Seattle and King County Milestones

Pre-1851

Earthquake of enormous magnitude hits the Pacific Northwest coast on January 26, 1700
Smallpox epidemic ravages Native Americans on the northwest coast of North America in the 1770s
Capt. Vancouver explores and names Puget Sound in 1792
Hudson's Bay Company establishes first Puget Sound post in 1833
Capt. Wilkes surveys and names Elliott Bay in 1841
Great Britain cedes control of Oregon Country to the United States in 1846
Congress creates Oregon Territory (including Washington and Idaho) in 1848
Donation Land Claims Act takes effect on September 27, 1850, spurring American settlement of Oregon Territory.

1851-1860

Collins, Van Asselt, and Mapel select first legal Donation Land Claims in King County on September 16, 1851
Denny Party lands at Alki beach on November 13, 1851
Denny Party select claims on site of Seattle on February 15, 1852
Most of Denny Party settlers relocate to present-day downtown Seattle in April 1852
Henry Yesler picks Seattle for Puget Sound's first steam-powered sawmill in fall of 1852
King County created on December 22, 1852
Manuel Lopes (1812-?) arrives and establishes Seattle's first black-owned business in 1852
Washington Territory created on March 2, 1853
Duwamish Coal Company established near Black River on October 20, 1853
Most Native American tribal leaders sign treaties in 1855
The Rev. David Blaine builds Seattle's first church in 1855
Native Americans attack Seattle on January 26, 1856
Population in King County in 1860 tops 300

1861-1870

Territorial University (University of Washington) opens on November 4, 1861
Catastrophic preventable smallpox epidemic kills 14,000 Northwest Coast Indians from April to December, 1862
Seattle's first newspaper, Seattle Gazette, is published in 1863
First group of Mercer's Maidens arrive in 1864
Transcontinental telegraph reaches Seattle in 1864
Chief Seattle dies in 1866
Snoqualmie Pass wagon road completed on October 7, 1867
U. S. Senate ratifies purchase of Alaska from Russia on April 9, 1867
City of Seattle incorporated (for second time) in 1869
Northern Pacific Railroad survey triggers land boom in 1870
1870 Census: Population tops 1,100 in Seattle and 2,100 in King County in 1870

1871-1880

Coal train runs on first railroad in Western Washington on March 25, 1872
Schwabacher Brothers erect Seattle's first brick building in 1872
Coal gas lights Seattle streets, businesses, and homes for the first time on December 31, 1873
Northern Pacific Railroad picks Tacoma over Seattle for its western terminus in 1873
Construction of independent Seattle & Walla Walla Railroad begins in 1874
YMCA holds its first Seattle meeting on August 7, 1876
Telephone is demonstrated in Seattle in 1878
Squire's Opera House, Seattle's first theater, opens on November 24, 1879
1880 Census: Population of King County nearly 7,000 and that of Seattle tops 3,500 in 1880

1881-1890

Lynch mob hangs three men in Seattle on January 18, 1882
Steamship, first to cross Pacific from Seattle, departs Seattle in December 1882
Women granted right to vote in city elections (later repealed and restored) 1883
Northern Pacific builds railroad spur from Tacoma to Seattle in 1884
Chinese people rounded up by Seattle mob on February 7, 1886
First electric generator demonstrated in 1886
Ferry service starts between Seattle and West Seattle on December 24, 1888
Washington is admitted as the 42nd state to the United States of America on November 11, 1889
Electric trolley line in Seattle begins regular service on March 31, 1889
Most of Seattle burns to the ground on June 6, 1889
1890 Census: Population of King County tops 63,000 and that of Seattle tops 42,000 in 1890

1891-1900

Seattle University forerunner, St. Francis Hall, opens in February 1891
Annexation of north-of-downtown communities doubles Seattle's size on May 3, 1891
Transcontinental travel from Seattle begins on June 11, 1893
Panic of 1893 sends King County into a four year depression on May 5, 1893
Classes begin at new University of Washington campus in 1895
Japanese shipping firm begins regular run between Seattle and Japan on August 31, 1896
Steamship docks in Seattle, with ton of gold, from Klondike on June 17, 1897
First phase of Denny Hill regrade completed in 1899
Seattle's first automobile, a Woods Electric, arrives in 1900
Weyerhaeuser buys Northwest forests in one of history's largest land deals in 1900
Population of Seattle tops 80,000 and that of King County tops 110,000 in 1900

1901-1910

Seattle's first Sephardic Jews arrive in 1902
Seattle Symphony Orchestra performs for the first time 1903
Olmsted arrives in Seattle to design city parks in April, 1903
Alaska Building, Seattle's first steel-framed skyscraper, is completed in 1904
Cedar River Power Plant, first municipally owned power plant in the United States, starts on January 10, 1905
Carnegie-funded Public Library opens in downtown Seattle in 1906
Seattle's King Street station opens on May 10, 1906
American Messenger Service, forerunner of UPS, begins in Seattle's Pioneer Square on August 28, 1907
Pike Place Market in Seattle opens on August 17, 1907
Seattle annexes six towns including Ballard and West Seattle in 1907
Seattle's first "world's fair," Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition, held in 1909
Transcontinental auto race ends in Seattle on June 23, 1909
Women in Washington state win the vote on November 8, 1910
An airplane flies in Seattle for the first time in 1910
Seattle City Light created in 1910
Train disaster at Wellington kills 96 on March 1, 1910
1910 Census: Census counts population of 240,000 in Seattle and 284,000 in King County in 1910

1911-1920

King County voters create Port of Seattle in 1911
Seattle voters reject Virgil Bogue's comprehensive Plan of Seattle in 1912
Smith Tower, tallest building west of Mississippi, opens in 1914
William E. Boeing builds his first airplane in 1916
Washington voters prohibit sale and possession of alcohol in 1916
Lake Washington Ship Canal is completed on May 8, 1917
Stanley Cup won by Seattle Metropolitan hockey team on March 26, 1917
Seattle takes over ownership and operation of the streetcar system on April 1, 1919
General strike paralyzes Seattle for a week in February 1919
Radio Station, Western Washington's first, starts broadcasting in 1920
1920 Census: Population of Seattle tops 315,000 and that of King County nears 390,000 in 1920

1921-1930

President Harding drops dead shortly after visiting Seattle in 1924
Community bonds fund construction of Olympic Hotel in 1924
Seattle elects Bertha K. Landes as first woman mayor of a major U.S. city in 1926
Boeing begins forming United Airlines in 1927
Boeing Field, Seattle's first municipal airport, opens on July 26, 1928
Stock market crash halts downtown building boom in 1929
Final phase of Denny Regrade completed in 1930
Population of Seattle tops 365,000 and that of King County tops 460,000 in 1930

1931-1940

Aurora Bridge completed in 1932
"Hooverville" shantytown forms south of Pioneer Square in early 1932
Seattle Art Museum opens in Volunteer Park on June 23, 1933
West Coast waterfront strike spreads to Seattle harbor in 1934
Boeing 247, first modern airliner, debuts in 1933
Prototype of Boeing B-17 makes maiden flight in 1935
Strike shuts down Seattle Post-Intelligencer in 1936
Lake Washington Floating Bridge opens in 1940
1940 Census: Population of Seattle stagnates at 368,000 and that of King County tops 500,000 in 1940

1941-1950

Trackless trolleys and buses replace streetcars in Seattle Transit System on April 13, 1941
Japanese Americans are ordered to evacuate Seattle on April 21, 1942
Boeing intensifies production of bombers at Boeing and Renton factories in 1940s, and hires large numbers of women and African American workers for the first time
Boeing B-29s drop atomic bombs on Japan, August 6, 1945, ending World War II
University of Washington opens a medical school on October 2, 1946
Canwell Commission begins investigating "Un-American Activities" in 1947
First wide-audience TV broadcast is seen around Puget Sound on November 25, 1948
Severe earthquake rattles region on April 13, 1949
Port of Seattle dedicates Seattle-Tacoma International Airport in 1949
1950 Census: Population of Seattle tops 465,000 and that of King County tops 730,000 in 1950

1951-1960

First summer "Seafair" held in 1951
First stage of Alaskan Way Viaduct, first downtown "freeway," opens in 1953
Bellevue incorporates in 1953
Seattle expands to its present boundaries in 1954
Boeing 707 prototype makes maiden flight on July 15, 1954
King County voters approve "Metro" plan to clean up Lake Washington in 1958
UW scientist collects blood sample of first documented case of HIV in 1959
Port of Seattle expansion is approved by King County voters on November 8, 1960
Population of Seattle tops 550,000 and that of King County tops 925,000 in 1960

1961-1970

President Kennedy delivers major policy speech at UW on November 16, 1961
Seattle voters elect first Asian American, Wing Luke, to City Council in 1962
Seattle "Century 21" World's Fair is held in 1962
Teamster President Dave Beck (1894-1993) goes to prison on June 20, 1962
Second Lake Washington Floating Bridge opens in 1963
Washington State Commission on the Status of Women is formed on February 20, 1963
Open housing referendum fails in Seattle in 1964
Major earthquake rattles King County on April 29, 1965
Seattle voters elect first African American, Sam Smith, to City Council on November 7, 1967
Helix, Seattle's first underground newspaper, debuts on March 23, 1967
King County voters adopt new "home rule" charter in November 5, 1968
King County voters approve Kingdome and reject rail transit in "Forward Thrust" election of 1968
Boeing-built Saturn booster sends Apollo 11 on first moon-landing mission in 1969
First Boeing 747 flies in 1969
Anti-war "Freeway March" blocks Interstate-5 in 1970
Jimi Hendrix dies in London 1970 and is buried in Renton
Population of Seattle dwindles to 530,000, less than half of total King County population of 1,150,000, in 1970

1971-1980

Aerospace recession and "Boeing Bust" on September 18, leads to massive layoffs in 1971
Seattle voters save Pike Place Public Market from demolition in 1971
Dan Cooper parachutes from skyjacked jetliner on November 24, 1971
King County voters approve creation of Metro Transit on September 19, 1972
Ruby Chow becomes first Asian American elected to King County Council in November 1973
Native American treaty fishing rights are affirmed by Federal Judge George Boldt on February 12, 1974
Dorothy Hollingsworth is elected to Seattle School Board in 1975, becoming first African American woman to serve on school board in Washington state
Following the fall of Saigon in 1975, thousands of Vietnamese and Cambodian refugees relocate in King County
Kingdome opens to a crowd of 54,000 on March 27, 1976
Seattle City Council rejects investment in "WPPPS" nuclear reactors on July 12, 1976
Freighter Chavez rams West Seattle Bridge on June 11, 1978
Seattle voters uphold gay and lesbian rights in 1978
Seattle SuperSonics win NBA championship in 1979
Mount St. Helens erupts on May 18, 1980, but ash cloud spares Seattle area
Population of Seattle drops below 500,000 and that of King County increases to 1,250,000 in 1980

1981-1990

Fourteen patrons of Wah Mee gambling parlor massacred in 1983
Columbia Seafirst Center, tallest building in Seattle, opens doors to first tenants on March 2, 1985
Ron Sims becomes first African American elected to the King County Council in November, 1985
Microsoft sells first public shares on March 13, 1986
Washington State Convention & Trade Center officially opens on June 23, 1988
Serial killer Ted Bundy dies in the electric chair in Florida on January 24, 1989
Norm Rice wins election as Seattle's first African American mayor on November 7, 1989
Ted Turner's Goodwill Games open in Seattle on July 20, 1990
Bus service begins in downtown Seattle transit tunnel on September 15, 1990
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center researcher Dr. E. Donnall Thomas wins 1990 Nobel Prize for pioneering bone marrow transplants
Original Lake Washington Floating Bridge sinks on November 25, 1990
Population of King County exceeds 1.5 million and Seattle rebounds to 515,000 in 1990

1991-2000

Velma Veloria first Asian American to be elected to the Washington State Legislature on November 3, 1992
Gary Locke becomes first Asian American to be elected King County Executive on November 2, 1993
President Clinton convenes APEC summit on Blake Island on November 20, 1993
Seattle Mariners win the American League West pennant on October 2, 1995
Sound Transit plan clears second vote on November 5, 1996
State Legislature approves funds for Mariners Stadium in 1996
Seattle voters approve extension of Monorail in 1997
Ron Sims elected first African American King County Executive in November, 1997
Seattle voters approve "Libraries for All" bonds in 1998
Puget Sound salmon stocks listed as endangered species in March 1999
Federal judge declares Microsoft a monopoly on November 5, 1999
Safeco Field wins, Mariners lose, in stadium debut on July 15, 1999
Seattle hosts WTO Ministerial Conference in November 1999
Swedish Hospital merges with Providence Hospital and discontinues elective abortions on February 29, 2000
Kingdome is imploded on March 26, 2000