An Admiral’s Vision for a Seattle Naval Power
In 1885, an naval report touted the strategic brilliance of the Puget Sound as a future stronghold for the American Navy.
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.
Admiral O. P. C. T. describes the pride of Washington Territory as follows: Nothing can surpass the beauty of these waters and their safety. No shoal exists within the Straits of Juan de Fuca, Admiralty Inlet or Puget Sound that can in any way interrupt their navigation by a deep-sea ship. The country through which these waters are surrounded is remarkably endowed and affords many conveniences for the accommodation of vessels, steam-propelled and sailing. No part of the world affords finer inland sounds or a greater number of harbors than are found within the Straits of Juan de Fuca, capable of storing the largest class of vessels. If a canal were completed between Lake Washington and the Sound, it will, among other advantages, afford the finest site in the world for ship-building and repair. It will enable the Government of the United States to establish great naval depots on the Pacific Coast under the most favorable circumstances.
“No part of the world affords finer inland sounds or a greater number of harbors than are found within the Straits of Juan de Fuca.”
This report highlights the early, aggressive vision for Seattle as a global maritime hub. The proposed canal to Lake Washington eventually became reality with the Lake Washington Ship Canal in 1917, forever altering Seattle’s topography and cementing its role in naval and commercial transit.
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