The City Council’s War on Inflammable Storage

An ordinance providing for the storage of inflammable oils and liquids in the city of Seattle. Section 1. That hereafter it shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to store, or keep for sale, within the corporate limits of the city of Seattle, in larger quantities than 100 gallons, any naphtha, gasoline, crude petroleum, or any product of petroleum or hydro-carbon liquids, except as herein provided. Section 2. That all such liquids, when kept in greater quantities than 100 gallons, must be stored in a building or warehouse constructed of brick or stone, the outer walls of which shall not be less than 13 inches in thickness, covered with metal, or other non-combustible material, not exceeding one story in height, the floor of which, if constructed of wood, shall be placed immediately on the surface of the ground, and in which no fire shall ever be permitted. Section 3. Said building or warehouse shall in no case be situated anywhere within a distance of 300 feet from any dock, wharf or steamboat landing, or from high-water mark on the shores of Elliott Bay, or from the marginal line of Lake Union or Lake Washington. Section 4. No building or warehouse shall be licensed for the storage of the oils or liquids aforesaid, except on the recommendation of the fire and water committee of the common council. Section 5. The license fee shall be one dollar per month. Section 6. Any person violating any of the provisions of this ordinance shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine in any sum not exceeding one hundred dollars or imprisonment for any time not exceeding thirty days.