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 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 appearance of the north end of town, formerly known as Bell Town, is changing and improving more rapidly now than at any time in the past. The particular cause for this change is to be found in several directions, notably in the increase of business in that quarter, in the general growth of the whole city, and in the accessibility and beauty of the location. The erection of the barrel factory, the proximity of Lake Union, the improvement of Front Street, and the construction of the new north schoolhouse have all contributed. Several new houses have recently been occupied, while many more are in course of construction. The number of shops there is surprising to the occasional visitor, and bewildering to the stranger, who finds himself in another downtown. One of the most pleasant things to observe is the step made by W. N. Bell towards the widening of Front Street; he has set his new hotel building seven feet back from the street, intending to give that much to the public.
“The appearance of the north end of town, formerly known as Bell town, is changing and improving more rapidly now than at any time in the past.”
What the paper called 'Bell Town'—now Belltown—has been the site of constant development battles for over a century. W. N. Bell’s early act of setting back his hotel to widen the street mirrors the ongoing civic tension between private land ownership and the public need for infrastructure in Seattle's densest neighborhood.
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