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Pedestrian Hazards on the Seattle Waterfront

A rickety, dangerous sidewalk along the wharf is finally replaced by a substantial new walkway, sparing the city's pedestrians from potential injury.

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.

Mr. Yesler has made a much needed improvement along the wharf. He replaced the old rickety sidewalk with a fine new substantial one.

The old sidewalk was full of holes and was a terror to pedestrians, especially at night.

“The old sidewalk was full of holes, and was a terror to pedestrians, especially in the night time.”

— Printed in Puget Sound Dispatch (Seattle, Wash. Terr.) 1871-1880, 1878
Then · 1878148 years apartNow · 2026

This 19th-century struggle with neglected public infrastructure and pedestrian safety reflects the persistent contemporary debate over Seattle's sidewalk maintenance, ADA accessibility, and the privatization of waterfront spaces.

The original page

Puget Sound Dispatch (Seattle, Wash. Terr.) 1871-1880, 1878-06-15. Library of Congress, Chronicling America.

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About this story

From
Puget Sound Dispatch (Seattle, Wash. Terr.) 1871-1880, JUN 15, 1878, Page 5
Rights
Public domain
Place
47.60323, -122.33028 · placed automatically
The paper in the Library of Congress catalog ↗