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A Changing Landscape

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As it is with any new and forming city, Seattle had its growing pains. The commercial industry expanded north of Pioneer Square. In order for this to happen engineers began leveling and grading parts of the steep grades and hills. Just north of Pine Street there was a nice size hill called Denny’s Hill. By far, this was the largest hill the engineers would face. It took over thirty years for the engineers to finish the project of dumping most of Denny’s Hill into Elliot Bay. The area that was left was known as the Denny Regrade. Another project that helped shape the burgeoning downtown was the relocation of Washington University. Formerly located on Denny’s Knoll around 4th Avenue and University Street, the whole campus was moved just northeast of the downtown area. All this moving about paved the way for the present day business district.

All the moving made some people trigger-happy. There were plans to move other public buildings such as the civic center, city hall and other buildings. This project was known as the Bogue Plan. Virgil Bogue (1846-1916) was the director of the posed project. The massive move did not receive enough votes as it was rejected March 5, 1912. The public buildings stayed where they were, buildings like the King County Courthouse in the Yesler Way area remain to this day. Just recently the city of Seattle built a new civic center just north of Pioneer Square.

The early part of the 19th century saw Seattle elevate itself as an ambitious city of commerce and innovation. In 1914 the city completed construction on the Smith Tower, a 36 story tower rising 462 feet. At the time of its completion it was the tallest building west of Ohio. The city stayed ambitious in its development until 1929 when the stock market crash hit. The sudden end to capital investment put a lid on the development of the great city. During this time Pioneer Square acquired the name Skid Road, for the timber that was slid down Yesler Way to the steam powered sawmill. This area is also referred to as Skid Row, reflecting a dark and struggling time in the city’s history.

The war years had a pretty hard affect on the city. After World War II the prosperity and growth of Chinatown was demolished. However, the war was much kinder to the ship and plane industry. Even with the ship and plan industry doing okay, Seattle took a massive economical hit from the war.

Boeing’s success fed the Seattle a new birth. The people’s spirits raised so much because of the affect the company’s success had on the city that Seattle took on hosting the World’s Fair. The event happened in 1962 north of downtown. The city carries that legacy with it still.

Next Page: Legacy Preservation

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