January 3 – January 16, 1891
The Real Estate Scramble for Lake Washington
Papers report a scramble for lake land along the new Rainier Avenue electric line.
12 reports in The Seattle Post-Intelligencer, January 3 – January 16, 1891.
The story
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer's reports describe the opening of the Rainier Avenue Electric Line — dated to New Year's Day 1891 in one report, while the others call it newly opened or newly inaugurated without a date — and the speculative rush for land along the Lake Washington shore that followed. The papers describe promoters selling "choice" acre tracts and garden plots near the line and anticipate the lakeside wilderness becoming a suburban district. The reports are promotional in tone and give no figures for sales, prices, or numbers of buyers.
Told from the 12 reports below. The reports are the record.
The archive grouped these reports automatically, by date, place and subject.
The reports 12
- The Seattle Post-IntelligencerThe Real Estate Scramble for Lake Washington
A newly opened electric rail line promises to turn the shores of Lake Washington into the next suburban real estate gold rush.
- The Seattle Post-IntelligencerThe Electric Line Opens a New Frontier
A newly inaugurated transit line promises to transform the wilderness along Lake Washington into the city’s next affluent suburb.
- The Seattle Post-IntelligencerThe Electric Line to the Lake: Seattle's Suburban Dream
A newly opened electric rail line promises to turn the shores of Lake Washington into a suburban paradise, sparking a scramble for prime real estate.
- The Seattle Post-IntelligencerThe Commuter Frontier: Rails Extend to Lake Washington
A New Year’s Day opening of the Rainier Avenue Electric Line promises to transform suburban residential life along the lake.
- The Seattle Post-IntelligencerThe Streetcar Boom of 1891
A new electric line to Lake Washington promises to turn suburban wilderness into a goldmine, triggering a scramble for land.
- The Seattle Post-IntelligencerThe New Year’s Day Land Rush: Rainier Avenue Electric Line Opens
On January 1, 1891, the opening of the new Rainier Avenue Electric line triggered a speculative scramble for suburban land around Lake Washington.
- The Seattle Post-IntelligencerThe Electric Trolley Race to Lake Washington
As a new electric streetcar line connects Seattle to the lakefront, land speculators are scrambling to capitalize on the city's suburban expansion.
- The Seattle Post-IntelligencerThe Trolley Race: Seattle's 1891 Suburban Boom
A new electric rail line ignites a speculative frenzy for lakeside land as Seattleites dream of suburban expansion.
- The Seattle Post-IntelligencerThe Dream of the Suburban Acre
In 1891, developers marketed the 'choicest' acre tracts in the newly burgeoning suburbs of Seattle, promising growth along the Rainier Avenue Electric Railway.
- The Seattle Post-IntelligencerThe Dream of Suburban Seattle
Promoters sell 'garden tracts' near the newly-built Rainier Avenue electric rail line, promising a suburban retreat from the bustling city center.
- The Seattle Post-IntelligencerThe Dream of the Suburban Garden Plot
Developers in 1891 sold city dwellers on the 'choicest' acreages just outside of the developing Seattle core, promising a life of suburban gardens along the new Rainier Avenue electric line.
- The Seattle Post-IntelligencerThe Boom-Era Dream of the Rainier Valley
An 1891 advertisement paints a vivid picture of the speculative fever that drove Seattle's suburban expansion along the new electric streetcar lines.
From the pages8 of 12
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer · Jan 3, 1891
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer · Jan 4, 1891
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer · Jan 5, 1891
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer · Jan 6, 1891
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer · Jan 7, 1891
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer · Jan 8, 1891
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer · Jan 9, 1891
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer · Jan 10, 1891
Library of Congress, Chronicling America. Public domain.