty Corey sends in these superb photos his father took of the Joshua Green Building in 1950. He writes:
My Dad, Jack Corey, took these shots looking southbound at 10:35 AM at Fourth & Pike, and looking northbound at 11:15 AM, probably in 1950. Two movies are playing at the Colonial, one with Randolph Scott, one with William Gargan. According to IMDB, they never co-starred in a movie, and Gargan didn’t make a movie from 1949 to 1956, so the 1949-50 Ford sedans semi-confirm a year. Men’s tailors Lundquist-Lilly shares the 4th & Pike Building with HFC (Household Finance), in an office they occupied until at least the mid-1970′s, and the Arden Ice Cream shop was there until supplanted by Pay-N-Save. (I’d guess that my Dad was probably downtown visiting my Mom, who was an elevator operator in the 4th & Pike Building)
Marty Corey
5/12/2010
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| Fourth & Pike (Liggett) Building, 1950. Photograph by Jack Corey; courtesy Marty Corey. |
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| Fourth & Pike (Liggett) Building, 1950. Photograph by Jack Corey; courtesy Marty Corey. |
June 7th, 2010 by Cliffe | Sorted Photo Exposure |
5 Comments »
Max R. Jensen gets us started this week with a photograph showing the West Coast Paper Company. A quick Google Street View
shows there are no longer “reams of satisfaction” at 5001 1st Ave South. Click for the high res.
 |
| West Coast Paper Company, 5001 1st Ave. So., Seattle 4, Wash., “Reams of Satisfaction.” 2 1/4 Acres of storage and parking space in the heart of the Industrial Center of Seattle. Color Picture by Max R. Jensen |
June 3rd, 2010 by Cliffe | Sorted Photo Exposure |
3 Comments »
I’m really glad to say that photo submissions are rolling these days. It’s my firm belief that some of the most interesting content for this blog comes from the readers. With that said, E.O. Pederson wrote in from the east coast with this black & white impressionistic shot of I-5 going up. He writes:
As a native of Seattle, and a resident at various times over the past 4 decades, I have been following your Vintage Seattle blog for some time and have enjoyed many of the pictures. In a recent posting you requested shots from old shoe boxes, so here is one.
Attached is a photo of the Space Needle in the distance with I-5 under construction taken from behind St. Mark’s Cathedral in mid-March 1964 (do not have the exact date). At that time I was a UW student and had just acquired a new camera, so I walked from campus up Capitol Hill to take some “scenic” shots, all of them in B&W. This is the only one I have scanned as yet, but it does link to your recent theme of Space Needle photos.
I hold copyright in the picture, but I hereby grant permission to include it in your Vintage Seattle blog if identification of the source is included.
E. O. Pederson, Ph.D.
Fairfax, VA
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| Construction of I-5 with Space Needle in background, March 1964. Photo by E.O. Pederson. |