Archives West Finding Aid

The 1909 Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition (AYPE) held in Seattle, Washington, was the spectacular result of nearly 10 million dollars and four years of effort. The Klondike Gold Rush made Seattle the dominant city in the Pacific Northwest, as the major supplier to Alaska. The goal of the 1909 AYPE was to show off the growth and development of the Pacific Northwest, specifically Seattle, and to display the value of commercial trade with the Pacific Rim. When Japan agreed to participate, the AYPE became a truly international, multi-cultural event, which planners of the AYPE hoped would demonstrate cooperation between people from around the world. On a less philosophical level, city officials also hoped that the exposition would encourage people to relocate to the growing metropolis of Seattle.

Officials soon decided on the largely wooded grounds of the University of Washington, situated on Lake Washington, with Mount Rainier visible in the distance. The first $650,000 for the AYPE was raised by proud Seattleites, who bought "shares" of the exposition. Much of the rest was funded by the sale of public lands and by the Washington State legislature, with the understanding that the buildings built for the exposition would become part of the University of Washington at the end of the AYPE. John and Frederick Olmsted, son and stepson of Frederick Law Olmsted, prominent landscape architects in their own right, designed much of the AYPE grounds.

Thanks to two years of planning and the huge sums of money raised, the AYPE grounds and exposition were everything the planners had hoped for. It was a fascinating mix of ethnic diversity and crass commercialism, but it clearly appealed to the people of the United States. Over 80,000 people attended the AYPE on opening day in June 1909, and by closing day (October 16, 1909) 3.7 million people had paid to see attractions such as the Igorrote Village, and the Indian and Eskimo exhibits.

Although the Exposition boasted its own official photographer, amateur photographers could purchase a paper permit, allowing access for one day. With the day pass, an amateur photographer with a camera smaller than 6 x 8 inches was allowed to take unlimited photographs of the buildings, exhibits and other features. In February, 1909, newspaper articles encouraged Seattle residents to take photographs of the construction and send them "back home" to people outside the city as incentive to attend the upcoming Exposition.