File:Totem pole in Pioneer Square, Seattle, ca 1909 (MOHAI 1595).jpg

The totem pole at Pioneer Square has been a Seattle landmark since 1899. In that year, a group of Seattle businessmen visited the Tlingit village of Tongass, in Alaska. They thought the village was deserted and removed the 50-foot tall pole as a souvenir. The village residents were away at work, however, and the businessmen were later fined for the theft of the pole. The pole was originally created as a memorial to a woman of the Raven Clan. After being damaged by fire in 1938, it was replaced by a duplicate pole carved by Tlingit craftsmen.

Signs in image: [...] Goldfarb, Tailor. Wm. Seeman, Merchant Tailor. Masquerade Costumes. Damus & Osner Real Estate. Merchants Cafe - Olympia Beer. Olympic Hotel. Northern Pacific Express Co. - Wells Fargo & Company Express - Burlington Route Freight & Ticket Office. Northern Pacific Ticket [Office]. Doctor Medical. Northern Pacific - Yellowstone Park [...]. [Calhoun?] Denny & [Ew...]. Ship [Brokers]. Handwritten on sleeve: Pioneer Square Totem Pole. Caption by MOHAI staff.

• Subjects (LCTGM): Totem poles--Washington (State)--Seattle; Business districts--Washington (State)--Seattle; Commercial streets--Washington (State)--Seattle