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Diablo Dam incline railway climbing Sourdough Mountain, 1930. Courtesy Seattle Municipal Archives, 2306.
Children waving to ferry, 1950. Courtesy Museum of History and Industry.
Loggers in the Northwest woods. Courtesy Washington State Digital Archives.
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7/16/2026
From Seward to Seafair
On July 21 and 22, 1869, former U.S. Secretary of State William Seward toured Puget Sound on his way to Alaska, and while here he spoke on the development of Washington Territory. Two years earlier while still in office, Seward had fought for the U.S. purchase of Alaska from Russia, a vote that barely passed the two-thirds Senate majority required for approval.
Early Washingtonians supported the purchase, and in 1895 Seward's wisdom was confirmed by the discovery of gold in Alaska and in Canada's Klondike River – chiefly accessed via Skagway and the Chilcoot Pass. The Klondike Gold Rush began in earnest on July 17, 1897, when a ton of gold arrived from the north aboard the SS Portland (shown above). This almost immediately dispelled the economic gloom that had been hanging over Seattle and much of Washington state since the Panic of 1893.
Within 10 years after the gold rush began, Seattle had transformed from a rough-and-tumble Western town into a growing metropolis. On July 17, 1911, the city held its first Golden Potlatch celebration to commemorate the Klondike anniversary and to pan some new gold from the pockets of tourists and revelers. The Potlatch Bug brought along lots of fun, but two years later the celebration turned ugly when self-styled patriots battled leftists and labor radicals on July 17, 1913. Potlatch rioters sacked IWW and Socialist Party headquarters, and on July 19 Seattle Mayor George Cotterill declared a state of emergency. The following year's Potlatch was more peaceful, but it featured an ominous preview of things to come. On July 18, 1914, daredevil pilot Silas Christofferson flew mock bombing raids over the city. Ten days later, World War I began in Europe and would rage for more than four years.
Following World War I, Seattle celebrated the silver anniversary of the Klondike Gold Rush on July 17, 1922, with nary a Potlatch Bug in sight. The festival was briefly revived in the late 1930s but was interrupted by the onset of World War II. After the war, civic leaders began discussing plans for a new summer festival. The result was Seafair, first held in 1950 and still going strong.
From Robber's Roost to Ellen's Burgh
On July 20, 1875, John and Ellen Shoudy filed an 80-acre plat in the Kittitas Valley for a town that John named Ellensburgh, after his wife. The couple had been living there since purchasing the trading post Robber's Roost in 1871. The new town quickly became a hub for trails and roads, and when Kittitas County was established in 1883 Ellensburgh was chosen as county seat. The town incorporated a year later, but it wasn't until 1894 that the post office dropped the "h" from the name, shortening it to Ellensburg.
Regular train service helped the town grow, and although a huge fire in 1889 dashed Ellensburg's hopes of becoming the state capital, the community did become home to a state-authorized teacher's college, now known as Central Washington University. The city's other claims to fame include its abundance of blue agates and, of course, the Ellensburg Rodeo. With a history this rich and varied, it's no wonder that in 1977 Ellensburg's downtown was added to the National Register of Historic Places.
On July 18, 1841, the USS Peacock – part of the famed Wilkes Expedition – wrecked near the mouth of the Columbia River at a spot now known as Peacock Spit. When the expedition departed, it left one of the vessel's launches behind, hoping that local residents would use the small boat to save the crews of other ships that foundered offshore. Today, the U.S. Coast Guard operates the National Motor Lifeboat School at nearby Ilwaco.
On July 18, 1900, a fire destroyed half the business district of downtown Pomeroy. On July 17, 1929, Seattle's Union Pacific Dock went up in flames, and on July 18, 1959, the abandoned Wheeler-Osgood Company mill in Tacoma burned to the ground. But the biggest Washington fire in history this week was the Carlton Complex wildfire, which by July 17, 2014, had spread out over 18,000 acres and destroyed 111 homes in and around the town of Pateros.
On July 18, 1930, Howard Hughes's Hell’s Angels had its first premiere outside of Hollywood at the Fox Theatre in Seattle, with star Jean Harlow in attendance. Although the theater was only a year old, Hughes paid the owners to upgrade the venue, sending an advance team of expert technicians and a boxcar of special equipment that included an enlarged screen, new projectors, and an improved sound system.
This week marks three anniversaries in water-quality history, beginning with the groundbreaking for the Renton Treatment Plant on July 20, 1961, which included a parade through the "Metro Subway." Four years later, the plant was dedicated on July 22, 1965. And on July 20, 1966, the West Point wastewater treatment plant was dedicated on the shores of Magnolia, helping to fulfill Metro's 1958 promise to clean up Lake Washington.
On July 17, 1979, Seattle hosted the 50th Major League All-Star Game, attended by baseball fans from throughout the Northwest, and on July 20, 1990, King County welcomed Ted Turner's Goodwill Games. This week also marks the anniversary of the opening of Seahawks Stadium on July 20, 2002, and the induction of Edgar Martinez into the National Baseball Hall of Fame on July 21, 2019.
On July 18, 2009, Seattle's light-rail era began as Sound Transit's Link light-rail trains carried their first passengers between downtown Seattle and Tukwila. By the end of the year, the service reached Sea-Tac airport, and in 2016, the line was extended northward to Capitol Hill and Husky Stadium. In 2024, the trains reached Lynnwood to the north, and last March light rail began across Lake Washington.
Wilkeson incorporated on July 18, 1909.
"A man that hoards up riches and enjoys them not is like an ass that carries gold and eats thistles."
– Robert Burton
