Fire Sale at the Arlington Hotel
Creditors descend on the Arlington as the hotel's furniture and equipment are auctioned off to settle debts.
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.
Doc Mitchell, acting under the direction of Sheriff McGraw, conducted an auction yesterday for the furniture and equipment belonging to the Arlington hotel. The items were sold to satisfy debts, with C.P. Stone purchasing the bar team for $325, the harness for $30, and the entire furniture, fixture, safe, carpets, and dishes for $530. W.A. Harrington and P. Fredericks also secured various pieces. Captain Smith has since moved to one of Robert Knipe's houses on Union Street. It remains unclear if the furniture will be removed from the Arlington premises, though Smith noted that it originally cost over $5,000 to furnish the two houses.
“The amount realized will cover about three-fourths of the secured indebtedness.”
The Arlington was a landmark, but like many businesses in late 19th-century Seattle, its stability was precarious. This liquidation underscores the brutal turnover of early business ventures before the city's later massive economic booms.
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