See letters, photographs and other ephemera from two of Seattle's early families.
Unknown man in Minneapolis, Minnesota, ca. 1880
Photograph taken in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Identifier: spl_lj_035
Date: 1880?
View this itemWedding Invitation of Orion O. Denny and Narcissa Latimer, March 31, 1889
Narcissa Latimer married Orion Denny on March 31, 1889. Orion was the son of Arthur and Mary Denny and first white male born in Seattle. He served as president of the Denny Clay Company.
Identifier: spl_lj_071
Date: 1889-03-31
View this item"Monterey" gunboat in Port Orchard dry dock, ca. 1896
The Port Orchard Dry Dock mentioned in the caption is likely the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard.
Identifier: spl_lj_067
Date: 1896?
View this itemThe white spot
Frank Asakichi Kunishige was born in Japan on June 5, 1878. He came to the United States via San Francisco in 1895. After graduating from the Illinois College of Photography, he opened a small photography studio in San Francisco. Kunishige moved to Seattle in 1917. In the same year, he married Gin Kunishige and began working in the studio of Edward S. Curtis where he became acquainted with Ella McBride who he worked for in later years. Kunishige was well known for his use of Pictorialism, a popular painterly style of photography. He developed his photographs on "textura tissue," a paper of his own creation, which allowed him to produce almost dreamlike prints. His work was featured nationally and internationally in exhibitions and publications such as Photo-Era and Seattle's Town Crier. In 1924, Kunishige became one of the founding members of the Seattle Camera Club, a group of local photographers including Kyo Koike, Yukio Morinaga, Iwao Matsushita and Fred Y. Ogasawara who gathered to share techniques and ideas, as well as their deep love of the medium. Although the group was initially solely Japanese, they soon welcomed more members including Ella McBride, their first female member. When World War II struck and the country's Japanese internment policy was put in place, Kunishige and his wife were forced to leave Seattle for Idaho where they were interned at the Minidoka camp. After their release, Kunishige spent two years working at a photography studio in Twin Falls, Idaho but eventually returned to Seattle due to his poor health. Frank Kunishige passed away on April 9, 1960.
Identifier: spl_art_367924_05
View this itemOrion and Narcissa Denny home, ca. 1890
Orion was the son of Arthur and Mary Denny and first white male born in Seattle. He served as president of the Denny Clay Company. In the 1890 City Directory, Orion Denny is listed at 1108 Seneca on the NW corner of Boren and Seneca. When his wife, Narcissa, died in 1900 her obituary mentioned that the couple at lived at the 1108 Seneca address for several years. In 1905, Denny constructed a larger mansion designed by Bebb & Mendel on the same street corner (which then went by the address 1204 Boren). It's possible that the home shown here is the home where Denny lived from approximately 1890-1905 before the newer mansion was constructed. The Bebb and Mendel mansion was torn down in 1972.
Identifier: spl_lj_055
Date: 1890?
View this itemUnknown couple, ca. 1865
Tintype portrait of unidentified couple.
Identifier: spl_lj_018
Date: 1865?
View this itemUnknown woman in Abington, Illinois, ca. 1880
Photograph taken by C.H. Smith in Abingdon, Illinois.
Identifier: spl_lj_023
Date: 1880?
View this itemUnknown man in Galesburg, Illinois, ca. 1880
Photograph taken by Thomas Harrison in Galesburg, Illinois.
Identifier: spl_lj_043
Date: 1880?
View this itemDr. and Dorothea Bickford, Joe and Ollie, Alice Fowler, Emma Reynolds, Lillian Fowler, Florence Wiltsie and husband, Marilyn Wiltsie, ca. 1930
Dr. Ernest L. Bickford was the brother of Arthur Bickford, husband of Clara Latimer Bickford. Clara Latimer Bickford was the daughter of Alexander and Sarah Latimer and sister of Alice Latimer Fowler and Emma Latimer Reynolds. Lillian Fowler was the daughter of Alice Latimer Fowler and her husband Charles Fowler. Ernest and his wife Dorothea Bickford lived in Seattle for 40 years before his death in 1936. Their home, likely where the photograph was taken, was located on Mercer Island for much of that time. Transcribed from back of photograph: ""Dr. Bickford + Wife Dorothea, Joe + Ollie, Aunt Alice Fowler, Aunt Emma Reynolds, Lillian Fowler, Florence Wiltsie + husband [Lee Wiltsie]. Little girl is Marilyn Wiltsie. Bickford Home.""
Identifier: spl_lj_054
Date: 1935?
View this item