Yesler's Real Estate Moves
Henry Yesler begins selling off his front-street property as he prepares for construction projects.
Mr. Yesler has decided to sell the greater portion of his property on the west side of Front Street as fast as he can find purchasers who will improve it. The first sale was 30x100 feet to Boyd & Poncin for $10,000; the next to C. P. Stone, 30x100 feet, $8,000; next Gordon Hardware Company, 30x100 feet, $15,000; next the Seattle Safe Deposit Company, 30x100 feet, $18,000; and now Messrs. Green, Raymond and W. H. Humphrey have offered $10,000 for the piece 20x100 feet adjoining this property. These latter parties are not in position to erect brick buildings, and the sales to them have not yet been made, but Mr. Yesler stated yesterday that he had promised to give those parties a chance to buy some of this property a long time ago, and feels disposed to favor them above outsiders, although he would much rather see it go into the hands of people able to cover it with brick buildings at once.
“Mr. Yesler stated... he would much rather see it go into the hands of people able to cover it with brick buildings at once.”
Henry Yesler's influence as a property owner defined the early footprint of downtown Seattle. The struggle between selling to small local business owners and seeking developers who would build 'brick buildings' echoes contemporary arguments about density, historical preservation, and property development in the urban core.
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