Seattle vs. Tacoma: The Great Railroad Battle
Boosterism was the lifeblood of 1883 Seattle, as the P-I staked its claim on the city's future as the 'terminal city' of the Northwest, despite President Villard's clear favoritism toward Tacoma.
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.
As it was said of old, that all roads lead to Rome, so now it would appear that all overland railroads building are destined to terminate at Seattle, the metropolis of Puget Sound. Within a few months' time, Seattle will be the terminal city of the Northern Pacific Railroad. In addition, other railroads will also, at no distant date, have their terminus at the soon-to-be empire city of the Northwest. Let the New Tacoma papers puff and blow and lie to their heart's content; it will not avail in the least to prevent the rapid growth and prosperity of the metropolis. President Villard has come and gone, and certainly Seattle will not regret his visit. It is plain to be seen that the land corporation is chiefly interested in town lot speculation at Commencement Bay, and not, as the lawyer would have it understood, the Northern Pacific Company of which Villard is President. Villard has more important interests to occupy his attention than speculating in town lots. As he said at Tacoma, he is not a builder of hotels but of railroads.
“Let the New Tacoma papers puff and blow and lie to their heart's content, it will not avail in the least to prevent the rapid growth and prosperity of the metropolis.”
This reflects the early 'growth machine' era of Seattle, where the city fought aggressively to secure status over Tacoma and Portland. This fierce competition for infrastructure dominance is a direct ancestor to modern Seattle's civic preoccupation with regional transit and economic connectivity.
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