The Roosevelt Returns to the Locks

One hundred years ago, the Ship Canal and Government Locks were officially opened and dedicated, with a days celebration marked by a parade of hundreds of boats led by the  steamer Roosevelt. For any of you who missed the event of July 4 1917, there's a second chance to see the historic ship on display at the Locks. Well, a model of the ship, anyway. After it's successful voyage with Admiral Peary in his polar expedition, it was sold and used as a tug on many world wide trips. Eventually, however, it was badly damaged and was beached to be left to the elements along the Panama Canal. Local craftsman, Clayton Naset, has spent months constructing a marvelous replica of the ship and it is on display in the Administration Building at the Locks, where it will reside for some time. Just another reason to visit the Chittenden Locks.

President's Day Weekend will also feature many other displays and information on activities and resources commemorating the Centennial Anniversary of this historic local waterway and you can find more information here at the Making the Cut's website.

http://makingthecut100.org/

Many of these projects are produced by members of the Making the Cut group, and funding and support has been provided by 4Culture.

Snow on the Water

Seattleites readily remember the snow storm that paralyzed the city last November, resulting in power outages, freeway gridlock, buses sideways in the streets, people stranded.

Guess what? History repeats itself. Ninety-five years ago...



January 31, 1916 started out like any other cold, damp winter day in the city. Then mid-morning it started to snow; it kept coming down all day and on into the night. The storm continued steadily for 2 days: schools were closed, streetcar service was shut down and a snow slide closed the Northern Pacific Railroad’s Stampede Tunnel halting service across the Cascades.

Early afternoon on February 2 the wet snow was so deep it collapsed the roof of the West Seattle Christian Church, and several hours later the dome of St. James Cathedral crashed down under the weight of the heavy snow. The storm left Seattle with 3 feet of snow on the ground.



But over at the government locks in Ballard the workers were focused on something else. The cement work of the large lock was completed and the miter gates installed; it was time to open the valves and admit water in for the very first time. In this photo taken just after noon on Feb. 2, you can see the dark water coming from the filling tunnels, notice the staff on the upstream gate watching as the water pushes into the snow.

There must have been a sense of jubilation and pride that after decades of politics and planning- and 5 years of construction- it worked! Perhaps this group photo was a celebratory one, Chief Engineer Lt. Col. James Cavanaugh and his staff on the steps of the administration building on that momentous day (Cavanaugh is third from right in hat and glasses.) The Corps of Engineers workboat “Swinomish” did a trial lockage the next day, the locks were then used informally until their official dedication on July 4, 1917.



Sources for this article include HistoryLink.org and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Bebb & Gould Plaque

Excerpted from the Friends of the Ballard Locks website. For full article, see: Administration Building Plaque: Bebb & Gould & Molten Metal.  

Recently, we discovered some background information about the artist who sculpted the original artwork for this plaque. We'll include that here at the beginning of the original article posted back in 2010.

Gary Westwood

A self-trained visual artist, Gary Westwood had a hand in many iconic images of the 1980s, including the Puyallup Fair mascot (a wearable pig’s head made of latex), a panda head and boots for the Kent Police Department’s mascot, a wax caricature of famed sportscaster Wayne Cody for the promotional “Watch Wayne Disappear” diet campaign, and the crab legs worn by singing waiters in a commercial for the Sea Galley restaurant (available on YouTube!).

Westwood’s work on the plaque was more solemn. His daughter, Tisha ValWes, recalls that the two of them visited the raptor exhibit at Woodland Park Zoo to photograph and sketch the eagles resulting in the majestic bird that spreads its wings at the top of the tablet. Westwood also created most of the other elements of the plaque, sculpting them in clay before the images were cast in bronze.

... the following was the original post from 2010 ...

Although originally designed by Bebb & Gould in their plan for the locks buildings and grounds, it was not until 1985 that the Plaque on the East side of the Administration Building was completed. You may have visited the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks many times and observed the plaque, but not know its story. The plaque shown above is attached to the east side exterior wall of the administration building. Although work on the original ship canal buildings and grounds, designed by the firm of Bebb & Gould, was completed in 1922, the plaque was not created until 1985. When the locks underwent an $8 million rehabilitation from 1982 to 1985, the Corps rediscovered the original design drawings for the plaque and decided to have the work completed. The design of the plaque is rich in symbolism including: 1. The Eagle, emblem of the United States, used by the Corps of Engineers in its Coat-of-Arms. 2. The French term “Essayons” which is the motto of the Corps and means “let us try”. 3. The Castle, the symbol of the Corps of Engineers since 1839. The plaque was dedicated in a ceremony in August of 1985 commemorating the rehabilitation project. Completed nearly 70 years after opening of the locks, the plaque looks to the future with a commitment to continuing service to the public. Excerpted from the Friends of the Ballard Locks website. For full article, see: Administration Building Plaque: Bebb & Gould & Molten Metal.