The Presses Are Rolling in Seattle
Fresh off the literal ashes of the Great Seattle Fire, the city's leading newspaper is set to return with better machinery and a new office space.
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 presses and associated material ordered immediately after the fire are now in Seattle, and as soon as the building which they are to occupy is finished, they will be put into use. This, it is hoped, will be in a few weeks, and Seattle will then possess one of the most complete newspaper offices on the Pacific Coast. The management of the Post-Intelligencer will then endeavor to issue a paper much better than that produced before the fire, as the new presses and machinery are better than those which were destroyed.
“Seattle will then possess one of the most complete newspaper offices on the Pacific Coast.”
This note from 1889 captures a city in the immediate, frantic aftermath of the Great Seattle Fire, mirroring the resilience and rebuilding efforts that have defined Seattle's urban development through various crises since. Even in the 19th century, the 'Post-Intelligencer' recognized that a modern city requires a modern media infrastructure, a sentiment that persists as local news navigates its own modern-day survival.
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