The Great Freeze of 1883
Seattle shivers as a record-breaking cold snap turns the bay to ice and shutters local mills.
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.
A cold wave or miniature blizzard struck this region last Tuesday evening. The mercury fell from 42 degrees on Tuesday morning to 20 on Wednesday, 15 on Thursday, and 8 on Friday. With one exception in 1875, this was the lowest temperature in twenty-one years. A sheet of ice a half-inch thick covered the bay for a half-mile out, and several sawmills and manufacturing establishments were forced to shut down for want of water to make steam. The cold caught citizens by surprise, with many running short of fuel and suffering from frozen pipes.
“A thousand discomforts result from the lack of water; but as long as fire is kept from starting... we can endure the inconveniences.”
Extreme weather events like the 2021 Pacific Northwest heat dome or winter 'bomb cyclones' serve as reminders that Seattle's infrastructure—much like in 1883—remains vulnerable to climatic extremes that stress our utility systems and housing.
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