From Wilderness to Metropolis in Thirty Years
A look back at the founding of Seattle, the Indian War of 1856, and the industrial boom that turned a 'pigmy sawmill' into a burgeoning city.
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.
Thirty years ago, the site of the present city was a silent wilderness. Today, it is a metropolitan city of ten thousand people. Seattle was first settled in 1851 by C.C. Terry, A.A. Denny, and others, who first located at Alki Point before moving to the present site. In 1852, Henry Yesler arrived and built a sawmill on the site of the present Post-Intelligencer building, which acted as the miracle-worker for the city's growth. The town was named after Chief Seattle, a head of a tribe of West-side Indians. In 1856, the settlement narrowly survived an Indian War, defended by the USS Decatur. Today, the city is a manufacturing and business center, with gas lamps, schools, and two planned streetcar lines to the lakes, serving as the Queen City of the North Pacific.
“That enterprise was the little miracle-worker that gave life and being to the future great city of Seattle. Mr. Yesler, in putting up his pigmy sawmill, was building wiser than he knew.”
This article reflects the settler-colonial narrative of 1883, framing Seattle's rapid expansion as a triumph of industry. Its focus on infrastructure and 'city-building' mirrors the ongoing tensions in modern Seattle regarding growth, land use, and the displacement of historical contexts.
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