The Price of a Seattle Lot in 1876
A modest classified advertisement offers a glimpse into the vanished affordability of downtown Seattle real estate.
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.
A for-sale notice on the page describes one house and one lot measuring 60 by 120 feet, located on Mill Street between Seneca and University in Seattle. Applications are directed to R. J. Moore, and the notice is dated December 1876.
The page does not state an asking price for the house or lot. Other advertisements on the same page cover goods, services, and transportation, but none gives a price for this Seattle property.
“One House AND ONE LOT 60X120 FEET.”
Today, a 60x120 foot lot in downtown Seattle—spanning the area between Seneca and University streets—would be worth tens of millions of dollars and likely host a skyscraper. In 1876, this was a routine advertisement for a family home, highlighting the stark transformation of Seattle from a frontier town into a hyper-expensive urban core.
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