Puget Sound, 1915
Seattle may well be styled the New York of the Pacific Coast. Situated on the Sound, furnishiug a grand outlet for the large steamers and vessels which carry their products…
From: 1915 C.E. To: 1915 C.E.
Location: Puget Sound, Washington, United States of America
Note: This article has been excerpted from a larger work in the public domain and shared here due to its historical value. It may contain outdated ideas and language that do not reflect TOTA’s opinions and beliefs.
From From the Atlantic to the Pacific by Aaron Lee, 1915.
Seattle.
Seattle may well be styled the New York of the Pacific Coast. Situated on the Sound, furnishing a grand outlet for the large steamers and vessels which carry their products of the different nations to all parts of the world, furnishing one of the grandest harbors and numbered among the greatest trading points of the whole continent.
Seattle at the present time contains about 290,000 inhabitants, has 61 public schools, more than 37,000 children of school age, 125 churches. Its 42-story building is a wonder to all observers. Seattle has 75 newspapers, employs 25,000 persons in its manufacturing establishments. It has six railroads and 150 miles of electric railroads. It now covers an area of 94 square miles.
Seattle has a large line of ships plying between this point and the principal ports of the East and Europe; also a large line of steamers handling freight and passengers to the numerous other ports. The traffic in timber and lumber is enormous. A visit to the forests would convince anyone that the supply seemed practically inexhaustible. The minerals are also great. The mines in which the Seattle mine owners are connected furnish a revenue of several million dollars annually. These help make millionaires, of which the city boasts of having quite a large number.
Puget Sound.
There probably is nothing among the pleasant surroundings of the Northwest that is viewed with greater interest than the briny waters and the picturesque surroundings of Puget Sound. This is an inlet from the Pacific Ocean extending into the land for more than 150 miles. It has a very irregular shore line, being filled with many points and indentures that form a large number of bays and coves, making the total shore line of its waters extend to a distance of more than 1,500 miles.
The tide waters of this, the Inland Sea as it is often called, are ever rising and falling along its shores, generally rising from ten to fourteen feet and sometimes several feet higher. Along the banks have sprung up several nice and prosperous cities and towns that, together with the fine residences and beautiful homes that are so pleasantly situated along its shores, form the dwelling places of between 300,000 and 400,000 people.
There is a large number of islands lying here, dotting the landscape from the shores of this fine body of water. There are some forty of these that vary in size from a few acres to a nice large tract that furnish beautiful farms that are highly improved with many fine residences that overlook the Sound with all its attractions. The steamers, vessels, boats and launches are ever sailing to and from the harbors that they wish to enter or leave. The comfortable homes that are so beautifully arranged along the shores often seem to vie with each other in their attractions. We view with wonder and delight the ever moving, rippling waves with the great ships passing and repassing, bringing before us a grand and unobstructed view of nature and art. The land is generally very fertile and produces largely of the various products adapted to this climate. In its natural state the land is mostly covered with a good growth of fir, pine and cedar trees that gradually disappear as the settler progresses in making a home.
Tacoma.
Taking the steamer at the wharf in Seattle we have a very pleasant trip to Tacoma. This is a nice, wide-awake city, and is largely interested in shipping, having an enormous trade in lumber and building material. Tacoma is situated near the terminus of the Sound and where its waters seem to flow farther into the interior of the state than at any other point. Like most of the large towns on this coast where we have visited it has an undulating surface. In traveling some of the walks we discovered we had to do some uphill business. The general aspect of the town is pleasant, it having very nice scenery and all kinds of business seemed to be thriving.
There are some very beautiful parks near this city. In making a visit to Point Defiance Park we were pleased to see the splendid array of the beautiful flowers that were cultivated here, especially the roses that were of so many rare varieties, and each kind seemed to vie with each other in producing the greatest attraction. The roses of this city, as we view them from the different parks and gardens, seem to surpass those of any other locality we have visited and are viewed with wonder and surprise as we behold the many magnificent colors and test the fragrance of the many different varieties and look with wonder and amazement upon the beauties of nature here revealed.
The Puget Sound Navy Yard.
Taking one of the steamers that leave the wharf at Seattle we take a very pleasant sail upon the Sound. In a short time we arrive at the landing a short distance from the Navy Yard. Here we see the great war vessels that are quietly lying alongside the wharf. At the time of our visit there were some seven or eight of these monster ships that were being refitted or repaired in some manner to make them more thoroughly fitted for the service for which they were intended. There is employed a large number of workmen engaged in making or repairing the various things needed for the keeping in good trim of this fleet of fighting ships that Uncle Sam is always supposed to have in readiness. When we add to these the large number of officers and sailors that form the crews of these great war vessels and we have an assemblage of a large number of men that make the Navy Yard a lively place, abounding with bustle and activity.
It was our privilege while here to attend the laying of the corner-stone of the new Veterans' Home for the State of Washington. This is located near Port Orchard upon a beautiful eminence having a most magnificent view of the Sound with its many ships passing and repassing. The great fleet of war vessels that are floating in the bay, the prosperous towns of Bremerton, Manette, Charleston and Port Orchard, with mountains in view, altogether forming a grand and romantic scenery that can scarcely be equaled anywhere along the Sound.
Lee, Aaron. From the Atlantic to the Pacific; Reminiscences of Pioneer Life and Travels Across the Continent, From New England to the Pacific Ocean, by an Old Soldier. Also a Graphic Account of His Army Experiences in the Civil War. Metropolitan Press, 1915.
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