10 1000 4th Ave NE

47.606721, -122.333292 (OpenStreetMap, Google Maps, Yandex Maps)

The Seattle Public Library
Signature of an official
Historical background Checkpoint picture 10
Seattle's first attempt to start a library association occurred at a meeting of 50 residents on July 30, 1868, but produced only minimal success over the next two decades.The Ladies' Library Association began a more focused attempt to put together a public library in 1888. They had raised some funds and had even obtained a pledge of land from Henry Yesler, but their efforts were cut short by the Great Seattle Fire of 1889. Nonetheless, encouraged by their ideas, the revised October 1890 city charter formally established the Public Library as a branch of the city government. The ladies' influence can be seen in that the charter required that at least two of the five library commissioners be women. The library was funded by a 10% share of city fines, penalties, and licenses.
The first library opened April 8, 1891 as a reading room on the third floor of the Occidental Block — later the Seattle Hotel — supervised by librarian A. J. Snoke. But in 1896, the library established a bindery, and a new city charter drastically decreased the power of the library commission and removed the requirement of its having female members.
Seattle suffered heavily in the Great Depression. The Library's official website describes the Library as having been "pummeled" in this period of "soaring demands and evaporating resources".
In 1998, Seattle voters, with an unprecedented 69 percent approval rate, approved the largest library bond issue then ever submitted in the United States. The $196 million "Libraries for All" bond measure, along with private funds raised by The Seattle Public Library Foundation, nearly doubled the square footage in Seattle's libraries, including the building of new branches and a new Central Library. The Seattle Central Library opened in 2004 and in 2007, the building was voted #108 on the American Institute of Architects' (AIA) list of Americans' 150 favorite structures in the U.S.
23 1511 5th Ave

47.611536, -122.336493 (OpenStreetMap, Google Maps, Yandex Maps)

Sewing machines to the left from the corner entrance
Brand of the machine in the middle of the second row from the bottom
VESTA
Historical background
The Westlake is truly considered as the heart of the downtown. This is a large transport hub: the light rail, many buses' routes and a monorail (until March 2019, buses ran along the light rail inside the tunnel). It's also a main place for shopping: there is the Nordtstrom headquarter and mall (founded in Seattle), the Macy's building is historical, because it housed The Bon Marché store (another chain founded in Seattle and existed from 1890 to 2005). And from the roof of that building the annual Holiday fireworks are launched. On the square across the street you can see a Christmas tree and Holiday season's decoration. Many other city events also take place here (concerts, festivals, parades). For the rest of the time there you can find lunch area, outdoor games and a children's play area.
30 508 Maynard Ave S

47.597931, -122.324912 (OpenStreetMap, Google Maps, Yandex Maps)

Seattle Pinball Museum
Signature of an official
Historical background
The Seattle Pinball Museum was born from a desire to share the games with other local collectors. Without help in the beginning from the local collector community, the Seattle Pinball Museum would not have succeeded. It opened in late August 2010 with the concept to provide vintage pinball machines as an interactive display of kinetic art.
During the search for an affordable venue, founders came across a program called Storefronts Seattle. Storefronts Seattle is a program that pairs empty storefronts and juried artists to revitalize a neighborhood. Chinatown & Pioneer Square were the first neighborhoods in the program for Storefronts Seattle. An application was submitted and ten juried artists were selected. The Seattle Pinball Museum was chosen as a creative enterprise. The initial grant was for a three-month stint at a vacant storefront in Seattle's Chinatown / International District. Storefronts granted an extension of five months and then Seattle Pinball Museum transitioned to a stand alone, independent business in June 2011.
The collection has grown to include games as early as 1934 to present day games produced by Jersey Jack Pinball, Dutch Pinball, Spooky Pinball, VP Cabs and Stern Pinball.
37 1000 4th Ave

47.606411, -122.332947 (OpenStreetMap, Google Maps, Yandex Maps)

Seattle Public Central Library
What shouldn't be put in the book drop return?
Magazines, newspapers or any type of bags
Historical background Checkpoint picture 37
Seattle's first attempt to start a library association occurred at a meeting of 50 residents on July 30, 1868, but produced only minimal success over the next two decades.The Ladies' Library Association began a more focused attempt to put together a public library in 1888. They had raised some funds and had even obtained a pledge of land from Henry Yesler, but their efforts were cut short by the Great Seattle Fire of 1889. Nonetheless, encouraged by their ideas, the revised October 1890 city charter formally established the Public Library as a branch of the city government. The ladies' influence can be seen in that the charter required that at least two of the five library commissioners be women. The library was funded by a 10% share of city fines, penalties, and licenses.
The first library opened April 8, 1891 as a reading room on the third floor of the Occidental Block — later the Seattle Hotel — supervised by librarian A. J. Snoke. But in 1896, the library established a bindery, and a new city charter drastically decreased the power of the library commission and removed the requirement of its having female members.
Seattle suffered heavily in the Great Depression. The Library's official website describes the Library as having been "pummeled" in this period of "soaring demands and evaporating resources".
In 1998, Seattle voters, with an unprecedented 69 percent approval rate, approved the largest library bond issue then ever submitted in the United States. The $196 million "Libraries for All" bond measure, along with private funds raised by The Seattle Public Library Foundation, nearly doubled the square footage in Seattle's libraries, including the building of new branches and a new Central Library. The Seattle Central Library opened in 2004 and in 2007, the building was voted #108 on the American Institute of Architects' (AIA) list of Americans' 150 favorite structures in the U.S.
39 909 1st Ave

47.604441, -122.336286 (OpenStreetMap, Google Maps, Yandex Maps)

Corner with Madison St. Memorial plaque
Who installed the lower plaque?
Survivors
Historical background Checkpoint picture 39
The Great Seattle Fire was a fire that destroyed the entire central business district of Seattle on June 6, 1889. The conflagration lasted for less than a day, burning through the afternoon and into the night.
At approximately 2:30 pm on June 6, 1889, an accidentally overturned glue pot in a carpentry shop started the most destructive fire in the history of the city. Over next two weeks there were couple corections about initial incident location, but the original error was often repeated. The fire soon spread to the wood chips and turpentine covering the floor. Attempt to douse the fire with water only served to spread the fire further. The fire department arrived by 2:45, but by that time the area was so smokey that the source of the fire could not be determined. A combination of ill-preparedness and unfortunate circumstances contributed to the great fire. Seattle’s water supply was insufficient in fighting the giant inferno.
By the morning of June 7, the fire had burned 25 city blocks, including the entire business district, four of the city's wharves, and its railroad terminals. Despite the magnitude of destruction, only one person was killed in the blaze. Total losses were estimated at nearly $20,000,000 ($558 million in today's dollars).
Rather than starting over somewhere else, Seattle's citizens decided to rebuild. Seattle rebuilt from the ashes quickly and new buildings were sat 20 feet above the original street level, and the fire killed many rats and other vermin, thereby eliminating the city's rodent problems. A new building ordinance resulted in a downtown of brick and stone buildings, rather than wood.
In the year following the fire Seattle’s population actually grew by nearly 20,000 to 40,000 inhabitants from the influx of people helping to recreate the city. Supplies and funds came from all over the West Coast to support the relief effort. The population increase made Seattle the largest city in Washington, making it a leading contender in becoming the terminus of the Great Northern Railway.
The advent of brick buildings to downtown Seattle was one of the many architectural improvements the city made in the wake of the fire. New city ordinances set standards for the thickness of walls and required "division walls" between buildings. These changes became principal features of post-fire construction and are still visible in Seattle's Pioneer Square district today. Also at this location, visitors can tour the Seattle Underground, where they can visit remains of buildings that were built over after the fire.
41 1600 Broadway

47.615499, -122.320687 (OpenStreetMap, Google Maps, Yandex Maps)

Jimi Hendrix statue
Characters on stickers near the door of the store behind the statue
Dog, cat, scarecrow, pumpkin and sun(optional)
Historical background
Jimi Hendrix is a Seattle native, which explains why the locals honored him in this manner. His mainstream career lasted only four years, but he is widely regarded as one of the most influential guitarists in history and one of the most celebrated musicians of the 20th century. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame describes him as "the greatest instrumentalist in the history of rock music". The statue at Broadway was unveiled in January 1997 in a veil of "purple haze" (colored smoke). There’s also a Jimi Hendrix Park in Seattle which, strangely, is not located near the statue. There's been talk for years of moving the statue over there, but so far it has remained in its original home.
44 93 Pike St

47.60878, -122.340161 (OpenStreetMap, Google Maps, Yandex Maps)

Pig's hoof print closest to 1st Ave
Second line from the top
A MARKET ANGEL
Historical background Checkpoint picture 44
Before the creation of the Pike Place Market in 1907, local Seattle area farmers sold their goods to the public in a three-square block area called The Lots. Most produce sold there would then be brought to commercial wholesale houses and most farmers, due to the amount of time required to work their farms, were forced to sell their produce on consignment through those wholesalers. The farmers typically received a percentage of the final sale price for their goods, but there were regular rumors as well as instances of corruption in denying payment to farmers.
As consumers and farmers grew increasingly vocal in their unhappiness over the situation, Thomas P. Revelle, a Seattle city councilman, lawyer, and newspaper editor, took advantage of the precedent of an 1896 Seattle city ordinance that allowed the city to designate tracts of land as public markets. The area of Western Avenue above the Elliott Bay tideflats and the area of the commission food houses had just been turned into a wooden planked road, called Pike Place, off of Pike Street and First Avenue.
In 1963, a proposal was floated to demolish Pike Place Market and replace it with Pike Plaza, which would include a hotel, an apartment building, four office buildings, a hockey arena, and a parking garage. This was supported by the mayor, many on the city council, and a number of market property owners. However, there was significant community opposition. An initiative was passed on November 2, 1971 that created a historic preservation zone and returned the Market to public hands using the donations from the people, whose names you can see in hoof steps on the sidewalk. Over the course of the 1970s, all the Market's historic buildings were restored and renovated using the original plans and blueprints and appropriate materials.
The Market's "Meet the Producer" mandate nowadays includes craftspeople as well as farmers. Both can rent daystalls. One of the Market's major attractions is Pike Place Fish Market, where employees throw three-foot salmon and other fish to each other rather than passing them by hand. When a customer orders a fish, an employee at the Fish Market's ice-covered fish table picks up the fish and hurls it over the countertop, where another employee catches it and preps it for sale.
45 1005 E Roy St

47.625197, -122.319751 (OpenStreetMap, Google Maps, Yandex Maps)

Graffiti behind a brick complex along Federal Ave E
Number of fishes
50
Historical background Checkpoint picture 45
Frederick William Anhalt was a builder and contractor who constructed many distinguished rental apartment buildings in Seattle in the 1920s and early 1930s. In 1993, the Seattle Chapter of the American Institute of Architects awarded Anhalt an honorary membership in recognition of excellence in residential design. His buildings have been referred to as "Castles in Seattle" and three of them including "Ten-O-Five" are listed as Seattle Historic Landmarks. Also this brick apartment complex is famous for having the first underground garage.
51 1245 10th Ave E

47.632038, -122.320793 (OpenStreetMap, Google Maps, Yandex Maps)

Thomsen Memorial Chapel. Sign next to the entrance
Number of vowels
8
Historical background
After World War One, growing diocese support led to a "Victory Cathedral", and land was purchased in 1923 on 10th Ave E. In 1926, Saint Mark’s was designated to be the Cathedral of this Diocese, and Rector John McLauchlan became the first Dean. A magnificent building was envisioned, plans were drawn up, pledges made, and in 1928 construction began. The Stock Market Crash of 1929 and the Great Depression that followed resulted in a considerable decrease in funds and construction was incomplete. Saint Mark’s Cathedral was dedicated on April 25, 1931 in a service that took place in Thomsen Chapel, the only space finished in the style meant for the whole Cathedral building. Cathedral has never been finished and its incompleteness is presented as "asceticism introduced by design".
The choir loft of St. Mark's is home to one of the largest pipe organs in Seattle. The organ was built in 1965 by D. A. Flentrop (Zaandam, Netherlands) and restored in 1993-1994 and 2001 by Paul Fritts & Company Organ Builders, Tacoma. The instrument has 58 stops/79 ranks on four manuals/pedal, and contains 3,944 pipes.
52 1400 E Galer St

47.63185, -122.31572 (OpenStreetMap, Google Maps, Yandex Maps)

Monument in front of the conservatory
Year of the quotes
1852
Historical background
Volunteer Park is one of the crown jewels of Seattle's Olmsted park and boulevard system. The land was first used as a cemetery and later redesigned as a city park. The graves were moved next door to the Lake View Cemetery and the fresh and free acres were held as a reserve for more "deep communion with nature." The site was eventually named City Park and in 1901, Volunteer Park, to commemorate the patriotic gang of locals who volunteered to fight in the Spanish-American War of 1898-99. The Board of Park Commissioner brought John Charles Olmsted, of the Olmsted Brothers, Landscape Architects firm to Seattle in 1903 to design a park system to provide open space for the city and to help guide development in the rapidly growing city. In his first comprehensive plan, Volunteer Park served as the central park of the system because of its location close to downtown.
The park includes a conservatory (a designated city landmark), completed in 1912; an amphitheater; a water tower with an observation deck, built by the Water Department in 1906, a fenced-off reservoir; the dramatic Art Deco building of the Seattle Asian Art Museum (a designated city landmark); a statue of William Henry Seward; a memorial to Judge Thomas Burke; and a sculpture, Black Sun, by Isamu Noguchi (colloquially referred to as "The Doughnut") around which a scenic view of the Seattle skyline that prominently includes the Space Needle can be seen.
61 424 S Main st

47.60029, -122.328788 (OpenStreetMap, Google Maps, Yandex Maps)

North-east corner of the building
Complete the phrase on the sidewalk "Idealism is ...?"
realism
Historical background
During World War Two when Japanese Americans were forcibly removed from their homes and communities, Gordon Hirabayashi, who was a senior at the University of Washington, stood up for social justice. He defied the mass incarceration of Japanese Americans during the war because it was racially discriminatory and violated his rights as a U.S. citizen and later he was jailed for refusing to register at an internment-processing center. He took his case to the Supreme Court in 1943, but his case was defeated. Forty years later, he fought and won vacation of his wartime convictions.
The internment devastated Seattle’s Japantown, or Nihonmachi, a 15-block neighborhood north of South Jackson Street that had thrived for half a century. The neighborhood never recovered and Japantown is limited to the area around South Main and 6th.
"With (Hirabayashi Place) we wanted to do our part to reassert the cultural identity of this little corner of the neighborhood," Leslie Morishita, lead housing developer for the nonprofit developer, InterIm Community Development Association.
The Legacy of Justice Committee is stewarding education and public art installations at Hirabayashi Place that will enlighten visitors about Gordon Hirabayashi’s courageous stance for justice, and contribute to the hopeful possibility that a horrible injustice will never happen again.
62 100 Yesler Way

47.601948, -122.333842 (OpenStreetMap, Google Maps, Yandex Maps)

Pioneer Square. Chief Seattle monument
Inscription on the back of the bust
Chief of the Suquamish
Historical background Checkpoint picture 62
Pioneer square was once the heart of the city: Seattle's founders settled there in 1852, following a brief six-month settlement at Alki Point on the far side of Elliott Bay. The early structures in the neighborhood were mostly wooden, and nearly all burned in the Great Seattle Fire of 1889. By the end of 1890, dozens of brick and stone buildings had been erected in their stead; to this day, the architectural character of the neighborhood derives from these late 19th century buildings.
In 1899, a group of businessmen stole a Tlingit totem pole (historically referred to the Chief-of-All-Women pole) and placed it in Pioneer Place Park. When an arsonist destroyed the pole in 1938, the city sent the pieces back to the Tlingit tribe who carved a new one and gave it to Seattle (after finally getting paid for the one that was originally stolen).
In addition to the totem pole, a wrought-iron Victorian pergola designed by Julian F. Everett, originally known as a comfort station and highly touted in tourism marketing, and a bust of Chief Seattle were added to the park in 1909.
Today, Pioneer Square is home to art galleries, internet companies, cafés, sports bars, nightclubs, bookstores, and a unit of the Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, the other unit of which is located in Skagway, Alaska.
68 1721 15th Ave

47.617055, -122.31299 (OpenStreetMap, Google Maps, Yandex Maps)

Fence of the staff parking lot
Number of kids
6
Historical background Checkpoint picture 68
Spend a moment to check out house next door (1727 15th Ave).
The Gaslight Inn also known as Signerman house was constructed in the early 20th century as a Craftsman Four Square for its first owner, Paul Singerman. Standing at three stories tall, built in a perfect square shape and heavily finished in elaborate detail, the residence commands attention. Mr. Singerman spared no expense in designing the 7,700-square foot residence to become a landmark feature of the neighborhood. The broad wood columns and porch, ornate twin circle windows, and hipped roof dormer collectively center focus of the structure toward the middle.
Mr. Singerman occupied the mansion for a short time before selling it, but his historical connection is important. Born in Poland, he eventually moved to California and became a wealthy businessman. Settling in Seattle, he opened The San Francisco Store in Downtown Seattle in the late 1800s. Mr. Singerman was also one of the few Jewish residents of Seattle and associated with the Jewish community in the Central District. The residence changed hands throughout the 20th century, eventually becoming the bed and breakfast that it is today.
The Landmarks Preservation Board recognized the transformation of residence to guesthouse as a particularly significant event meriting protection status. The preservation controls will be far reaching. Not only will the existing site and exterior features require care and protection, so will much of the interior. The first floor interior entry hall, main staircase, living room and dining room, library, and parlor will need to be largely retained as they are today.
79 1247 15th Ave E

47.629989, -122.315113 (OpenStreetMap, Google Maps, Yandex Maps)

"Black Sun" sculpture
Number of skateboard deterrents
9
Historical background
Volunteer Park is one of the crown jewels of Seattle's Olmsted park and boulevard system. The land was first used as a cemetery and later redesigned as a city park. The graves were moved next door to the Lake View Cemetery and the fresh and free acres were held as a reserve for more "deep communion with nature." The site was eventually named City Park and in 1901, Volunteer Park, to commemorate the patriotic gang of locals who volunteered to fight in the Spanish-American War of 1898-99. The Board of Park Commissioner brought John Charles Olmsted, of the Olmsted Brothers, Landscape Architects firm to Seattle in 1903 to design a park system to provide open space for the city and to help guide development in the rapidly growing city. In his first comprehensive plan, Volunteer Park served as the central park of the system because of its location close to downtown.
The park includes a conservatory (a designated city landmark), completed in 1912; an amphitheater; a water tower with an observation deck, built by the Water Department in 1906, a fenced-off reservoir; the dramatic Art Deco building of the Seattle Asian Art Museum (a designated city landmark); a statue of William Henry Seward; a memorial to Judge Thomas Burke; and a sculpture, Black Sun, by Isamu Noguchi (colloquially referred to as "The Doughnut") around which a scenic view of the Seattle skyline that prominently includes the Space Needle can be seen.