From timber to jetliners to computer software, Seattle, Washington has long been one of the world's most productive cities. Originally populated by the Suquamish tribe, the area of the Northwest that became Seattle was settled by a small group of farmers from Illinois in 1851. Welcomed by Chief Sealth, the European newcomers created a small town they named Alki Point next to Elliott Bay, then moved on to the location of modern Pioneer Square. They eventually renamed the town in honor of their benefactor, Chief Sealth.
The new European community was located up the coast from San Francisco, a town still booming from the Gold Rush of '49. Soon sawmills were erected and trees culled from the verdant, misty forests near Seattle were processed into lumber to float down to California to supply the burgeoning housing industry. Within two years Seattle - which was incorporated in 1869 - was a thriving logging and lumber town.
Where wood is abundant, the risk of fire is acute, and in 1889 the inevitable happened: A rogue spark ignited a glue pot in a print shop, propagating a blaze that wiped out Seattle's business district and devouring more than fifty city blocks. To avoid a similar catastrophe in the future, wood-frame buildings were replaced by masonry edifices placed on a higher elevation; this split-level approach resulted in the creation of an underground city that became one of modern Seattle's many tourist attractions.
The arrival of the Great Northern Railroad in the late 1800s made Seattle into one of the busiest commercial centers on the West Coast. Already a significant port of entry for growing U.S. trade with Asia, Seattle became known as the "gateway to the Klondike" when the Alaska gold rush got underway. By 1910, what had been a minuscule settlement in 1851 had become a thriving and growing city of 240,000 people.
The advent of powered human flight brought a new industry to Seattle. In 1916 a local company that would become Boeing started to make two-seater biplanes. Boeing is now the world's largest aerospace firm and one of Seattle's main employers.
The Seattle World's Fair in 1962 established Seattle as a major regional tourist and entertainment center. Federal aerospace subsidies in the 1970s expanded the city's role as a major transportation and commercial hub. Beginning in 1975, Seattle underwent dramatic economic expansion to become the financial, industrial, and trade center for the Pacific Northwest.
Coffee, computers, and a distinctive popular music style helped to define Seattle in the 1990s. Seattle also became famous - or infamous - for street protests in 1999 when the city played host to the World Trade Organization meeting. Forty thousand demonstrators gathered to protest globalization; political and civic leaders had hoped that the summit would showcase Seattle as a world-class friend to free trade, a natural role in light of the city's history.
Today, Seattle is a one of the chief dynamos of culture, commerce, and high-tech industry in the Pacific Northwest. Located just two hours south of Vancouver, Canada, the city of Seattle is an international port that boasts several professional sports teams, hundreds of restaurants, a myriad of cultural venues, and a lifestyle that is unique to the Pacific Northwest.
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