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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

6/23/2022

News Then, History Now

Gunned Down

On June 25, 1901, former Seattle police chief William Meredith -- who had just lost his job because of accusations of corruption made by theater owner John Considine -- attempted to kill Considine in Pioneer Square, but was himself gunned down inside the G. O. Guy drugstore. Although the press portrayed Considine as the assailant, he was found not guilty of murder and went on to become a noted and respected member of Seattle society.

Driving Over

On the day the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition opened in Seattle, six cars left New York in a transcontinental auto race. Twenty-three days later, on June 23, 1909, the first car to cross the finish line in Seattle was Henry Ford's Model T, which had entered production just a few months earlier. The car was disqualified, but not before Ford got all the publicity he needed to make it the best-selling car of its era. Fifty years later, the Ford Motor Co. held a re-enactment of the race. Playing it smart this time, the company made sure only Ford cars competed.

Burned Up

On June 26, 1925, a discarded cigarette tossed by a careless smoker caused a huge fire that wiped out most of the mill town of Monohon, the namesake of one of its first settlers. And on June 27, 1934, explosions demolished the J. A. Denn Powder Company plant near Lacey, but the buildings were so obliterated no cause was ever determined.

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Flying saucers, first in world, reported near Mount Rainier on June 24, 1947.
Flying Saucers
Lake City resident takes first published photograph of a so-called flying saucer on July 4, 1947.
Seattle Neighborhoods: Lake City -- Thumbnail History
Dahl and Crissman report a June 21, 1947, explosion of a flying saucer over Maury Island on or after June 26, 1947.
Windshield pitting incidents in Washington reach fever pitch on April 15, 1954.
Lesbians and gays celebrate Seattle's first Gay Pride Week beginning on June 24, 1974.
Queer History in Seattle, Part 1: to 1967
Sarah Yesler arrives in Seattle in July 1858.
Casino Pool Room, one of the earliest Seattle establishments for gays, opens in 1930.
Lesbians' first Seattle bar opens about 1950.
Police shakedown a Seattle gay bathhouse for payoffs from 1965 to 1968.
Queer History in Seattle, Part 2: After Stonewall
Dorian House, pioneering gay counseling service, opens in Seattle on July 7, 1969.
John Singer and Paul Barwick are denied a marriage license in Seattle on September 20, 1971.
Hunthausen, Archbishop Raymond Gerhardt (1921-2018)
Catholic Archbishop of Seattle Hunthausen issues a letter against homosexual discrimination on July 1, 1977.
Anderson, Cal (1948-1995)
Cal Anderson becomes Washington's first openly gay legislator on November 9, 1987.
Seattle voters reject Initiative 13 and uphold gay and lesbian rights on November 7, 1978.
Governor Christine Gregoire signs bill extending civil rights laws to gays and lesbians on January 31, 2006.
Washington voters support domestic partnerships, reject tax limits, and fill local offices on November 3, 2009.
Seattle hip-hop duo Macklemore & Ryan Lewis perform their gay-rights hit
Marriage Equality and Gay Rights in Washington
Washington voters approve same-sex marriage, legalize recreational marijuana, and support re-election of President Barack Obama on November 6, 2012.
Considine, John William (1863-1943)
Seattle's newly resigned police chief William Meredith is killed in a sensational shootout in Seattle on June 25, 1901.
G. O. Guy Drugs
Seattle's Orpheum Theatre opens at 3rd Avenue and Madison Street on May 15, 1911.
Cornerstone for new Seattle lodge of Fraternal Order of Eagles, Aerie No. 1 is placed on February 22, 1925.
Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition opens in Seattle on June 1, 1909.
Transcontinental auto race ends in Seattle on June 23, 1909.
Re-creation of A-Y-P transcontinental auto race is celebrated in Seattle on June 23, 1959.
Fire destroys mill town of Monohon on Lake Sammamish on June 26, 1925.
Monohon -- Thumbnail History
Monohon, Martin (1820-1914)
Explosions at the J. A. Denn Powder Company, in Hawk's Prairie near Lacey, kill 10 and injure seven on June 27, 1934.
Lacey -- Thumbnail History
Roald Amundsen and crew of the airship Norge visit Seattle after their historic North Pole flight on June 27, 1926.
Polar Exploration: Washington and its Golden Age
Seattle Art Museum opens in Volunteer Park on June 23, 1933.
Washington State Convention & Trade Center officially opens in Seattle on June 23, 1988.
Experience Music Project opens at Seattle Center on June 23, 2000.
Snohomish -- Thumbnail History
Snohomish incorporates as a city of the third class on June 26, 1890.
Mount Vernon -- Thumbnail History
Mount Vernon voters approve city incorporation on June 27, 1890.
Sultan is incorporated on June 28, 1905.
Deer Park -- Thumbnail History
Deer Park incorporates on June 24, 1908.
Westport -- Thumbnail History
The town of Westport is incorporated on June 26, 1914.