The Westside Gets Left Off the Mail Route
Olympia divided its new free-delivery service into three districts, but the neighborhood that paid its taxes and owned its homes was excluded—again.
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.
Postoffice Inspector Thrall and Postmaster Milroy have established the districts for the free delivery system. The service will not be placed in operation, however, until street names are posted, houses numbered and sidewalks constructed. The territory to be covered is comprised in three districts, described as follows: District No. 1 will consist of all the territory north of Seventh and west of Jefferson; District No. 2, all south of Seventh and west of Jefferson, and District No. 3, Eastside. The business portion will have four deliveries daily and the residence portion two. The Westside is left out, as it is in everything in relation to the city's advancement, notwithstanding the fact that nearly every person living in that section owns his own home and that section proportionately pays more taxes than the others, except the business section. Three carriers will be employed for the present. Boxes in which to deposit mail for delivery will be located at the following points: At Main and Second streets, Main and Fourth, Columbia and Third, on Marshville bridge, Columbia hall, Olympia hotel, Fourth and Jefferson, Sixth and Jefferson, Main and Union, Main and Thirteenth, Main and Maple Park, Adams and Thirteenth, Adams and Union, Adams and Eighth, Fourth and Pear, Fourth and Puget, Seventh and Quince, Plum and Bigelow avenue.
“The Westside is left out, as it is in everything in relation to the city's advancement, notwithstanding the fact that nearly every person living in that section owns his own home and that section proportionately pays more taxes than the others.”
Then as now, a new city service mapped the town—and mapped its inequalities. The Westside’s complaint that it paid taxes but got skipped ahead of the business district is the same service-equity argument Olympia neighborhoods still make about sidewalks, transit and public investment.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.