Preview up to 100 items from this collection below. Seattle’s Pike Place Market became a historic district in 1971, the result of grassroots organizers led by Victor Steinbrueck. This collection features blueprints, posters, articles and papers related to the market.
Friends of the Market position statement on Pike Plaza Revelopment Project #21
The statement outlines the issues that the Friends group has with the redevelopment plan including the displacement of farmers and proposed usage of buildings in the area. The Friends group emphasizes the need for improvements that will benefit the farmers and the introduction of more low income housing in the area.
Identifier: spl_ps_015
View this itemIllustrated Pike Place Market shopping bag
Illustrated, white paper shopping bag with illustrations in black depicting Pike Place Market scenes.
Identifier: spl_ps_025
View this itemPike Place Market ink drawing or screenprint
Drawing or screenprint depicting Pike Place Market at the intersection of 1st Avenue and Pike Street.
Identifier: spl_ps_022
View this itemS.S. Queen returning Washington Volunteers to Seattle, ca. 1900
On November 6, 1899, the S.S. Queen carried back the First Washington Volunteer Infantry to Seattle. The men were returning from service in the Spanish American War. The arrival of the volunteers was described in detail in a November 7, 1899 Seattle Times article: "Grand beyond description was the naval parade with which the returning volunteers were welcomed to Seattle and to their native state this morning. The assembling and marshaling of the fleets, its progress down the sound, its deploying in columns as the Queen as sighted, the approach of the Queen with the volunteers on board, the gay decorations that made the rigging on the vessels a mass of patriotic colors, the enthusiastic crowds of Washington people who had come to Seattle from every part of the state to welcome the returning heroes, the progress of the fleet up the channel after the Queen had fallen into her place of honor, the salvos of artillery, the deafening din of soul-inspiring music, the shouts from thousands of people who felt that no shout was loud enough, no hand shake hearty enough to convey, and finally the return to the docks, all made up a scene such as Seattle has never before witnessed. It was a historic morning, and from the moment the first gray streaks of light broke in the East and the pulse of patriotism seemed to throb and vibrate through the air, and the contagion of enthusiasm ran from home to home from street to street, from land to sea. Long before 7 o'clock crowds of people could be seen hurrying along the street toward Schwabacher's dock where lay the fleet that was to steam down the Sound to meet the Queen and welcome the returning volunteers. To the great relief of the eager watchers who peered out from their windows to watch the first omens of the weather, there was not a trace of fog on the water, and even the [illegible] clouds that for a time hung threateningly in the dull gray light of the morning finally broke enough to admit streaks of sunshine and the weather god seemed to look down with special favor upon the preparations for a state's greeting and tribute tot he patriotic valor of her returning sons. The long reaches of Elliott Bay lay calm as a sheet of molten glass, and the soft subdued light of the morning lent a peculiar charm to the marine view. At the dock lay the Holyoke, Tyee, Tacoma, Wanderer, and Maggie, all gaily decorated to honor the occasion." The same article reports 5,000 people showed up at the docks, jostling with each other to welcome back family members and friends. Another article reported a crowd of nearly 200,000 gathered in the city to celebrate their return. This was more than twice the 1900 population of the city which numbered close to 80,000. The Pacific Coast Steamship Line Company's Pier B appears at the far right at the base of S. Main St.
Identifier: spl_ap_00055
Date: 1899-11-06
View this itemDyea, Alaska from Dyea Mt., ca. 1899
Dyea was a short-lived town used by prospectors during the Klondike Gold Rush as an entrance to the Chilkoot Trail. It became less popular after a large avalanche blocked much of the trail on April 3, 1898 killing over 70 prospectors. In May 1898 White Pass & Yukon Route railroad route opened in the neighboring town of Skagway, offering a faster, safer way for prospectors and their gear to reach the gold fields.
Identifier: spl_ap_00136
Date: 1899?
View this itemPike Place Market architectural plans by George Bartholick, 1975
Architectural plans created by George Bartholick, an architect who worked on the restoration of Pike Place Market between 1974 and 1980. The plans depict several levels of the market including the Arcade and Mezzanine.
Identifier: spl_ps_020
Date: 1975-01
View this itemPike Place Market News, April 1984
Includes an article discussing the role of the Historical Commission in allowing larger businesses into Pike Place Market and raises concerns over what this will mean for the small business owners already struggling to survive. The issue also has a map of Pike Place Market listing current retailers.
Identifier: spl_ps_049
View this itemPike Place Market campaign buttons
Buttons with campaign slogans in support of or against the Friends of the Market Initiative to protect Pike Place Market from urban renewal plans.
Identifier: spl_ps_051
Date: 1971
View this itemPacific Magazine article 'Pike Place Market 10 Years After: Resisting the Tides of Trendiness,' September 13, 1981
Article about the history of Pike Place Market and the struggle by the Friends of the Market to protect the area from urban renewal plans in the 1970s.
Identifier: spl_ps_044
Date: 1981-09-13
View this itemUrban design plans for the Pike Plaza Project, 1968
Design plans created by the John Morse & Associates architecture firm outlining the proposed changes to the Pike Place Market area under the urban renewal plans.
Identifier: spl_ps_019
Date: 1968-07
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