Those who wanted to restore the Alaska Way Viaduct made frequent call upon its spiritual qualities; which is that it gave views, especially of the city. Here's another snap from Horace Syke's visit to the viaduct in early 1953 before they opened it for motorcars. The view looks east up Madison Street.
3 thoughts on “Our Daily Sykes #279 – An Early Viaduct View”
Hey, that’s the building I’m sitting in! The red-brick National Bldg, 1904, though the capital scrolls near the top are now green. I’m on the second floor and if I threw a peanut out the window it would land where that black car is parked in the wedge of sunlight. This is a beautiful scene, what with the Telephone and Northern Life buildings at the left edge between Seneca and University and the Olympic Hotel behind them and the sign of the Elks lodge directly uphill, and is that the Empire Building up on Second? A lot of my old favorites here. Thanks for posting this!
Also, this must be the very twilight of that dusky old Carnegie library, which you can just see the corner of up on Fourth. Wasn’t it demolished the same year this was taken, or was it a few years later?
Matt
Yes and Yes – and yes, a few years later for the penultimate downtown library. This is 1953. Replacement begins in 1956 – according to “Shaping Seattle Architecture” U.W. Press, 1994. It was good to see you at Rich Berner’s presentation.
Paul
Hey, that’s the building I’m sitting in! The red-brick National Bldg, 1904, though the capital scrolls near the top are now green. I’m on the second floor and if I threw a peanut out the window it would land where that black car is parked in the wedge of sunlight. This is a beautiful scene, what with the Telephone and Northern Life buildings at the left edge between Seneca and University and the Olympic Hotel behind them and the sign of the Elks lodge directly uphill, and is that the Empire Building up on Second? A lot of my old favorites here. Thanks for posting this!
Also, this must be the very twilight of that dusky old Carnegie library, which you can just see the corner of up on Fourth. Wasn’t it demolished the same year this was taken, or was it a few years later?
Matt
Yes and Yes – and yes, a few years later for the penultimate downtown library. This is 1953. Replacement begins in 1956 – according to “Shaping Seattle Architecture” U.W. Press, 1994. It was good to see you at Rich Berner’s presentation.
Paul