Donald Schmechel Oral History Collection
Watch oral histories with prominent figures in the Pacific Northwest including artists Jacob Lawrence and Kenneth Callahan; Governors Albert Rosellini and Dixy Lee Ray and Reverends David Colwell and Samuel McKinney.
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Municipal Plans Commission of the City of Seattle map showing Lake Washington-Union Bay Waterfront District, 1911
Map showing proposed city improvements under the Plan of Seattle, commonly known as the Bogue Plan. Designed by Virgil Bogue, Seattle's municipal plans director, the Bogue Plan proposed a series of improvements aimed at beautifying the city and making it making it more cohesive after years of rapid growth and industrialization. The plan worked in tandem with the Olmsted Brothers new system of parks, begun in 1903, and proposed new government buildings, an improved city center and an interurban road connecting the city together. The plan was rejected by voters in 1912.
Identifier: spl_maps_2465533_13
Date: 1911
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Josiah Collins VI Interview, January 19, 1988
Josiah Collins VI (1908-1990) came from a pioneering Seattle family and was active in real estate. He graduated from Yale University and served in the Army during World War II. Following the war, Collins was involved in Seattle real estate with the firm Yates, Riley & MacDonald and as a member of several organizations including the Seattle Real Estate Board, Building Owners and Managers Association, Society of Residential Appraisers and American Right of Way Association. He married Dorothy Priscilla (Patsy) Bullitt Collins in 1947 and together they had three sons.
Identifier: spl_ds_jcollins_01
Date: 1988-01-19
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Fred Bassetti Interview, January 24, 1987
Fred Bassetti (1917-2013) was a Seattle native and part of the “Northwest School” of architects. He attended Garfield High School and received his bachelor's degree in architecture from the University of Washington in 1942. During the war, he worked for the Federal Public Housing Authority. In 1946, he graduated from Harvard with his masters degree in architecture. Upon his return to Seattle, he worked for Naramore Bain Brady Johanson from 1946 to 1947 before creating his own architectural firm. Bassetti was responsible for the design of projects such as the Henry M. Jackson Federal Building, the Seattle Municipal Tower and Lakeside School among others.
Identifier: spl_ds_fbassetti_01
Date: 1987-01-24; 1987?
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Dixy Lee Ray Interview, August 23, 1986
Dixy Lee Ray (1914-1994) was a Tacoma native, scientist and the first female governor of Washington State. She graduated from Mills College in 1937 and earned her doctorate in biology from Stanford University in 1942. After completing her education, Ray taught at the University of Washington and served as the director of the Pacific Science Center, helping to define its direction in the wake of the 1962 World’s Fair. In 1972, President Nixon appointed Ray as chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission where she remained until 1975. Ray became of the Governor of Washington in 1976.
Identifier: spl_ds_dray_01
Date: 1986-08-23
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Jesse Epstein Interview, January 22, 1988
Jesse Epstein (1910-1989) was a lawyer and the first director of the Seattle Housing Authority. Epstein was born in Russia and his family moved to Great Falls, Montana in 1913. Epstein attended the University of Washington where he graduated with a degree in political science in 1932 and a law degree in 1935. He became the director of the Seattle Housing Authority in 1939 and held that role throughout World War II until 1945. During his tenure as director he supervised the development of Yesler Terrace which was the first housing project in Seattle. Yesler Terrace also notable for the fact that it was not segregated according to race (in contrast to many other housing options in the country). In 1945 Epstein became the Regional Director for the Federal Housing Authority (FHA) and became the West Coast Director the following year. In 1948 he left his position at FHA and refocused on his legal career. Epstein was heavily involved in multiple community organizations including Neighborhood House, the Mountaineers and the Washington Wilderness Association.
Identifier: spl_ds_jepstein_01
Date: 1988-01-22
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Sawdust burner
Thomas Handforth was born in Tacoma, Washington in 1897. He was an etcher, author and painter. He studied under Mahonri Mackintosh Young and at the University of Washington. He is the author of a Caldecott medal winning children’s book called "Mei Li" about a young girl in China, set during Chinese New Year. The book is full of illustrations of China where Handforth lived and visited.
Identifier: spl_art_H192Sa
Date: n.d.
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Baist's Real Estate Atlas of Surveys of Seattle, Wash - Plate 21
Baist Real Estate atlases of Seattle were published in 1905, 1908, and 1912. The atlases show property ownership (for large tracts), plats, block and lot numbers, streets, buildings, sewers, water mains, electric railways, and steam railroads. <br></br>The future site of the Ballard Locks appears at the top of the Salmon Bay Waterway.
Identifier: spl_maps_341191.21
Date: 1905
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Baist's Real Estate Atlas of Surveys of Seattle, Wash - Plate 13
Baist Real Estate atlases of Seattle were published in 1905, 1908, and 1912. The atlases show property ownership (for large tracts), plats, block and lot numbers, streets, buildings, sewers, water mains, electric railways, and steam railroads.
Identifier: spl_maps_341191.13
Date: 1905
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Kwakiutl dance masks (dry brush technique)
Helmi Juvonen was born in Butte, Montana on January 17, 1903. She worked in many media including printmaking, painting and paper-craft. She attended Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle where she met artist Mark Tobey with whom she was famously obsessed. Although she was diagnosed as a manic-depressive in 1930, she gained wide appreciation in the Northwest for her linocut prints depicting Northwest Indian people and tribal ceremonies. She worked with a number of artists on the Public Works of Art Project including Fay Chong and Morris Graves. Over the years, her mental health deteriorated and in 1960 she was declared a ward of the state and was committed to Oakhurst Convalescent Center. She was much beloved and had many friends and benefactors (including Wes Wehr) and was able to have exhibitions despite the confinement. She died in 1985.
Identifier: spl_art_J989Kw
Date: 1949?
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Roland Trafton Interview, 1986
Roland Trafton (1920-2005) was CEO of Safeco Corporation and a leading figure in local philanthropic efforts. Trafton was born in Venice, California and his family moved to Washington when he was young. He attended the University of Washington, leaving during World War II to serve in the Army Air Corps. Upon his return to the University after the war, he earned his law degree. Trafton married his wife Rose Marie in 1943 and together the couple had five children. In 1952, Trafton began working at Safeco where he held a number of positions before becoming CEO in 1979. During his time with the company he created the Safeco Art Collection which became home to works from many Pacific Northwest artists. Trafton retired from Safeco in 1979. He was heavily involved in charitable projects, fundraising for many local organizations such as the Pacific Science Center, Seattle Art Museum, Children’s Hospital and the 5th Avenue Theatre. His interests also extended to the outdoors where he was an experienced mountaineer and marathon runner.
Identifier: spl_ds_rtrafton_01
Date: 1986
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