Seattle's Business District Destroyed by 1889 Fire
The entire business district of Seattle was reduced to ashes in a massive conflagration, leaving the city without a single standing business house.
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.
The entire business portion of Seattle was burned on Thursday, the 6th. Not a business house left in the city.
“Not a business house left in the city.”
This brief, devastating line captures the Great Seattle Fire, which leveled the city's commercial heart just eight days before this issue went to print. The disaster forced the city to rethink its infrastructure and building codes, directly shaping the brick and stone skyline of Pioneer Square that stands today.
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