The Road to Nowhere: How Seattle’s Leaders Left Lake Washington Residents Stranded in Mud

Parties coming in from Lake Washington and intermediate settlements report the roads leading over the hills in the southern suburbs to be impassable or nearly so. The measures that have lately been taken to facilitate the travel from that section of the county have been very flimsy and inadequate.

The canal and slide on Mill Street, which would have given a fair grade if it had been carried through, was left half finished, causing the hill to sink down into the partial cut, completely blocking up the road and damaging the private property upon the street to the extent of many hundred dollars. As a makeshift a few days' work were expended upon the Main Street road to the extent of piling a few limbs of fir trees upon the clay, so as to complicate the difficulties of the situation.

The Washington Street route, lying between Main and Mill Streets and affording a rather more favorable gradient than either, was opened last summer to the extent of swamping out, but without any grading, is utterly impracticable for travel. Some time last winter a petition numerously signed was presented to the City Council for the cutting of Lane Street—a route, leaving the bay north of the brickyard, which would give a road eastward by the easiest natural grade that the location affords. This was referred to the street committee and no further action has yet been reported.

From Ninth to Thirteenth Streets, a distance of only four blocks on this line, would be but a short and inexpensive link to make a commodious connection between the Beach and Lake roads; and for that distance should be thoroughly turnpiked, and where necessary corduroyed. If nothing better can be done, one of these ways ought to be graveled with mixed dust—which does not make mud—and is a great deal better for a roadway than either paddled clay alone, or fir boughs.

An extensive community settled between this city and the lake take a great interest in this matter. They feel that where the onerous burden has fallen upon them of making and keeping in repair long stretches of road through the forest leading to their respective homesteads, it is but to ask of the city that it attend to the short section in the immediate vicinity of the town. Some who live on the lake-shore say with reason, that unless the difficulty is remedied they cannot undertake to reach the city to trade another winter, but must exclusively look to the coal mines at Benton or Newcastle, for their market and source of supplies.