The Fire Station Obstacle Course
A dangerous delay at the engine house highlights the chaotic state of Seattle’s streets in 1876.
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.
An alarm of fire was made last evening at about 8 o'clock, and the new fire engine was soon brought into action. Nearly all the members of the fire company were on hand in good time, but on reaching the engine house, two or three old truck wagons were found in the yard, completely blocking up the entrance. Several of the members, not being aware of their being there, stumbled over them in the dark and got some pretty severe bruises. The wagons were removed finally, and the engine brought out, but here another difficulty arose: no 'devouring fiend' could be found. The alarm originated from a fire catching in a Chinese house on the corner of Washington and Second streets. In the rear of the building, the inhabitants had constructed a fireplace, the back of which stood close against a wooden partition, and only one brick thick. These bricks became hot and ignited the boards behind, but the fire was extinguished by the occupants instantly. Had there been a genuine conflagration, the delay caused in getting the engine out by a lot of old trucks might have resulted somewhat seriously, but as it was, it only illustrates the importance of being 'always ready.' The proprietors of trucks and wagons should find some other place to leave them overnight; they should never under any circumstances be left in front of the entrance to the engine house.
“Had there been a genuine conflagration, the delay caused in getting the engine out by a lot of old trucks might have resulted somewhat seriously.”
This 1876 incident echoes contemporary frustrations with urban accessibility, where 'clutter'—whether in the form of abandoned wagons or modern-day ride-shares and delivery vehicles—frequently blocks critical infrastructure. It serves as a reminder that the struggle to keep civic pathways clear has been a part of Seattle's development since the very beginning.
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