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Keyword(s): Jennifer Ott

47 Features

Aberdeen -- Thumbnail History

Aberdeen is located at the confluence of the Chehalis and Wishkah rivers at the head of Grays Harbor, at the southern end of the Olympic Peninsula. The region's rich fisheries and abundant timber supp...

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Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition (1909) -- A Tour of Selected Buildings

The Alaska-Yukon-Pacific (A-Y-P) Exposition took place from June 1 and October 16, 1909, on what's now the University of Washington campus, drawing more than 3 million visitors from around the state, ...

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Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition (1909): The Olmsted Legacy

The Alaska-Yukon-Pacific (A-Y-P) Exposition was held in Seattle at the University of Washington campus from June 1 to October 16, 1909. Planning for its extensive landscaped grounds and many buildings...

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Alaskan Way Seawall (Seattle)

The ledge of level land on Seattle's central waterfront owes its existence to the Alaskan Way seawall, extending from just north of Broad Street south to Washington Street below Pioneer Square. The so...

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Alaskan Way Viaduct, Part 1: Early Transportation Planning

Seattle's steep hills and the city's hourglass shape created by Lake Washington and Puget Sound on either side of the central business district have posed difficulties for overland transportation sinc...

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Alaskan Way Viaduct, Part 2: Planning and Design

Congested city streets, a deteriorating waterfront thoroughfare, and vehicle registration rates rising exponentially each year led city officials to begin looking for routes to bypass Seattle's centra...

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Alaskan Way Viaduct, Part 3: Building the Viaduct

After a protracted planning period that spanned nearly two decades, work commenced on the Alaskan Way Viaduct on February 6, 1950. The project, jointly constructed by the City of Seattle and the state...

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Alaskan Way Viaduct, Part 4: Replacing the Viaduct

When it opened in 1953, the much-maligned Alaskan Way Viaduct, State Route 99's route along the Seattle waterfront, offered the first route around Seattle's congested central business district. The ex...

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Bainbridge Island (Winslow) -- Thumbnail History

Eagle Harbor lies on the eastern side of Bainbridge Island, which is located in central Puget Sound directly west of Seattle. Until 1990 the community situated on the harbor was named Winslow. In 1990...

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Centralia -- Thumbnail History

Centralia's location halfway between the Columbia River and Puget Sound makes it a natural place for people to settle. It is situated in Southwestern Washington on the Chehalis River at its confluence...

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Chealander, Godfrey (1868-1953)

Godfrey Chealander was the first to suggest that Seattle hold the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific (A-Y-P) Exposition, the world's fair that in 1909 drew more than three million visitors. He came to the Northwest...

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Chehalis -- Thumbnail History

Chehalis, the seat of Lewis County and long a commercial center for area farmers and loggers, grew out of claim settled in 1850 by Schuyler (1810-1860) and Eliza (1826-1900) Saunders near the confluen...

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Columbia River Treaty -- Planning, Negotiation, and Implementation

The Columbia River Basin encompasses nearly 700,000 square miles in the United States and Canada. The river's main stem and several of its tributaries have their headwaters in eastern British Columbia...

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Container Shipping in Seattle: Origins and Early Years

From canoes to container ships, a variety of vessels have carried people and goods between Elliott Bay and the wider world for thousands of years. The introduction of new technologies, such as canoes,...

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121 Timeline Entries

Vashon glacier begins to melt and recede from Puget Sound region and Columbia Basin around 16,900 years ago.

About 16,900 years ago, the Vashon glacier begins to melt and recede from lands that will come to be known as the Puget Sound region and the Columbia Basin region. By 15,000 years ago, the glacier has...

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Captain William Clark of the Lewis and Clark Expedition visits the future site of Long Beach on November 19, 1805.

On November 19, 1805, Captain William Clark (1770-1838) of the Lewis and Clark Expedition visits the future site of Long Beach. Clark records in his journal that at the most northerly point the expedi...

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Schuyler and Eliza Saunders settle at future site of Chehalis on May 1, 1850.

On May 1, 1850, Schuyler (1810-1860) and Eliza (1826-1900) Saunders choose a homestead near the confluence of the Newaukum and Chehalis rivers. They are the first non-Indian settlers in the immediate ...

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Congress funds construction of military road between Fort Walla Walla and Steilacoom on December 29, 1852.

On December 29, 1852, the U.S. Congress allocates $20,000 for construction of a military road between Fort Walla Walla on the Columbia River and Steilacoom on Puget Sound. Settlers around Puget Sound ...

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Upper Yakamas in the Wenas Valley, led by Owhi, host Longmire-Byles wagon train headed for Naches Pass on September 20, 1853.

On September 20, 1853, a group of Upper Yakama Indians led by Owhi (d. 1858) hosts the Longmire-Byles wagon train at what will become known as as Owhi's (or Ow-Hi's) Gardens. The spot in the Wenas Val...

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George Waunch files a claim near future Centralia on land that will become known as Waunch Prairie on October 26, 1853.

On October 26, 1853 George Waunch (1812-1882) files a claim on what will be known as Waunch Prairie, just north of present-day Centralia. He has lived on the prairie intermittently for eight years, bu...

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Residents of Skookumchuck (later Centralia) begin building Fort Henness on October 17, 1855.

On October 17, 1855, after hearing news of Indian uprisings in other parts of Washington Territory, residents of Skookumchuck (later Centralia) begin construction on Fort Henness. The fort on what is...

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Secretary of the Interior J. P. Usher creates the Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation on July 8, 1864.

On July 8, 1864, Secretary of the Interior J. P. Usher creates the Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation, located at the confluence of the Black and Chehalis rivers in southwestern Washingto...

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Seattle Board of Trustees passes ordinance, calling for removal of Indians from the town, on February 7, 1865.

On February 7, 1865, the Seattle Board of Trustees passes Ordinance No. 5, calling for the removal of Indians from the town. Ten years after local tribes signed the Treaty of Point Elliott, ceding mos...

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Samuel and Martha Benn trade their homestead for Reuben Redman's land at the mouth of the Wishkah River, future site of Aberdeen, on March 13, 1868.

On March 13, 1868, Samuel and Martha Benn trade their homestead at Melbourne, a community on the Chehalis River near Montesano, for land owned by Reuben Redman (Martha's father) at the mouth of the Wi...

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Woodin family crosses Lake Washington to homestead on Squak Slough (later called Sammamish River) in September 1871.

In September 1871, the Woodin family traverses Lake Washington aboard a scow loaded with their belongings to reach land they have claimed on the Squak Slough (later known as the Sammamish River) at th...

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Seattle Coal & Transportation Company begins operating Seattle's first railroad on March 22, 1872.

On March 22, 1872, the Seattle Coal & Transportation Company begins operating Seattle's first railroad. Established by founders of the Seattle Coal Company, it is used to carry coal from a dock on...

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The Hoskinsons homestead Madrone (later Winslow) on Eagle Harbor, Bainbridge Island, in 1878.

In 1878, Madrone's first homesteaders, Riley and Martha Hoskinson and their children, arrive at Eagle Harbor on the southeast side of Bainbridge Island. The island is located in central Puget Sound di...

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Lake Union Lumber and Manufacturing is incorporated on March 9, 1882.

On March 9, 1882, Lake Union Lumber and Manufacturing is incorporated. The company owns the first sawmill in Seattle that is not located on Elliott Bay and marks the beginning of the shift northward o...

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