Market History Walking Tour Itinerary
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Market History Walking Tour Itinerary On the morning of Saturday, August 17, 1907, hundreds of shoppers converged upon a few dozen farmers’ carts at the foot of downtown’s Pike Street (named for Seattle pioneer and builder John Pike). This first “public market” was founded to cut out the middlemen who drove up the prices of local produce, and it was an instant hit with farmers and Seattle residents. Local developer Frank Goodwin, who had recently returned with a small fortune from the Klondike Gold Rush, saw an opportunity in the flourishing market and began construction of the permanent arcades that make up the heart of today’s Market. The Market prospered during the 1920s and 1930s, and was home to a lively mix of Japanese and Italian American farmers, struggling artists, political radicals, and eccentrics. Joe Desimone, an Italian farmer, purchased the Market’s main arcades in 1941 and guided it through World War II, when 1st Avenue attracted thousands of sailors and soldiers along with ration-book bargain hunters. As suburbs and supermarkets sprouted after World War II, the Market fell on hard times, while still supporting an eclectic community of artists and craftspeople. When the maze of aging buildings was slated for demolition in the 1960s, architect Victor Steinbrueck and the Friends of the Market rallied Seattle to “Keep the Market.” Voters approved a 17-acre historic district on November 2, 1971, and the City of Seattle later established the Pike Place Market Preservation and Development Authority to rehabilitate and manage the Market’s core buildings. Start your tour at the Economy Building at the corner of 1st Ave and Pike St. Economy Building Originally a barn used by the Market’s first farmers, the Economy Building later became a center for bargain goods and was the site of the second Bartell Drugs in the city. The specialty food store DeLaurenti is located here today. The building also once housed a dance hall, seamstresses and the office of the Market’s first managers. The office for Friends of the Market, a group that helped save the Market from the wrecking ball in the 1970s, was originally here. Built in 1900, the building was renovated in 1978 and 2012. Rachel the Piggy Bank and the Public Market Center Clock & Sign Leland & Fairley Buildings The iconic neon clock and Public Market Center sign was installed in 1928. It was one of the first pieces of outdoor neon on the west coast. Rachel the Piggy Bank arrived under the Public Market Center sign in 1986. She is a bronze cast piggy bank created by Georgia Gerber, a sculptor from Whidbey Island, Washington. Weighing in at 550 pounds (250 kg), Rachel was modeled and named for a real 750-pound pig who won the 1985 Island County Fair. Her cousin, Billie the Piggy Bank, arrived in the Market in 2011 and sits on Western Avenue at the bottom of the Hillclimb. Coins dropped in Rachel and Billie support the Market’s food bank, senior center, preschool and medical clinic that serve the downtown community. Pike Place Fish, located directly behind Rachel, was bought by its present owner for $3,500 in 1965, less than what he paid for his new car. The company has become world-famous with their fish throwing antics. Beneath the fun, however, is a dedication to sourcing only sustainably caught or raised seafood. Corner Market Building Built in 1912, the Corner Market Building was the original home to Three Girls Bakery, which is now located around the corner in the Sanitary Market. The building was designed by famous Seattle architect Harlan Thomas, who also designed Harborview Hospital and the Sorrento Hotel. Sanitary Market Building This building is so-named because live animals were not allowed inside the building in the early days of the Market. Opened in 1910, a fire destroyed the upper floors in December 1941. The building was renovated in 2012. Walk through the Corner and Sanitary Market Buildings and exit into Post Alley. Walk up the alley, heading north. Triangle Building Built in 1908, this building was originally two structures and included the Silver Okum Hotel, built in 1910. The point is at (approximately) the 45 degree intersection of Pike Place and Post Alley. This represented a change in the urban grid for early Seattle streets. Garden Center Building First an egg market in 1908, the Garden Center Building has housed a discount shoe store and a garden store. Now you can watch the cheesemongers of Beecher’s Handmade Cheese create artisan cheese from the building’s windows. Stewart House This wood-clad building still functions as it did when it was built in 1902: providing single-room occupancy (SRO) units. Early occupants included seafarers, lumberjacks and downtown workers. Upper Post Alley / Livingston Baker / First Ave The bar portion of Kell’s Irish Pub was the embalming room for The Butterworth Mortuary built in 1903. On the First Avenue side of the building, tile work can still be seen marking the various entrances – Private, Office and Chapel. It is reportedly haunted and is featured as part of Market Tours & Espresso’s popular ghost tour. On the corner of First Ave and Virginia St is the Market’s oldest business, the Virginia Inn. It opened in 1903, four years before the Market was created. Walk down the hill toward Victor Steinbrueck Park Victor Steinbrueck Park This well-visited park is named after the visionary architect and activist who led the fight to save the Market in the 1960s and 70s. The park is the northernmost boundary of the Pike Place Market Historic District. Steinbrueck’s sons are still involved in the Market today – one as the owner of a Native American art gallery and the other as a design consultant for the new Pike Place Market Waterfront Entrance. Turn left and walk down the cobblestone streets of Pike Place The first Starbucks is on the east side of Pike Place. The coffee giant originally opened in 1971 one block north, but moved here in 1975 when that building was demolished. In the beginning they only sold beans, but began selling espresso drinks in 1987 when Howard Schultz took over the company. Today this store is unique in that it displays the original logo and does not sell food. North Arcade The first structure built for the Market, the North Arcade was originally built to cover the customers, while farmers sold from wagons on the streets. At the peak prior to WW II, this location was home to nearly 600 local farmers selling their produce. Today there are more than 80 farmers and more than 200 craftspeople who set up their displays daily in the North Arcade. Enter the North Arcade at the Desimone Bridge entrance on the west side of Pike Place Desimone Bridge The bridge is named for Joe Desimone, an Italian-American farmer who owned most of the Market buildings from the 1930s until 1971 when the City took public ownership of the property. Today the Desimone Bridge looks out onto the Desimone parking lot which will be the home of the future Pike Place Market Waterfront Entrance. Enter Lower Market Levels at the ramp near City Fish. Leland / Fairley Building This building was built from the top down. It was originally built as storage for farmers and as space to sell dry goods. Today it is home to an eclectic mix of small independent businesses. Go past Golden Age Collectibles and exit the Lower Market Levels near the Pike St. Hillclimb. The whimsical light fixtures above and down the Hillclimb were designed by artist Dan Webb and installed in 2009. LaSalle Building Currently home to low-income residents and two fine dining restaurants, the La Salle Hotel was originally the Outlook Hotel, run by a Japanese-American couple. When the Japanese-Americans were interned during WWII, the family had to sell and the infamous Nellie Curtis purchased it, changed the name to the LaSalle Hotel and ran it as an upscale brothel. The LaSalle is also home to the Pike Market Senior Center, which serves nearly 50,000 meals a year to low income seniors. Head left into lower Post Alley Gum Wall One of the Market’s quirkier attractions, the Gum Wall has become a Seattle institution. Patrons of the Market Theater in the early 90s left their gum outside on the wall of the alley before entering the theater, starting a germy tradition. Please keep your gum to the designated Gum Wall, traditionally next to the Market Theater box office, to help protect the historic walls of Post Alley! For More Information Visit the Market Information Booth, located at the Market entrance at First and Pike, for a Market map, directions, and answers to Market questions. Open daily from 10 am – 6 pm. .