The Pioneer Spirit and the Building of Seattle
A look at the ambitious civic development of Seattle's Front Street and the men behind its early transformation into a modern business hub.
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 announcement made by authority that Mr. J. M. Colman will soon begin construction of a five-story brick block, running the full length of his Front street property, is extremely gratifying. The projected building will be by all odds the largest in the territory and will serve very important interests in the business development of Seattle. It will be an ornament to which every citizen can point with pride. It will be a long step toward the continuous solid construction of Front street, which is needed to secure for it a permanent status as the first business thoroughfare of the city. In putting up such a building at this time, Mr. Colman is not only adding to his own property but assisting to develop that of his neighbors up and down the whole length of Front street. Seattle enterprise is a fresh illustration of a spirit which has had a great deal to do in the development of Seattle. We speak now of the liberality of our pioneer citizens, very notable in comparison with the obstructive policy of pioneer citizens in other coast cities. Here the pioneers, or some of them, have been among the most conspicuous for enterprise and public spirit. To illustrate this fact we have only to point to Mr. A. A. Denny, whose firm stand for Seattle has been a bulwark against corporate aggression and whose liberality has lately secured for us a magnificent hotel; to Mr. H. L. Yesler, the leader in building enterprise, who has but just now founded a public library; to Mr. Colman and to others too numerous to mention. Not all, indeed, of our pioneer citizens have been equal to their opportunities and increased fortunes, but with them as a class the dominating impulse has been the inspiration of a broad and liberal public spirit. Supported by this policy, Seattle has gone forward in the face of every obstruction which selfishness and corporation tyranny have put in its way, and has continued to hold its preeminent position. Without it, we would long ago have sunk back into the status of a sawmill port.
“Without it, we would long ago have sunk back into the status of a sawmill port.”
In 1889, Seattle’s 'pioneer spirit' was defined by dense, solid construction and the aggressive building of a business core. Today, as Seattle faces debates over density and corporate influence (with tech giants replacing the timber barons), the push for a 'solid' urban core remains the central, contentious engine of the city's identity.
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