local history

  • ‘Black Activism in Print’ Exhibit Highlights Art and Community Activism

    Black Activism in Print: Visual Art from the African American Collection, now on view at the Level 8 Gallery of the Central Library, is more than just an art exhibit. Though it features beautiful art prints by prominent artists and activists Charles White and Elizabeth Catlett, it is also a wonderful opportunity to learn about… Continue reading

  • New Additions to our Black Culture and History Collection

    In July 2022, the Library began work on a Digital Heritage Grant funded by the Washington State Library to increase the availability of historic digitized materials in our Black Culture and History Collection. This month, we are wrapping up work on the grant and are excited to share some of our new additions! Thanks to… Continue reading

  • Local Heroes in Black History, Part Two

    Continuing on our tour of landmarks named for local Black heroes, here are just a few historical figures who should be household names in Seattle. Perhaps you’ve noticed new activity in the old fire station at 23rd and Yesler, across the street from the Douglass-Truth Branch Library. In 2020, the space was re-dedicated as the… Continue reading

  • Local Heroes in Black History (and the Landmarks Named for Them)

    Just as Black history is American history, the history of Black people in Seattle is local history. Here are several ways to learn more about the Black historical figures who helped make Seattle what it is today, and to remind ourselves that Black History Month can, and should, be observed every month. A great way… Continue reading

  • Washington’s Undiscovered Feminists with Mayumi Tsutakawa

    On Dec. 5th, the Seattle Public Library presents a virtual program, Washington’s Undiscovered Feminists with Mayumi Tsutakawa, to commemorate the 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage. It is about five woman warriors of the Pacific Northwest: pioneering photographer Imogen Cunningham; Black American jazz musician Ruby Bishop; Chinese American artist Priscilla Chong Jue; Leftist journalist Anna Louise… Continue reading

  • Arthur C. Pillsbury Photograph Collection

    Interested in seeing panoramic photos of Seattle and Alaska at the height of the Klondike Gold Rush? We recently digitized 197 photographs taken by Arthur C. Pillsbury between approximately 1896 and 1900, documenting the Gold Rush and scenes from California, Oregon and Washington. The collection includes a mixture of photograph sizes, many of them panoramic… Continue reading

  • Donald Schmechel Oral History Collection

    October is American Archives Month and we are celebrating with the completion of a new digital collection: the Donald Schmechel Oral History Collection. Donald Schmechel was a Seattle Public Library board member who, in the 1980s, created a project to interview prominent figures in Pacific Northwest History. Schmechel raised funding for the project, volunteered his… Continue reading

  • New Digital Collection Highlights Lives of Seattle Pioneers

    This month we’ve launched a new digital collection which reveals a glimpse into the personal lives of some of Seattle’s early pioneers. The Lu Jacobson Collection of Latimer and Denny Family Material includes materials focusing on Alexander Latimer, his wife Sarah Chesney Latimer and their five daughters: Narcissa Latimer Denny, Eliza Alice Latimer Fowler, Harriet… Continue reading

  • City Council Reads – Rob Johnson, District 4

    This past November, Seattle swore in a new Mayor and City Councilmember, and we here at ShelfTalk thought this would be a great opportunity to continue our series of posts in which we invited your representatives to share books that have meant a lot to them. This time, we asked them “What book was most influential… Continue reading

  • Intiman’s Dragon Lady and Philippine Migration

    The migration of a family from the Philippines to America has been explored in colorful form by Sara Porkalob in Dragon Lady, a one woman show at the Intiman Theater, closing October 1st. She revisits the arc of Philippine culture and assimilation from her grandmother’s time to her own, as she portrays three generations of her family members.… Continue reading

  • 20 Essential Seattle Books, Part 3: Place

    Next in our ongoing series of 20 books that capture the essence of Seattle, we look at a variety of titles that capture a sense of our city and its environs. Whether you’re new in town, just passing through, or you’ve lived here all your life, these titles will enhance your awareness of and appreciation for the misty… Continue reading

  • South West Stories: Ken Workman

    “This we know; The earth does not belong to man; man belongs to the earth.  This we know, all things are connected like the blood which unites one family.  All things are connected” –Chief Si’ahl, Namesake of the City of Seattle On Sunday, Aug 21, 2 p.m., Delridge Library hosts Ken Workman, member of Duwamish… Continue reading

  • Seattle’s Presidential Visits of the Past

    -posted by Jade D. In honor of Presidents’ Day, we took a look through our digital collections to find mentions of some of Seattle’s earliest presidential visits. We’ve highlighted the first five below – take a look! October 11, 1880 marked the date of the first president to visit Seattle with the arrival of Rutherford… Continue reading

  • Billy Bloch and the Germania Café

    ~posted by Jade D. Did you know October is Archives month? In a belated nod to German-American Day (October 6) and the various Oktoberfests (and Booktoberfests) happening this month, we decided to highlight some recent German-flavored additions to our digital collection. Now a part of our Seattle Historic Photograph Collection, these photographs depict the life… Continue reading

  • October Takeover: DIY Ghost Tours: Guidebooks for your Local Ghosts

    ~posted by Blythe S. Have you ever wondered who is haunting your neighborhood? Ghost have purportedly taken up residence in a number of bars, theaters, restaurants, stores, parks and other places in Seattle–enough to create entire guidebooks on the subject. During October a number of worthy ghost tours are offered to guide you through dark,… Continue reading

  • If Walls Could Talk: The Bussell Family – Part 2

    By Jade D If you missed my first post about the history of the Bussell family and their home, take a look at Part 1 to catch up! So here’s what really happened, as best as I can tell. Charles Bussell and his first wife, Elizabeth, bought their Madrona home in 1900. Despite the stately… Continue reading

  • If Walls Could Talk: The Bussell Family – Part 1

    ~posted by Jade It all began with a picture of a house. I was researching a recent addition to our Seattle Historical Photograph Collection and all I had to go on was the name “Bussell” on the back of the photograph. Quick searches in HistoryLink and the Seattle Times historical newspaper database revealed it to… Continue reading

  • Mark Twain’s Seattle Doppelgänger

    ~posted by Jade D. While looking through the portraits in our Seattle Historical Photograph Collection online, I came upon a photograph of an older man with wild white hair and a moustache and momentarily wondered what we were doing with a photograph of Mark Twain in our collection. After performing this double take, I looked… Continue reading