William C. Speidel (1912–1988)

Mildly interesting - probably would have been far more interesting if I'd ever lived, or even spent any time, in Seattle. A breezy storyteller style, which was somewhat odd for a clearly well- and deeply-researched book. The problem is that that storyteller style meant a _lot_ of detail, enough to swamp me at times - particularly when he kept going back over the same period while focusing on a different group and different events. The fire was while Lou was a madam, what about Pinnell? Were there two separate attempts by the railroad to use the exact same methods to kill off Seattle (delaying mail and passengers, among other things), when it didn't work the first time? Or were those techniques only used once and Speidel told us about them twice from two different viewpoints? And so on. The last section focuses on the Alaskan gold rush, and how Seattle made a fortune off it - I think that era was only covered once, which made it clearer. The other thing was, the few decent people he talks about...weren't as interesting to the author as the greedy, largely amoral lot that fit the name "Sons of the Profits", so we spend most of the book deeply immersed in nasty people and their plots to make more money. It got a little dull at times. I'm glad I read it...I might even reread (or at least skim), if I were going to Seattle and planning to tour the underground. I don't see any reason other than that for rereading, for me.… (mer)

My wife grew up in Seattle. While we were dating, we went on the Seattle underground tour, and now it's time to read the book. That said, there are lots of names that would be much more meaningful to a Seattle native.

This book reminded me that whether the person was a hero or villain, society tends to glorify them after they are dead. The people mentioned here gained wealth at other's expense (I am putting it very politely), and now are revered as the founders of Seattle. There are a few other characters mentioned because of their interactions with the founders.

An easy read with a few main characters, with lots of others that are also important in the development of the city, and a few who only appear briefly.
… (mer)

First published in 1974 as a travel guide (of sorts) to Western Washington, this used tome has now become a double history book. The first history is the background information and historical anecdotes that Mr. Speidel originally penned for each region and community. The second is the description of the places and recommendations of things to see and do that were current in the 1970s. If I had all the time in the world, I'd be tempted to hop in the car and find out how much of that second history remains after almost fifty years. Still, it was fun to read a witty celebration of this region of the world.
--J.… (mer)