The Tragedy of the Salmon Bay Shipyard
A maritime accident in the newly developing industrial tideflats of late 1889 reveals the human cost of Seattle's rapid expansion.
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.
Napkin Foster, a resident of Seattle who had charge of the cereal exhibition in the new exhibition building, was sleeping in the attic of the hall which was destroyed by fire yesterday. He retired early last night. No one thought to awaken him when the fire started and he was burned to death.
“No one thought to awaken him when the fire started and he was burned to death.”
This tragedy occurred just weeks after the Great Seattle Fire of June 1889, during a period of frantic, high-stakes rebuilding. Today, the site of the Salmon Bay shipyards remains a hub of maritime labor, illustrating the persistent theme of dangerous work that defines Seattle's waterfront industry.
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