Suzanne Hittman Collection of the Pike Place Market
Preview up to 100 items from this collection below. Explore the early history of the Pike Place Market through letters, receipts, plans, rental agreements and other documents related to the market’s business.
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Rhythm in colors
James Winston Washington Jr. was born in Mississippi in 1909. He moved to the Pacific Northwest in the 1940's where he studied at the University of Washington Extension Program with painter Yvonne Twining Humber and printmaker Glen Alps. He also studied briefly with Mark Tobey. Washington exhibited in the Northwest Annual in 1948 and was curator for annual art shows at the Mount Zion Baptist Church in Seattle, Washington. He was a frequent lecturer at universities and colleges and earned an honorary doctorate from the Center for Urban Black Studies, Berkeley, California in 1975. He died in 2000.
Identifier: spl_art_W276Rh
Date: 1950
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Orion 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
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Letter from Arthur Goodwin to D.Z. Gourman regarding unauthorized signage at his stall, November 12, 1927
Letter from Arthur Goodwin to D.Z. Gourman informing him that he is not permitted to display the price of butter on his signage as it draws business away from other vendors at Pike Place Market.
Identifier: spl_sh_00094
Date: 1927-11-12
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Letter from Arthur Goodwin to D.Z. Gourman regarding poor business practices, March 11, 1927
Letter from Arthur Goodwin to D.Z. Gourman stating he has become aware of Gourman's practice of directing customers looking for butter to stalls on the upper floor rather than the closer stalls on the lower floor. Goodwin states 'We do not think this is fair to your neighboring merchants and we ask you to investigate and if your clerks have been doing this, to correct it.'
Identifier: spl_sh_00082
Date: 1927-03-11
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Letter from Arthur Goodwin to William Peterson regarding sagging floor in Economy Market. January 17, 1927
Letter from Arthur Goodwin to William Peterson of the General House Repair Co. asking him to look into the sagging floor of the Bartell's Drug Store located in the Economy Building and make repairs as quickly as possible.
Identifier: spl_sh_00048
Date: 1927-01-17
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Letter from Arthur Goodwin to D.Z. Gourman instructing him to stop selling certain products, November 12, 1927
Letter from Arthur Goodwin to D.Z. Gourman letting him know that they have received complaints from other vendors at Pike Place Market over the fact that Gourman is now selling goods such as cranberries and nuts at his stall. Goodwin instructs Gourman to stop selling these items, stating 'As a grocery, you certainly have more lines than any other business in the market and we canot contenance your converting your place into lines that conflict with specializers, who depend entirely on these commodities for their business.'
Identifier: spl_sh_00095
Date: 1927-11-28
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Aerial photograph of Pike Place Market looking north
Aerial photograph of Pike Place Market facing north. The viaduct and waterfront piers can be seen on the left side of the photo.
Identifier: spl_sh_00011
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Martinez seizes Colnett's ship
Parker McAllister, born in 1903 in Massachusetts, was a Seattle Times artist from 1924 to 1965. McAllister started his career as an illustrator at 14 for a Spokane publication; he joined the art staff at the Seattle Times in 1920. His first Sunday magazine cover was a poster-type illustration celebrating the University of Washington crew races in spring 1924. During McAllister's career, he created illustrations depicting “local color” events and situations now routinely handled by photographers. As the technology improved, he expanded his repertoire - he illustrated articles, drew covers for special sections and the weekly Seattle Sunday Times Magazine, and drew diagrams, comics, cartoons, and portraits for the Times’ editorial page. In 1956, an exhibition of his watercolor and oil paintings of Pacific Northwest scenes and historical incidents - including some paintings from the “Discovery of the Pacific Northwest” series - were exhibited at the Washington State Historical Society Museum in Tacoma. He was also a member of the Puget Sound Group of Men Painters. McAllister retired from the Seattle Times in 1965; he passed away in Arizona in 1970.
Identifier: spl_art_291985_16.149
Date: 1955
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I.A. Caraco receipt for the Desimon Bros. & Co., October 19, 1935
I.A. Caraco's receipt for the purchase of grapes from the Desimone Brothers & Company Vegetable Growers. The back of the receipt promises 'We believe everything you bought of us today will give you entire satisfaction. If there is anything wrong about this transaction we stand in readiness at any and all times to cheerfully rectify the same.'
Identifier: spl_sh_00051
Date: 1935-10-18
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Corner in bindery, ca. 1918
Stuart Morris was born in West Virginia in 1882 (?) and studied art in Columbus, Ohio and Philadelphia. He came to Seattle and became art editor for the Seattle P.I. where he was on the staff for nearly 20 years. When he retired in 1928, he was working on the editorial staff of the Times. He is famous for two sketches. One was of the ex-president Theodore Roosevelt which appeared in the paper the day after the president's death in 1919. The other famous sketch was of an old Catholic church on Denny Hill. Both images were requested by people from all over the country for many years.
Identifier: spl_art_M831Co
Date: 1918
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