August 20, 2015 – August 26, 2015

General Dynamics

This week marks the anniversaries of two visits to Washington Territory by Civil War generals -- one before his rise to infamy and the other after he helped win the war for the North. The first visit occurred on August 26, 1856, when George Pickett (left, above) -- then just a captain -- arrived in Whatcom County to begin construction of Fort Bellingham. The fort wasn't there long, as pieces of it were moved to San Juan Island in response to the 1859 Pig War. After his home state of Virginia seceded from the Union in1861, Pickett resigned his commission in the U.S. Army and fought for the Confederacy. He rose to the rank of major general, but is most remembered for his disastrous assault at the Battle of Gettysburg that marked the South's last invasion of the North.

Two decades after the Civil War Washington greeted another general, and this one was welcomed as a hero. On August 21, 1886, General William Tecumseh Sherman (right, above) -- one of the Union's most renowned military leaders -- arrived in Seattle for a five-day visit. This wasn't the first time that Sherman had been in the Northwest. In 1883, as one of his last acts as General of the Army, he inspected all of the forts in the West, including those in Washington. But in 1886 the retired general was here on pleasure, and while in Seattle he enjoyed steamer tours of Lake Washington and Lake Union and was the honored guest at a clambake held at Alki Point.

Music Fanatics

On August 20, 1925, blasts from a tugboat horn cut short an outdoor concert in Seattle by world-famous opera diva Mme. Ernestine Schumann-Heink, leaving music aficionados feeling flat. The same could not be said for the young fans at the August 21, 1964, Beatles concert in the Seattle Center Coliseum. Their screams and shouts were as loud as the music, if not louder. Two years later, on August 25, 1966, the Fab Four returned to Seattle and rocked the house again.

On August 22, 1977, a more restrained audience gathered in the city when the Merce Cunningham Dance Company began a three-week residency, presented by the Cornish Institute. Cunningham, a Centralia native and former Cornish student, taught classes and debuted his new work, Inlets, with set designs by Morris Graves and music by Cunningham's longtime collaborator, John Cage.

News Then, History Now

Sacred Rite: The first Christian religious service in Seattle occurred on August 22, 1852, when visiting Bishop Modeste Demers held Catholic Mass, supposedly in Henry Yesler's sawmill cookhouse. Although many Native Americans, including Chief Seattle, had been baptized by Catholic missionaries, most if not all of the city's first non-Indian settlers were Protestants. Methodist missionaries David and Catharine Blaine arrived the following year, and in 1855 they built the town's first church.

Miners' Plight: The mining town of Franklin got its start in 1886, soon after coal production had begun in nearby Black Diamond the previous year. In 1891 the community was involved in a bitter struggle involving labor and race, but the town's saddest claim to infamy occurred on August 24, 1894, when 37 miners died in a fire, still the worst mining disaster in King County history.

Votes Nationwide: Ninety-five years ago this week, on August 26, 1920, the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was adopted, granting America's women the right to vote. Washington women had achieved suffrage a decade earlier, but not without a long struggle dating back to 1854 and the territory's first legislature.

Out for a Ride: On August 26 and 27, 1931, a public celebration marking the completion of the 330-mile-long Olympic Loop Highway (U.S. 101) was held in Kalaloch. In 1937 President Franklin D. Roosevelt toured part of the loop less than a year before he signed legislation creating Olympic National Park.

There to Provide: On August 21, 1932, Seattle's Union Gospel Mission, with the support of several local churches, began efforts to provide food and spiritual sustenance to the city's homeless. This week also marks the anniversary of the social-advocacy newspaper Real Change, which began publication on August 20, 1994.

Crossing Complete: On August 26, 1956, the Skagit River Bridge opened north of Mount Vernon. It made national news two years ago when it collapsed after being hit by a truck.

Battling Pete: On August 22, 1957, Yakima Valley native and Olympic boxing champion Pete Rademacher fought Floyd Patterson for the world heavyweight championship in Seattle's Sicks' Stadium. It was Rademacher's first professional bout, which made it an unprecedented event in boxing history. Be sure to enjoy a video of the match, included with the essay.

Quote of the Week

It is only those who have neither fired a shot nor heard the shrieks and groans of the wounded who cry aloud for blood, more vengeance, more desolation. War is hell.

                 --General William Tecumseh Sherman

Image of the Week

Bellevue Square opened on August 20, 1946.