Writes of Way ~ Seattle Street Names and History

S Camano Place This street, created in 1931, was almost certainly named for Camano Island (known as ʔəw̓alus in Lushootseed), which is located, as Wikipedia tells us, in Puget Sound “between Whidbey Island and the…

This Rainier Valley street, created in 1931, was named after Camano Island in Puget Sound. www.writesofway.org/s-camano-pla...

Parshall Place SW This West Seattle street was created in 1946 by Ordinance 75595 and expanded nearly 40 years later by Ordinance 112188. However, it was named after an earlier Parshall Place, created in 1909 as part…

This West Seattle street (more of an alley, really), which was created in 1946, resurrects the name of an earlier neighborhood street named for real estate man Louis Ayers Parshall (1870–1950). www.writesofway.org/parshall-pla...

Croft Place SW This West Seattle street was created in 1920 as part of Homecroft, an Addition to the City of Seattle, filed by the Puget Mill Company, who once owned Washington Park (see Arboretum Drive E)…

This street was created in 1920 as part of the Homecroft plat, Seattle's contribution to the movement which “encouraged wageworkers to become competent backyard gardeners rather than yeoman farmers.” (It ended up becoming just another residential neighborhood.) www.writesofway.org/croft-place-...

Glenwilde Place E This short Montlake street, which runs just over 150 feet from E Roanoke Street between 24th and 25th Avenues E in the south to the alley to the north, was created in 1925 as part of the plat of…

This short Montlake street was created in 1925 as part of the plat of Glenwilde, an Addition to the City of Seattle, filed by E.F. Barnum and his wife, Sarah Barnum, and named for that subdivision.

www.writesofway.org/glenwilde-pl...

S Eastwood Drive This street was created in 1955 as part of the plat of the Lowrain Park Addition, filed by A.L. Wood and J.E. Wood of Lowrain Park, Inc. Their full names would appear to be Adlai Lorain Wood (1891…

This street was created in 1955 as part of the plat of Lowrain Park, filed by Adlai Lorain Wood (1891–1981) and Jack Earl Wood (1919–1995), his son. My guess is they named the street after themselves, the subdivision being in the southeasternmost part of the city. www.writesofway.org/s-eastwood-d...

E McGilvra Street This street was created in 1919 as part of the plat of the Loch-Gilvra Addition to the City of Seattle, filed by Oliver C. McGilvra (1867–1955) and Charles L. Denny (1861–1919) as executors of the…

This street was created in 1919 as part of the plat of the Loch-Gilvra Addition to the City of Seattle, filed by the executors of the estate of John J. McGilvra (1827–1903). He and his wife were the first settlers in what is now Madison Park, in the mid-1860s. www.writesofway.org/e-mcgilvra-s...

N Menford Place This street was created in 1907 as part of Tronstad’s Addition to the City of Seattle, filed by Norwegian immigrants Nils and Bertha Tronstad and another couple. It appears to have been named after…

This Wallingford street was created in 1907 as part of Tronstad’s Addition, filed by Norwegian immigrants Nils and Bertha Tronstad and another couple. It appears to have been named after the Tronstads’ first child and only son, Menford Tronstad (1904–2001). www.writesofway.org/n-menford-pl...

The Insurrection Act has been invoked 30 times. Two of them were in Seattle Thanks to “Operation Metro Surge” in Minnesota, the Insurrection Act of 1807 has been in the news lately. Today I learned that, of the 30 times the act has been invoked, two of them were in Seattle…

Thanks to Operation Metro Surge in Minnesota, the Insurrection Act of 1807 has been in the news lately. Today I learned that, of the 30 times the act has been invoked, two of them were in Seattle — 3 months apart — thanks to anti-Chinese rioting in 1885 and 1886. www.writesofway.org/insurrection...

Sorry, but it's always going to be Sea-Tac to me @portofseattle.bsky.social 😉https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1GXPJzcV9K/

S Raymond Street This street was named in 1906 as Raymond Avenue, part of Replat Tracts 30 & 31 Sunnyside 5 Acre Tracts, by Herbert R. Raymond (1862–1933) of New Brunswick, Canada, and his wife, Minnie M.

S Raymond Street was named by and for Herbert R. (1862–1933) and Minnie M. Raymond (1874–1947). His obituary described Herbert as "formerly one of the Pacific Northwest’s prominent shoe merchants and leading civic spirits."

www.writesofway.org/s-raymond-st... www.writesofway.org/s-raymond-pl...

Before the first 🇪🇸Barcelona Superblock...
Before the first 🇬🇧London LTN...
Before the 🇳🇱Groningen circulation plan...
🇺🇸Seattle built the Stevens Neighborhood Traffic Diversion Demonstration Project.

LET'S REVIVE THIS IDEA FOR A 21ST CENTURY SEATTLE

YouTube video by GeorgeHarrisonVEVO George Harrison - Ding Dong, Ding Dong

Happy 2026, everyone. youtu.be/SrXswIbWA7Y?...

E Olive Lane This portion of E Olive Street was renamed E Olive Lane by Ordinance 100274 in 1971. It is unclear why. For some reason, as the quarter section map shows, the name change wasn’t extended into the…

New articles on E Olive Lane, E Olive Place, and E Olive Street, all named after Olive Julia Bell Stewart (1846–1921), who was 5 when the Denny Party landed at Alki Point in 1851. www.writesofway.org/e-olive-lane/ www.writesofway.org/e-olive-place/ www.writesofway.org/e-olive-stre...

Triton Drive NW This street was established in 1926 as part of North Beach, an Addition to the City of Seattle, which overlooks Puget Sound. Just as my assumption is NW Neptune Place was so named because Neptune is…

Triton Drive NW, a North Beach street with a view of Puget Sound, was likely named after Triton, son of Neptune, Roman god of the sea. NW Neptune Place is nearby. www.writesofway.org/triton-drive...

Seattle may force owner of rare open space to sell The Talaris property in Seattle has been the subject of debate over how it should be developed for decades.

This is huge news regarding Talaris in Laurelhurst www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news...

Seattle may force owner of rare open space to sell The Talaris property in Seattle has been the subject of debate over how it should be developed for decades.

Speaking of eminent domain www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news...

This street was established in 1926 as part of North Beach, an Addition to the City of Seattle, and has excellent views of Puget Sound. I assume Neptune being the Roman god of the sea was the inspiration behind the name. www.writesofway.org/nw-neptune-p...

a curiosity search led me to a website by @lukobe.bsky.social which appears to be dedicated to the impossibly nerd-friendly matter of seattle street names

www.writesofway.org/diagonal-ave...

Google Street View screenshot of a sign for Diagonal Avenue South hanging vertically from the end of a leaning pole

it might be time for a renaming

Google Street View screenshot of a sign for Diagonal Avenue South sitting askew on a leaning pole, the sign itself appearing diagonal from the camera's point of view

show, don't tell

I’ll look into it!

Seattle University - Wikipedia

Unrelated to @seattleu.edu en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seattle...

@tonychiado.com From www.seattle.gov/documents/De...

“'College Grounds' was given to Father Prefontaine by his friend Joseph McNaught. He hoped to establish a college in this area of south Seattle. Father Prefontaine founded Seattle’s first Catholic church.”

Hi! It's me, @lukobe.bsky.social -- but I don't check Bluesky as often as I should

This street was created in 1926 as part of the Replat of a Portion of Blocks 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 of North Beach, an Addition to the City of Seattle. I presume it was named for the neighborhood’s view of Puget Sound (“mar”) and the Olympic Mountains (“mount”). www.writesofway.org/marmount-dri...

Like Loyal Avenue NW, this street was named by Edward B. Cox, Harry Whitney Treat, and Olive Marion Graef Treat in the 1907 plat of Loyal Heights. The streets and the subdivision were named after Loyal Graef Treat Nichols (1906–2004), the Treats’ newborn daughter. www.writesofway.org/loyal-way-nw/

Sylvan Place NW ~ Writes of Way ~ Seattle street names origins and history This street was named as part of the 1907 plat of Loyal Heights, filed by Edward B. Cox and Harry Whitney Treat, and Treat’s wife, Olive Marion Graef Treat. Then, as now, the lots abutted a wooded (“s...

This street was named as part of the 1907 plat of Loyal Heights. Then, as now, the lots abutted a wooded (“sylvan”) area surrounding an unnamed creek that begins just north of NW 87th Street and flows to Puget Sound at North Beach.

www.writesofway.org/sylvan-place...

Does this mean all the old content is coming back?

Originally published on Crosscut.com in 2011, an article on Dave Niehaus Way S -- the honorary designation of 1st Avenue S as it runs alongside T-Mobile Park. www.writesofway.org/dave-niehaus...

More information on the closure, namesake, and history of the Seattle BNSF Railway facility Balmer Yard www.writesofway.org/balmer-yard/