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1909 Map of Seattle

Name: 1909 Topographic Map of Seattle
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1936
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1936

About this map

The Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition grounds and the State University campus dominate the landscape of early 20th-century Seattle, reflecting a period of rapid urban transformation and civic ambition. This 1908 culture revision documents a city defined by its complex waterways, from the busy industrial shoreline of Elliott Bay to the emerging residential districts near Green Lake and Lake Union. The expansion of the city is evident in the dense street grids of Ballard and South Seattle, while the meandering course of the Duwamish River remains largely unstraightened, winding past Georgetown and South Park.

Transportation networks, including the Northern Pacific RR and the Seattle Everett Interurban, connect the metropolitan core to outlying areas like Spring Beach and Rainier Beach. Military and maritime history is anchored by Fort Lawton on the western bluffs and the prominent West Point LH. From the family-named landmarks like Pipers Creek to the civic spaces of Volunteer Park, this survey captures the infrastructure of a Pacific Northwest hub at a pivotal moment of growth.