The Unclaimed Inheritance of James O. Libbey
A public auction on the Seattle waterfront promises the sale of over 100 acres of land from a local estate, marking a fleeting moment of property transfer in the frontier 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.
On Saturday, December 16th, at one o’clock, in front of Horey & Barker’s store, corner of Commercial and Mill Streets, in the city of Seattle, I will sell at public auction to the highest bidder the following described property, the estate of James O. Libbey: The south-west quarter of the south-east quarter of section twenty-nine, and the west half of the south-east quarter of section No. thirty-two, in township No. 23 north, of range No. 5 east, containing one hundred and twenty acres. Terms: cash in U.S. gold coin on day of sale. H. A. Atkins, Administrator of the estate of James O. Libbey, deceased.
“I will sell at public auction to the highest bidder the following described property... Terms: cash in U.S. gold coin on day of sale.”
This 1876 notice for an auction at the intersection of Commercial (now 1st Ave S) and Mill (now S Washington St) highlights how Seattle's early land rush often relied on the estate liquidations of settlers who died while trying to stake their claim. Today, the same blocks represent some of the most expensive and contested real estate in the city, tracing back to these foundational, often chaotic, land distribution processes.
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