The Great Timber Jackpot: Yesler’s Mill and the Lottery of Land
In 1876 Seattle, timber baron H.L. Yesler didn't just build the city's first mill; he turned his entire property into a $100,000 lottery prize, betting that luck would save him from debt.
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.
PUGET SOUND IMPERIAL — SEATTLE W.T., SATURDAY, JULY 8, 1876.
The Seattle Saw-Mill, owned by H. L. Yesler, will be sold and the prize of $100,000 in a lottery to be drawn at the corner opposite the Seattle Bank and the Pacific Brewery property.
This massive undertaking is backed by the Washington Territory Lottery Act approved November 12, 1875, by Governor E. S. Ferry. The capital of $300,000 is divided into 60,000 tickets at $5 each. Eleven prizes total $90,000, with 35,575 smaller prizes available.
The County Commissioners of King County have appointed M.S. Booth as Auditor, Capt. Geo. D. Hill as Treasurer, and John Col Esq. as Trustees to hold the property in trust for the prize holders. Tickets are on sale at the office of H.L. Yesler in Seattle.
This advertisement reveals a fascinating moment in Seattle’s economic history where real estate speculation was so volatile that even the city's most prominent figure, H.L. Yesler, resorted to a state-sanctioned lottery to liquidate his assets. It mirrors modern times when developers and homeowners alike use lotteries or high-stakes auctions to manage debt during housing booms and busts.
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