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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1876 | 5 |
| 1877 | 1 |
| 1878 | 6 |
| 1880 | 2 |
| 1883 | 2 |
| 1884 | 1 |
| 1885 | 3 |
| 1886 | 1 |
| 1887 | 1 |
| 1888 | 1 |
| 1889 | 2 |
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| 1895 | 3 |
29 stories matching belltown
- The Ghost of Belltown and the Battle for the Ballot
In 1880, as Seattle’s population swelled, the newspaper sparred with shipping reports over the identity of a neighborhood that 'did not exist' and the urgent need for more polling stations.
- The Unlikely Rise of Belltown
When William N. Bell first envisioned a northern suburb for Seattle, critics called his plan a 'chimerical scheme of a visionary.' Today, the hammers are ringing as the neighborhood transforms from dense forest into a city hub.
- The Rising Forests of Belltown
A 1875 dispatch captures a neighborhood in metamorphosis, as the deep woods of Belltown are rapidly cleared to make way for cozy cottages and the expansion of Seattle.
- A Child’s Hazard in a Smoky City
A young girl is severely burned after stepping into a smoldering coal bunker in Belltown, highlighting the dangerous urban conditions of a rapidly growing Seattle.
- A Painful Step in Belltown
A late-night walk leads to a broken leg and a warning about the precarious state of city sidewalks in 1877.
- Blood on the Ballroom Floor
A dance in Belltown ends in a violent altercation and a tragic suicide.
- The Battle for Belltown's Fire Engine
A citizen's fiery demand that the city stop hoarding firefighting resources in the business district and grant the northern residents the protection they pay for.
- The Palace of Belltown
W. W. Bell constructs a massive, modern hotel at Front and Battery streets, signaling a new era of growth for the northern expansion of Seattle.
- The Trunk in the Belltown Earth
Two prospectors looking for a brickyard site uncovered more than clay when they stumbled upon a hidden trunk containing a man’s remains.
- The Courthouse That Never Was
A desperate plea to build a modest county seat on a 'high ridge' between Seattle and Belltown before the city outgrows its footprint.
- Cole's Circus Parade Fills Seattle's Streets
Thousands of Seattleites flock to Belltown for the arrival of Cole's massive traveling circus.
- The Midnight Pork-Thieves of Belltown
A wave of petty food thefts from residential pantries has Seattle neighbors on edge, prompting warnings about the 'nocturnal nippers' prowling the city's outskirts.
- Building a Future: The 1876 Fight for Seattle’s School Sites
As Seattle’s population swelled in the 1870s, city leaders scrambled to secure prime real estate for education amidst a booming, land-hungry frontier town.
- The Pride of Belltown: Seattle's Shipbuilding Milestone
Launched in 1876, the barkentine Kate Flickinger marked a new era for local industry, built entirely from Washington timber by Seattle craftsmen.
- Seattle's Barrel Factory Doubles Its Shifts — 'No Chance for Chinamen There'
The factory near Belltown boosts production to 4,000 barrels a day and hires about a hundred men and boys, all white, in a blunt public statement of racial hiring policy.
- The Terrors of Belltown: Youth Gangs and Civic Chaos in 1870
Before it was a bustling neighborhood, Belltown was a site of 'villainous' youth pranks and neighborhood disturbances that left residents clamoring for order.
- The Graveyard That Vanished: Seattle’s Urban Sprawl Swallows the Dead
As new dwellings rise on Front Street and Stewart Square, the old burial ground is being paved over, erasing a physical link to the city's earliest days.
- A Desperate Rescue in Elliott Bay
A local man spots an overturned canoe in the freezing waters of the bay, pulling two people from a near-death encounter with the winter tide.
- The Great Seattle Rebuild After the Fire
Construction crews rush to replace the city’s burned-out downtown with brick and iron blocks before the end of the year.
- The Hill That Couldn't Be Saved: Fire Chief Pleads for Water on Seattle’s Steepest Slopes
In a stark report from June 1904, Chief Joshua Phillips warns that the city’s volunteer fire brigade is powerless against blazes in the steep upper districts, where gravity defeats their hoses and time kills buildings.
- The Hilltop Slip: Seattle’s Shifting Waterfront
Decades before the regrades reshaped the city, residents of the Belltown waterfront watched their homes slide into the bay as the ground beneath them turned to quicksand.
- After the Great Fire, Seattle Faced a Crisis of Shelter
With the city center in ashes, temporary lodging became the most pressing demand for a bustling frontier town.
- The Political Battle for Seattle's Streets
In an era of rapid growth, a fiery campaign rally at the Yesler Opera House debates the role of moral policing, the cost of city administration, and the integrity of municipal elections.
- The Last Hurrah of Seattle's Elite Before the Lenten Season
As the Lenten season loomed, Seattle society scrambled to squeeze in as many balls, card parties, and banquets as possible, showcasing a flurry of exclusive high-society events.
- The City That Outgrew Its Rivals
An 1885 dispatch from the front lines of the Seattle boom describes a town shedding its humble roots and leaving former neighbors like Steilacoom in the dust.
Also about this, in other words
- The Rapid Transformation of 'Bell Town'
Seattle's northern district sheds its frontier skin with new hotels, street improvements, and a burgeoning commercial sector.
- The Political Brawl for the Second Ward
A scathing letter from W. H. Reed exposes the business alliances and legislative record of city council candidate John M. Bell, setting off a local firestorm.