Pier 2, Seattle

Last updated
Pier 2, Seattle
Pier 2 Seattle circa 1915.jpeg
A crowd at Pier 2.
TypeShipping pier and warehouse
Locale Seattle, Washington
Owner Northern Pacific Railway
Characteristics
Total length770 ft (234.7 m)
Width120 ft (36.6 m)
History

Pier 2 in Seattle, Washington (after May 1, 1944, Pier 51 [1] ) was an important shipping terminal.

Contents

Location

Pier 2 was located at the foot of Yesler Way. Pier 2 was immediately to the north of Pier 1 and immediately to the south of Colman Dock. [2]

History

Pier 21 and Pier 1 to its south were built between 1901 and 1904, replacing Yesler's Wharf. [3] In 1904, Joshua Green's La Conner Trading, [3] by then a subsidiary of the Puget Sound Navigation Company, was operating jointly with businessman H.B. Kennedy as the Navy Yard Route on the Seattle – Bremerton run. Disposing of three vessels, including the Inland Flyer , Athlon, and the sternwheeler Port Orchard, the Navy Yard route ran six sailings a day from Pier 2 to and from Bremerton, Washington. [4]

In 1917, like Pier 1, Pier 2 was owned by the Northern Pacific Railway, although in the case of Pier 2 it was operated by the Alaska Steamship Company. Pier 2 measured 770 by 120 feet (235 by 37 m), with 1,400 feet (430 m) of berthing space. Pier 2 had a warehouse measuring 750 by 100 feet (229 by 30 m), with a cargo capacity of 17,000 tons. Track capacity at Pier 2 was 18 rail cars. Like Pier 1, Pier 2 had adjustable slips. In 1917 Pier 2 had an electric crane, with a capacity 25 tons. [2]

As with Pier 1/50, Alaska Steamship Company left in the late 1940s. The pier had various uses over the next three decades. Washington State Ferries moored ships there; eventually the pier lost its shed and became mainly a parking lot. In the early 1960s, the restaurant Polynesia was built there. [5] The pier was also home to Ye Olde Curiosity Shop., [6] In 1971, it was owned and/or operated by Seattle Piers, Inc. and, along with Pier 1/50, was the proposed site for a World Trade Center, [6] which was ultimately built elsewhere. The pier was torn down early 1980s to expand the Washington State Ferries terminal at Pier 52 (Colman Dock). [5]

Notes

  1. Daryl C. McClary (November 26, 2011), "Seattle docks and piers are given new designations on May 1, 1944", HistoryLink , Seattle: History Ink, retrieved March 15, 2023
  2. 1 2 Beaton, Welford, ed. Frank Waterhouse & Company's Pacific Ports: A Commercial Geography (1917), at pages 27 to 37. (accessed 06-09-11)
  3. 1 2 Thomas Street History Services (November 2006). "Context Statement: The Central Waterfront" (PDF). Seattle Department of Neighborhoods. Retrieved March 15, 2023. Updated January 2007.
  4. Newell, ed., H.W. McCurdy Marine History, at 32, 67, 76, 87, 100, 110, 145, 175, 268, and 270.
  5. 1 2 Paul Dorpat (2005). "3" (PDF). The Seattle Waterfront: An Illustrated History. p. 198. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
  6. 1 2 "Seattle Harbor Directory". Seattle Municipal Archives. 1971. Retrieved 2022-10-18. Map also available as File:Map of Seattle Harbor, circa 1971 (52409434495).jpg.

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References

Coordinates: 47°36′06″N122°20′12″W / 47.60167°N 122.33667°W / 47.60167; -122.33667