Category Archives: Seattle History

A Civil War Veteran in Seattle: George Boman

As of 1874 George Boman had done a lot of living in his thirty years of life.  He’d already been married and divorced in Tennessee, had fought for the Union in the Civil War, had made a new marriage in … Continue reading

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The 2022 Season of Cheer: Candy Cane Lane in Ravenna

The lights and decorations of Candy Cane Lane begin on Saturday, December 3, 2022, at 4 PM.  Candy Cane Lane is a circle of houses all decked out for the holidays, located on Park Road NE off of NE Ravenna … Continue reading

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Robinson Tile and Marble Company

The year 1909 was a busy, exciting time in Seattle in preparation for a world’s fair event called the AYPE. The Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition was to open in June 1909 on the campus of the University of Washington in northeast Seattle. In … Continue reading

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Seattle During and After the Civil War

During the American Civil War of 1861-1865 the struggling outpost of Seattle in Washington Territory anxiously watched and waited as to how the war’s outcome would affect not only national issues but how it would affect federal influence in the … Continue reading

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The Spiger Family in Ravenna

The life story of Henry Spiger tells of the western migration of Americans after the Civil War, and the attraction to the growth opportunities in Seattle in the 1880s. Henry Spiger, born before the Civil War, gradually migrated from his … Continue reading

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A Civil War Confederate in Seattle: John Scurry

The events of the American Civil War, 1861-1865, occurred far, far away in the eastern USA but during those years residents of Seattle certainly were aware of the conflict. In the decades after the Civil War, veterans tended to migrate … Continue reading

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A Civil War Veteran in Seattle: H.C. Henry

During the American Civil War of 1861 to 1865, one of the pivotal battles was at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, over three days: July 1, 2, and 3, 1863.  This titanic confrontation between Confederate troops commanded by Robert E. Lee, and the … Continue reading

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Along the Road: From Pontiac to Sand Point Way NE

There was not yet a road called Sand Point Way NE when the first commercial activities began at about NE 70th Street on Lake Washington.  In the 1880s Edward F. Lee had a boat-building shop there, and Osborn M. Merritt … Continue reading

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Sorting Out Seattle Street Names

In Seattle’s early years, 1851  to 1889, owners of property could lay out a plan for streets and give them any names they chose.  But as the city grew, segments of a street would often have several different names as … Continue reading

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Street Clocks in Seattle

In May 2020 a street clock called Benton’s Jewelers was removed from its location, packed and sent for restoration. The clock at 3216 NE 45th Street was located east of the University Village shopping center and east of the five-way … Continue reading

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