The free online encyclopedia of Washington state history

8314 HistoryLink.org articles now available.

Diablo Dam incline railway climbing Sourdough Mountain, 1930. Courtesy Seattle Municipal Archives, 2306.
Children waving to ferry, 1950. Courtesy Museum of History and Industry.
Loggers in the Northwest woods. Courtesy Washington State Digital Archives.

This Week Then

1/9/2025

Cedar Lake

News Then, History Now

On Their Way

On January 14, 1861, the Washington Territorial Legislature created Snohomish County by carving it out of the then-larger Island County. This week also marks anniversaries of Walla Walla, which was incorporated on January 11, 1862, and Colfax, whose residents voted to incorporate on January 14, 1879.

Opening Day

On January 13, 1892, the opening of a solitary building on a treeless 25-acre campus near Pullman marked the first day of classes at the Washington Agricultural College. Since then the college has blossomed into Washington State University, one of the top public research universities in the United States. The university has undergone many changes, especially during the past half-century, while remaining faithful to its mission of expanding access to higher education for Washingtonians on both sides of the state.

Sailors' Dismay

On January 14, 1899, the bark Andelana sank during a squall while lying at anchor in Tacoma, killing 17 crew members. On January 15, 1916, two children drowned when the passenger steamer Victor II capsized off Point Defiance. On January 12, 1936, 34 people died when the SS Iowa wrecked on Peacock Spit, and on January 9, 1952, the SS Pennsylvania, en route from Seattle to Japan, sank in the North Pacific with a loss of 46 lives.

Capitol News

Nena Jolidon Croake and Frances C. Axtell took the oath of office along with 95 male colleagues in the House of Representatives on the opening day of Washington's 13th state legislative session, on January 13, 1913. The two women were elected in November 1912 in the first state elections after Washington women gained the right to vote in 1910. Axtell represented a Whatcom County district and Croake was from Pierce County.

 

Wintry Views

On January 12, 1942, Seattle suddenly lost all electric power when an air-defense barrage balloon dragged its cable across transmission lines and shorted out City Light's grid. A year later, Puget Sound's wartime industries ground to a halt when snow and a cold snap hit the region on January 15, 1943. And on January 12, 1950, a huge winter blast knocked out power all across the state.

Rhythm and Blues

In 1918, the American Federation of Musicians (AFM) Local 493, the "Negro Musicians' Union," was formed when black musicians found themselves excluded from AFM Local 76, a musicians' union that dated back to the 1890s. By the 1950s, Local 493 was representing many of Seattle's rising African American stars -- including Ray Charles, Quincy Jones, Overton Berry, Dave Lewis, and Oscar, Dave and Grace Holden -- and the two musicians' locals merged on January 14, 1958 .

Today in
Washington History

New On HistoryLink

Image of the Week

Quote of the Week

"Water is the soul of the Earth."

 

--W. H. Auden

Major Funding Provided By

Education Partners