The City That Refused to Die
How Seattle outmaneuvered the Northern Pacific Railroad's attempts to hoard land and throttle the city's growth in the 1880s.
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 town of Seattle had a struggling start in 1862. Owing to Indian wars and other misfortunes, it grew slowly for many years. In 1870, its inhabitants numbered only 1,107. During the decade following, it doubled every three and a half years; in 1880 it had 3,533, and in 1885, 8,786. There is no reason to doubt that there will be 15,000 people here in 1888, and 40,000 in 1900. The success of the city, in spite of the Northern Pacific's efforts to destroy it, has aggravated the small-minded men who control the company. They looked upon Seattle as a place that stood in the way of a town of its own making. The people here rebelled, and they have been fighting for twelve years. So far from being crushed and wiped out of existence—as other old towns along the company’s line have been—the town has grown steadily and rapidly, until it is generally looked upon as the future great city of the North Pacific coast.
“So far from being crushed and wiped out of existence—as other old towns along the company’s line have been—the town has grown steadily and rapidly.”
The struggle for control of land between developers, railroads, and the public is a hallmark of Seattle's history. Just as the Northern Pacific once tried to pick winners and losers among towns, today's residents continue to grapple with the influence of major corporations and massive property developments on the city's affordability and character.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.