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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Albert and Audrey Kerry Interview, March 16, 1988
Albert Sperry Kerry Jr. (1903-1999) and Audrey Legg Kerry (1907-2005) were from pioneering Seattle families and were active participants in the city’s civic and arts organizations. Albert’s father, Albert Sperry Kerry Sr. arrived in Seattle in 1886, working to grow the city’s lumber industry and acting as a prominent civic leader. He served as the vice-president of the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition in 1909, president of the Seattle Chamber of Commerce and helped raise funds to construct the Olympic Hotel in 1924. Kerry Sr. donated the land that is now Kerry Park to the City of Seattle in 1927. Audrey’s parents, Louis and Helen Legg, were also early Seattle pioneers who moved to Seattle in 1876. Albert Kerry Jr. attended the University of Washington and served on the Seattle Art Museum’s Board of Directors for decades. Audrey Kerry attended Lincoln High School and the University of Washington and served on several clubs and committees including the Sunset Club, the Music and Art Foundation,the National Society of Colonial Dames of America in Washington, and the Committee of 33. Albert and Audrey married in 1928. They were awarded the Corporate Council for the Arts Award in 1997 for their support of the arts.
Identifier: spl_ds_akerry
Date: 1988-03-16
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Virginia Price Patty Interview, August 17, 1987 and March 28, 1988
Virginia Price Patty (1898?-1998). Patty was born in Paris, Illinois ca. 1898. Her family moved to Seattle in 1905 and her father started work with his cousin, Charles Wiley. Wiley’s hydraulic construction company was responsible for regrading Beacon Hill, King St. and Dearborn. She attended Lowell Elementary and graduated from Broadway High School in 1916. She earned her degree from Smith College in 1920 where her interest was drama and theater. Afterwards she returned to Seattle and attended Cornish College and business school. She worked briefly at the Cornish Theater and in the principal’s office at Garfield High School. Patty married Andrew Price in 1922 and they had three children. Price was involved in investment banking with the National Bank of Commerce where he served in multiple roles including vice president, director and chairman. Patty served as the Girl Scout Commissioner of Seattle and King County for four years starting ca. 1942. In 1946, she was named to the Board of Directors of Western Region Girl Scouts. She was also involved with the Junior League. In 1955, her husband Andrew passed away. She married Ernest Patty in 1968. He served as president of the University of Alaska prior to their marriage and was involved in establishing the school's mining and engineering department. He died in 1976.
Identifier: spl_ds_vpatty_01
Date: 1987-08-17; 1988-03-28
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Margaret Baillargeon Interview, August 27, 1987
Margaret Sheldon Ames Baillargeon (1898-1991) was a patron of the Seattle arts and served as a patron of many organizations. She served as president of the Cornish Foundation and as president of the Seattle Tennis Club board. Margaret’s stepfather, Edward Ames founded the Ames Shipbuilding & Drydock Company in 1916. Her husband, John Baillargeon worked in a variety of roles in Seattle’s lumber and shipbuilding industry, serving as secretary-treasurer of the C.D. Stimson Company, president of the J.A. Baillargeon Company, the Stimson Mill Company and the Ames Shipbuilding & Drydock Co.
Identifier: spl_ds_mbaillargeon_01_01
Date: 1987-08-27
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View east from 2nd Ave. and Pine St. to regrade work, ca. 1906
The Washington Hotel appears at the top of the hill. Although the regrade started in 1903, James Moore, the owner of the Washington Hotel, refused to clear the property until 1906 when regrading of Second and Third Avenues were well underway. The building that appears on the far right is a series of row houses located at 2nd Ave. and Stewart. The same building can be seen in spl_dr_027.
Identifier: spl_dr_036
Date: 1906
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