Seattle Washington History

The Duwamish and Suquamish Indians occupied the Seattle area before the first European settlers arrived in 1851, settling at Alki Point, moving to the site of present-day Pioneer Square the following year. Henry Yesler built a steam-powered sawmill shortly afterward, paving the way for a booming lumber industry. Soon, today's Yesler Way earned the name "Skid Road" for the timber that skidded down the street to his mill.

The new city prospered until the national economic downturn in 1893. In 1897, the Klondike gold rush brought gold-seekers, who stopped to stock up on their way to the gold fields and spurred the local economy.

By 1869, Town of Seattle was incorporated. Originally called Duwamps (or Duwumps) for the nearby Duwamish River, the name was changed to Seattle to honor Noah Sealth, chief of the Duwamish and Suquamish tribes.

In the early twentieth century, shipbuilding boomed, and when 36-story-tall Smith Tower was built in 1913, it was the tallest building west of Ohio. Prosperity continued until the 1929 stock market crash.

After World War II, a boom in commercial aviation fueled Boeing Corporation's growth. Seattle remained their corporate headquarters until 2001.

Seattle was the site of the 1962 World's Fair, but by the 1970s, the economy went into a downturn. Today's Seattle economy is dominated by Microsoft, Amazon.com and other high-tech companies, along with coffee giant Starbucks.