Seattle Municipal Archives
PO Box 94728
600 Fourth Avenue, Floor 3
Seattle, WA 98124-4728
Phone: 206/233-7807
Email: archives@seattle.gov
http://www.seattle.gov/cityarchives

Guide to the Planning Commission Photographs, 1945-1957


1650-14





Finding aid prepared by Shannon B. Lynch and Scott Cline

Finding aid encoded by Shannon B. Lynch, 2004
Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.


Overview of the Collection
 
Repository Name:
 

Seattle Municipal Archives

PO Box 94728
600 Fourth Avenue, Floor 3
Seattle, WA 98124-4728
Phone: 206/233-7807
Email: archives@seattle.gov
http://www.seattle.gov/cityarchives
 
Collection Number:
 

1650-14
 
Creator:
 

Seattle (Wash.). Planning Commission
 
Title:
 

Photographs
 
Dates:
 

1945-1957 (inclusive)
 
Quantity:
 

446 photographic prints
145 negatives
.8 cubic foot
2 boxes
 
Languages:
 

Collection materials are in English. 

 
Summary:
 

Planning Commission Photographs depict Seattle neighborhoods, roads, parks, and marinas; also included are photographs of display materials and photographs related to land use.

 

Historical Note

The City Planning Commission was created in 1924 to prepare plans and gather data for the development of the City, to advise City Council on current problems and long range planning, and to participate in administration of the City's Zoning Ordinance. An independent nine-member commission was established with adoption of a new City Charter in 1946. It was provided with authority to hire as needed to carry out its planning and advisory functions. The Planning Commission also administered the Board of Adjustment following its creation in 1957.

The city planning process was reorganized in 1980 and the Commission's planning function was transferred to the Department of Community Development. The current Commission is an advisory agency that reviews development plans and reports to the Mayor and City Council. It is composed of 15 members, all of whom must be Seattle citizens.

Content Description

The Planning Commission photographs date from 1945 to 1957; most of the photographs are undated. The photographs depict neighborhoods, homes, parks, highways, moorages and marinas, and aerial views of Seattle and surrounding areas. Some photographs are related to land use. A selection of photographs of a display is included; the photographs show display materials on the topic of city and neighborhood planning. Some display materials in the collection may be related to the 1953 convention of the American Institute of Architects, which was held in Seattle. Also included are photographs of Kitimat, B.C., and highway photographs made in California. Very few images in the collection are specifically identified.

Arrangement

Photographs are arranged alphabetically by subject.

Use of the Collection

Restrictions on Access 

Records are open to the public.

Preferred Citation 

[Title of image, date. Item number.] Planning Commission Photographs, Record Series 1650-14. Seattle Municipal Archives.

Subjects

This collection is indexed under the following headings in the online catalog. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons, or places should search the catalog using these headings.

 
King Street Station (Seattle, Wash.)
Seattle (Wash.). Planning Commission
California
Kitimat (B.C.)
Seattle (Wash.)
City planning--Washington (State)--Seattle
Displays in education
Land use--Washington (State)--Seattle
Marinas--Washington (State)--Seattle
Aerial photographs
Negatives
Photographic prints

Detailed Description of the Collection

The following section contains a detailed listing of the materials in the collection.


 

Planning Commission Photographs, 1945-1957
 
Container(s)
Description
Dates
 
box/folder
1/1

AIA Convention: Exhibit Memo and Itinerary
   1953
 
1/2

Blight
   1950
 
1 print
 
1/3

Buffalo City Planning Commission
   n.d.
 
17 negatives
Photographs may have been part of an exhibit or display.
 
1/4

Buffalo City Planning Commission
   n.d.
 
2 prints
 
1/5

City of Seattle Map: Improved Property
   n.d.
 
1 negative
 
1/6

Detroit City Plan Commission
   ca. 1949-1953
 
4 prints, 1 positive photostat, 1 negative photostat
 
1/7

East Duwamish Greenbelt
   n.d.
 
1 print
 
1/8

Exhibit Photographs
   1948-1950, n.d.
 
34 prints
 
1/9

Exhibit Photographs
   n.d.
 
43 negatives, 1 photostat
Negatives correspond to prints in 1/8. Notes on box: "City Planning, Albright Show, B.C.P.A. studies, Radburn etc."
 
1/10

Exhibit Photographs
   n.d.
 
17 negatives
Images show maps, including a map of Paris and two German maps; also pictured are aerial views of cities and buildings. Photographs may have been part of an exhibit or display.
 
1/11

Green River Flood Photographs (Mounted)
   n.d.
 
17 prints
 
1/12

Green River Flood Photographs (Mounted)
   n.d.
 
17 prints
 
1/13

King Street Station and Terminal Post Office
  n.d.
 
7 prints
 
1/14

King Street Station and Terminal Post Office
   1950, n.d.
 
9 prints
 
1/15

Kitimat, B.C.
   n.d.
 
8 prints
 
1/16

Land Use: North of City Annexation
   1950
 
16 prints
 
1/17

Land Use: Queen City Yacht Club
   n.d.
 
8 prints
 
1/18

Land Use: Residential Density Photographs
   n.d.
 
32 prints
 
1/19

Magnolia Shopping Center
   n.d.
 
4 prints
 
2/1

Marinas and Moorages
   1952-1953, n.d.
 
25 prints
 
2/2

Marinas and Moorages
   1952, n.d.
 
18 prints
 
2/3

Parkway (Aurora?)
   n.d.
 
1 print
 
2/4

Planning San Francisco: A Monthly Bulletin of the San Francisco Planning Commission
   1945-1946
 
8 newsletters
 
2/5

Portage Bay Study Photographs
   1950, n.d.
 
32 prints
 
2/6

Seattle Aerial Photographs (dated)
   1949-1954
 
31 prints
Photographs are dated and identified by street name or neighborhood.
 
2/7

Seattle Aerial Photographs (undated)
   n.d.
 
23 prints
Photographs are undated, but in some cases are identified by street names handwritten on prints.
 
2/8

Seattle Aerial Photographs
   n.d.
 
17 negatives
Negatives may correspond to prints in folders 2/6 or 2/7. "Shot with focal-plane shutter."
 
2/9

Seattle City Planning Commission
   1957
 
1 print
 
2/10

Seattle City Planning Commission Correspondence
   1950
 
Included are several items of correspondence, as well as a copy of an architectural drawing of the proposed Civic Center.
 
2/11

Seattle City Planning Commission Display Materials
   n.d.
 
3 prints
Photographs of display materials showing population studies, land use, and topography for Seattle, as well as a map showing data for the Comprehensive Plan.
 
2/12

Seattle City Planning Commission Display Materials
   1949-1956, n.d.
 
17 prints
Included are aerial photographs, images of parks and streets, and traffic images from the California Highway Department.
 
2/13

Seattle City Planning Commission: "Taxes Are High Because of Slum Areas"
   n.d.
 
1 print, 1 negative
 
2/14

Seattle (Miscellaneous)
   1954, n.d.
 
11 prints
Included are photographs of people, neighborhoods, homes, parks, roads, and Seattle views.
 
2/15

Seattle (Miscellaneous)
   n.d.
 
36 3x5 prints; 46 2 1/4 prints
Included are photographs of people, neighborhoods, homes, parks, roads, and various other Seattle locales.
 
2/16

Seattle (Miscellaneous)
   n.d.
 
49 negatives
Included are photographs of neighborhoods, homes, parks, roads, and various other Seattle locales. Some negatives correspond to prints in folder 2/15.
 
2/17

Slide Conditions (Alki, Spring 1950)
   1950
 
9 prints
 
2/18

Slide Conditions (Vicinity of 12th and Blaine, Spring 1951)
   1951
 
10 prints
 
2/19

Traffic and Roads
   1952, n.d.
 
22 prints
Several images are from the California Highways and Public Works Division; these photographs show traffic and roads in Los Angeles, Petaluma, and Walnut Creek.