James Delmage (J. D.) Ross is known as the Father of Seattle City Light. A firm believer in the municipal ownership of power utilities, Ross helped design and build the power plant at Cedar Falls on t...
Michael K. Ross was a Seattle politician, construction worker, and an effective and outspoken leader in the fight for civil rights and economic justice. He was known for his demonstrations in support ...
Washington Territory’s De Tocqueville is an apt description for Father Louis Rossi, a Catholic missionary priest who ministered for just over three years, from 1856 to 1860 in Washington Territo...
Founded in 1909, Rotary Club of Seattle -- the fourth oldest Rotary club in the nation -- provided a place where networking and fellowship could thrive. Its all-male members soon added a third compone...
The Royal Esquire Club is a private African American men's club in Seattle. It was founded in 1947 by five young men since there was no welcoming venue in the city where black men could socialize. Roo...
William E. Barr wrote this account of an early environmental lawsuit brought by a Spokane-area citizen that alleged air pollution for the Autumn 1987 issue of The Pacific Northwesterner. It is reprint...
Bob Royer was one of Seattle's deputy mayors from 1978 to 1983, working closely with his brother Charley Royer (b. 1939), who served three terms as the city's mayor from 1978 to 1990. Their mayoral ar...
In 1977, Tom Byers took a leave of absence from his job at a Seattle health clinic to work on the mayoral campaign of Charley Royer (b. 1939), and later joined the mayor's staff as a special assistant...
The careers of Charles T. ("Charley") Royer span journalism, politics, and civic activism -- sometimes independently and sometimes in concert. He served three four-year terms as mayor of Seattle, the ...
In an era when old theaters are fewer and farther between, the Ruby Theatre in Chelan, 135 E Woodin Avenue, may very well be Washington state’s oldest motion picture venue. Whereas ...
Bill Ruckelshaus played a wide and varied role in American political and agency history during the 1970s and 1980s. In 1970 he was nominated by President Richard Nixon (1913-1994) to become the first ...
This account of the mural of Seattle's Great Fire painted in 1953 by Rudolph Zallinger (1919-1995) was written by MOHAI historian Lorraine McConaghy, Ph.D. The fire occurred on June 6, 1889. The mural...
When Ginny Ruffner moved to Seattle in the mid-1980s, she had already mastered the lampwork technique that would make her a celebrity among art-glass devotees. Her distinctive style of glass sculpture...
Merrilee Rush was among the most popular homegrown singing stars that the Northwest rock 'n' roll teen scene produced during the mid 1960s. Her trademark low voice and comely looks and an exciting sta...
James S. Russell grew up on American Lake in Pierce County, where he developed a love of sailing. After graduating from Stadium High School in Tacoma at age 15, he tried to join the navy but was turne...
The history of Tacoma cannot be told without the story of William Rust. Born into a Quaker family in Philadelphia, he ventured West with dreams of finding fortune in the gold rush. Using the skills an...
Ruth Ittner (1918-2010) was an ecologist, trails advocate, hiking legend, tireless volunteer, author, and University of Washington public policy administrator, She is most remembered for her work with...
Ryan General Contractors was founded in 1991 by Donald Bruce McIntosh (b. 1951) as Steelcraft Construction. The company specialized in pre-engineered and structural steel buildings. A few years later,...
James M. Ryan, known in Seattle as "Mr. Downtown," was first president and then chairman of UNICO Properties. UNICO Properties manages the 10-acre parcel of property in the heart of downtown Seattle ...
John Henry Ryan and his wife Ella Ryan were two of the earliest African American business owners in Tacoma, where they owned and were the editors of The Forum, a weekly newspaper in the Tacoma area. A...
A pioneer of Seattle public television and legendary figure in radio history, Milo Ryan was responsible for discovering and preserving a forgotten cache of some of the most important radio news broadc...
Seattle restaurateur Patricia McGuinness Ryan was the long-time proprietor of the Denny Regrade's popular Two Bells Tavern. Under her management between 1982 and 1999, the Two Bells became a neighborh...
In 1882, Olive "Ollie" Ryther and her husband Noble Ryther, parents of four children, adopted four orphans. Ollie Ryther vowed to never turn an orphaned child away. She founded Seattle's Ryther Home a...
The Sacred Heart School of Nursing was established in Spokane by the Sisters of Providence in 1898 and operated until its final class in 1973. It was the first nurse-training school in the Inland Nort...