The House That Slid Down the Street
A Seattle homeowner sues the city for ruinous damage after a street grading project leaves his property tumbling toward the thoroughfare.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
The suit brought by James Parke against the city to recover $7,713 for damages to his property by the land slide that occurred at the corner of Yesler Avenue and South Ninth Street in October 1888, was on trial yesterday before Judge Osborn. Parke attempted to show that the grading was done in so negligent and careless a manner that the earth which should properly have been left for the support of the premises was taken away, and no provision made to supply bulkheads or braces. In consequence of this, he says that his lot and the house and all improvements that he put upon it gradually slipped down into the street. The house was moved into the street, and the surface of the lot is broken and rough from the slide. A number of witnesses were put upon the stand yesterday, and their testimony was substantially to the effect that the land had no market value after the slide had occurred, but that prior to that it was worth somewhere between $4,000 and $7,000.
“In consequence of this, he says that his lot and the house and all improvements that he put upon it gradually slipped down into the street.”
This case highlights the recurring struggle of Seattle’s topography, where city-led regrades and road projects frequently destabilized private property. Modern Seattle homeowners still face landslide risks, though the liability battles today often pit residents against environmental and geotechnical shifting rather than direct city excavation.
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