File:Bird's Eye View, City of Seattle and vicinity, 1904 (MAPS 63).jpg

Lithograph.

Mounted on linen.

North oriented to upper left.

Printed in center of bottom: ”Bird’s Eye View City of Seattle and Vicinity. 1904. A. Robinson, G.A. Edmunds, J. P. Fuller, Owners. Published by the Seattle Map Co. Copyrighted.”

Printed in the lower left corner: ”Tucker, Hanford Co. Seattle.”

Depicts Seattle in detail, showing major streets, individual buildings, including Seattle’s first and recently completed skyscraper, the Alaska Building. Includes an index to prominent buildings and features such as Volunteer Park Reservoir and Mt. Pleasant Cemetery. Major buildings such as the Washington Hotel and various docks on the waterfront are labeled directly on the map. Depicts major bodies of water such as Lake Union, Green Lake, Salmon Bay, Smith’s Cove, Lake Washington and Elliott Bay. Includes an illustration of a train running north along the waterfront to the Great Northern Railway Docks by Smith's Cove in the Magnolia District. Sailing vessels and steamers are shown at dock and in Elliott Bay. The University of Washington northern campus grounds (marked as “State University.”) are shown as well as the university holdings in downtown Seattle.

This map was published in 1904 by the Seattle Map Company. Seattle was first officially settled in 1851 with the arrival of Arthur Denny and a small number of settlers. In 1852, businessman, Henry Yesler, chose Seattle as the site for a mill. Ten years later, Seattle was chosen as the site for the Territorial University. By 1870, the small village-like town numbered 1100 residents (Crowley). In 1880, Seattle’s length was about 1.5 miles along Elliot Bay and about ¾ of a mile wide. By 1879, there were about 50 houses and 200 people living next to the railroad terminus between Lake Union and Seattle (Buerge, 97). During the 1880s, Seattle experienced incredible growth with a number of buildings rising up. In the first half of 1888, 800 new homes were built (Buerge, 107). By this time, Seattle could boast all manner of establishments including churches, schools, a hospital, saloons, brothels, dance halls, reading rooms, theaters and an orchestra. However, the city still had a poor sewage and drainage system, composed of wood and prone to flood at high tide. On June 6, 1889, a bucket of boiling glue tipped over and caught fire in a pile of shavings in the basement of the Pontius Building at Madison and First Avenue. The fire spread quickly throughout the oldest part of downtown as most buildings were made of wood. The next day, new plans were made for building structures with brick and stone and raising the sidewalks in Pioneer Square. Streets were built wider and a new sewage system was laid. As a result of the fire, the real estate business took off at a rapid rate. Within two years of the fire, 3500 new buildings had been erected in the burnt area (Buerge, 107-113; Crowley). Seattle’s economic boom slowed down during the Panic of 1893. In 1897 when the first news of gold in the Klondike arrived, the city again began to grow as the “Gateway” city for the Klondike Gold Rush. In the beginning of the twentieth century, a cablecar system was implemented and eventually owned by the Seattle Electric Company. Meanwhile, the University had moved from its location downtown to its current site in Montlake, leaving a vacant spot that was soon to be filled in by businesses. By 1904, land between Pine Street and Lake Union had been cleared for new buildings. The same year, the Alaska Building, Seattle’s first skyscraper was built (Crowley). Source(s): Buerge, David. “Seattle in the 1880s.” Seattle: Historical Society of Seattle and King County, 1986. Crowley, Walt. “Seattle – Thumbnail History.” 26 Sept. 2006. Historylink.org.

• Subjects (LCSH): Seattle (Wash.)-Aerial views-Maps; Seattle (Wash.)-Pictorial works
• Categories: Bird's Eye View; Pacific Northwest