The first Gay Pride Week in Seattle took place in June 1974 with celebrations including a picnic, street dance, performances, and roller skating at the top of the Volunteer Park Water Tower. The week also saw the official opening of the Gay Community Center on Capitol Hill, which offered a… [ Keep reading ]
In the early 20th century, the campaign for women’s suffrage and activism around prohibition brought women into the public sphere. With the passage of the 19th Amendment in 1920 giving women the right to vote, the idea of women in the political arena was no longer unthinkable. In 1926, Seattle… [ Keep reading ]
The Police Academy Records (Record Series 6408-01) include pages from a notebook created by Howard E. Hartsfield when he was in training at the academy in 1952. The pages in Hartsfield’s meticulous handwriting note what he was learning in his classes, with the occasional hand-drawn illustration. His table of contents… [ Keep reading ]
Prohibition in Washington State went into effect 110 years ago this year, outlawing the manufacture and sale of liquor across the state. The business of regulating alcohol had been a concern of Seattle city government since the city’s incorporation in 1869, when the very first ordinance passed was to establish… [ Keep reading ]
We recently processed the records of City Councilmember Mark Solomon, who served as interim representative for District 2 on the council in 2025. Solomon was born and raised in the Beacon Hill neighborhood of Seattle. After earning a BA in humanities from Seattle University in 1981, he entered the U.S…. [ Keep reading ]
In 1962, Wing Luke became the first person of color elected to Seattle City Council and the first Asian American elected to public office in King County. Born in China, Luke moved to Seattle as a young child and attended Roosevelt High School where he was student body president. After… [ Keep reading ]
A council-vs-mayor kerfuffle broke out in 1973 over “promotional hosting” – that is, City lobbyists wining and dining state legislators as they argued for the City’s interests. Hal Meyer, supervisor of legislative research for the City Council, ran up over $6000 in credit card charges, mainly at Seattle (not Olympia)… [ Keep reading ]
Neighbor Appreciation Day started in Seattle in 1995 as an opportunity to recognize caring neighbors and help all neighbors to get to know each other. Over the past 31 years, the annual event – now called Neighbor Day – has continued to encourage community connections, with many neighborhoods participating through… [ Keep reading ]
We recently received an accession of posters from the Langston Hughes Performing Arts Institute that show the variety of events sponsored by the center over the years. With the help of our volunteer Natalie Edmonds, they are now processed and available as Record Series 7420-03. The Langston Hughes Performing Arts… [ Keep reading ]
In 1982, plans moved forward to install two 50-foot red cedar totem poles in Market Park (now Victor Steinbrueck Park), adjacent to Pike Place Market. SMA’s Market Park Totem Poles Photograph Collection (Record Series 5801-09) includes 125 photographs documenting the carving, finishing, painting, transport, and installation of the poles in… [ Keep reading ]
