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George Nelson photograph collection, circa 1925-1930
Overview of the Collection
- Collector
- Nelson, George
- Title
- George Nelson photograph collection
- Dates
- circa
1925-1930 (inclusive)19251930
- Quantity
- 66 photographs, (1 box)
- Collection Number
- 1968.4524 (accession)
- Summary
- Photographs of sewer construction and the second Denny Hill regrade in Seattle, circa 1925-1930
- Repository
-
Museum of History & Industry, Sophie Frye Bass Library
P.O. Box 80816
Seattle, WA
98108
Telephone: 2063241126 x102
library@mohai.org - Access Restrictions
-
The collection is open to the public by appointment.
- Languages
- English.
Biographical NoteReturn to Top
George Nelson was a Seattle contractor who was hired by the city for Public Works projects, including the second phase of the Denny Hill regrade beginning in 1928.
Nelson's contracting business is first listed in city directories beginning in 1925: from 1925 to 1928 as Nelson and Pederson; in 1929 as George Nelson & Co.; in 1930 under Nelson's name as "General Contractor"; and from 1935 through the early 1940s as "Cities Contracting Co." Nelson's wife Agnes is listed as George Nelson's widow beginning with the 1966 directory.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
Photographs of contracting jobs performed by George Nelson, probably all Public Works projects for the Seattle Engineering Department, from circa 1925-1930. The majority of the collection depicts three projects: the construction of a truck sewer and subsewers as part of the improvements along Oregon Street; the construction of a trunk sewer at West Hanford Street; and the final phase of the Denny Hill regrade. Other images depict construction equipment, particularly the Lorain L75 Electric Shovel produced by Thew Shovels in Lorain, Ohio.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
Alternative Forms Available
View selections from the collection in digital format here or by clicking on the camera icons in the inventory.
Restrictions on Use
The Museum of History & Industry is the owner of the materials in the Sophie Frye Bass Library and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. Written permission must be obtained from MOHAI before any reproduction use. The museum does not necessarily hold copyright to all of the materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from the copyright owners.
Preferred Citation
George Nelson Photograph Collection , Museum of History & Industry, Seattle
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Location of Collection
2a.4.9Acquisition Information
Gift of Agnes Nelson (George Nelson's wife) in October 1968.
Processing Note
The collection was arranged into series based on number and letter markings on the photos, which revealed that each group depicted a particular project. Photographs were grouped by markings of "A," "B," and "C" and sequentially by number within each group. Some unmarked photographs were obviously part of one of these groups and were added to the sequence. Other unmarked photographs comprise the "Miscellaneous" series.
Related Materials
MOHAI accession no. 1969.4658 contains films from the collection of George Nelson, documenting the Denny Regrade, 1929-1930.
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
The following section contains a detailed listing of the materials in the collection.
Oregon Street Sewer, circa 1924Return to Top
This series consists of 18 photographs on linen backing which appear to have been removed from a two ring
binder. They are numbered by hand in black ink on the upper left corner of the page with sequential numbers followed by
"A."
The photographs document construction of a concrete sewer pipe along Oregon Street in Seattle. This may have been part of the 1925 Local Improvement District No. 3795 project for the improvement of Oregon Street by construction of a trunk sewer and subsewers.
| Container(s) | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/1 | circa 1925 | |
| 1/1 | 2: Men on concrete transport car on rails |
circa 1925 |
| 1/1 | circa 1925 | |
| 1/1 | 4-5: Concrete pipe support, steel wire form and scaffolding |
circa 1925 |
| 1/1 | 6: Rails for concrete car showing steel wire pipe frame beneath |
circa 1925 |
| 1/1 | 7: Partially constructed pipe showing wooden form |
circa 1925 |
| 1/1 | 8: Coils of reinforced steel cable on flatbed truck |
circa 1925 |
| 1/1 | 9-13, 16: Views of exterior of finished pipe, including views of junctions and
manholes |
circa 1925 |
| 1/1 | 14-15, 17: Views of interior of finished pipe, showing junction and
manhole |
circa 1925 |
| 1/2 | 18: Concrete mixer and rails for concrete transport car over pipe
scaffolding |
circa 1925 |
Reproductions for legal exhibits, 1926Return to Top
Group of 18 photographs, all but one of which are duplicates from the "Oregon Street Sewer" series. Photos
are also mounted on linen backing and hole punched for two ring binder. Each is stamped on verso as "Defendant's
Exhibit," filed April 5, 1926. The case name is handwritten as "A.C. Goering (plaintiff) vs. Hans Pederson Const. Co.
et al" and the photographs are stamped "Nelson and Pederson."
The single photo that is not a duplicate is listed as number 18 in the Oregon Street Sewer series.
West Hanford Street Tunnel, circa 1928-1930Return to Top
These photographs document the construction of a sewer tunnel along West Hanford Street, Seattle. Nelson was apparently hired to work on the Local Improvement District No. 4751 project, which specified the improvement of West Hanford Street and other streets through construction of a trunk sewer. Most of the photographs are captioned on front "George Nelson and Co." and "West Hanford St. L.I.D. 4751."
| Container(s) | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/3 | 19: Pipe sections and lumber near buildings
Writing on verso: Office and carpenter shop for making frames. West Hanford LID 4751.
|
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/3 | 20: Pipe sections and lumber near buildings |
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/3 | 21: Man working with metal pipe in shop |
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/3 | 22: Two men with pan conveyers in tunnel
Writing on verso: Where the dirt from the tunnel is being dumped into the pan conveyor. West Hanford LID
4751.
|
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/3 | 23: Pan conveyor in tunnel
Writing on verso: Where the dirt from the tunnel is being dumped into the pan conveyor.
|
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/3 | 24: Group of workers with excavating tools in tunnel
Caption on photo: Excavating tunnel. West Hanford LID 4751.
|
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/3 | 25: Four workers excavating tunnel
Writing on verso: Face working in 108" Tunnel Section. Hanford St. Sewer Tunnel 4" x 12" Timbering
|
1928 November 20 |
| 1/3 | 26: Group of workers with excavating tools in tunnel
Caption on photo: Excavating tunnel. West Hanford LID 4751.
|
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/3 | 27: Truck on ramp and plant buildings
Caption on photo: Mixing plant for tunnel and 102 inch pipe. West Hanford LID 4751.
|
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/3 | 28: Two compressors in room
Caption on photo: Compressor plant for concrete in tunnel. West Hanford LID 4751.
Writing on verso: W. Hanford St. Sewer Seattle. Gardner-Denver compressor plant. |
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/3 | 29: Workers and car loaded with concrete in tunnel
Caption on photo: Concrete in tunnel.
Writing on verso: Cars being pulled up incline with Leadville Portable Air Hoist # 5 |
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/3 | 30-34: Pouring concrete in tunnel walls
Photos depict tracks in tunnel, pump, framing and partially completed tunnel walls.
|
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/3 | 35: Wooden framing over and along ditch filled with water
Writing on verso: 150" x 100" con. sewer ditch. Seattle W. Hanford
|
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/3 | 36: Pilings in trench
Caption on photo: Piling for 150 inch concrete pipe. Looking east between 8 and 9 Ave. So. West Hanford
St. L.I.D. 4751
|
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/3 | 37-38: Reinforced steel cable pipe frame in trench
Caption on photo: 150 inch concrete pipe. Looking west from 6th Ave. West Hanford St. L.I.D. 4751
|
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/3 | 39: Man working on reinforced steel cable pipe frame
Caption on photo: Re-enforced [sic] steel for 150 inch pipe. West Hanford St. L.I.D. 4751
|
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/3 | 40: Partially covered steel cable pipe frame
Caption on photo: 150 inch pipe. 4th Ave. and West Hanford St. L.I.D. 4751
|
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/3 | 41: Overflow chamber with buildings and tanks in background
Caption on photo: Overflow chamber. West Hanford St. L.I.D. 4751
|
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/3 | 42: Workers on pipe scaffolding showing concrete in bottom section of
pipe
Caption on photo: Concrete in 102 inch pipe. West Hanford St. L.I.D. 4751
|
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/3 | 43: Platform with hoist for removing dirt at tunnel entrance, with view of
neighborhood in background
Caption on photo: Tunneling for 60 inch pipe. L.I.D. 4751
Writing on verso: Bin and Ransome Skip for taking dirt out of tunnel for 60" pipe on Oregon St. |
circa 1928-1930 |
Denny Hill regrade, 1929-1930Return to Top
The Board of Public Works awarded George Nelson & Company the contract for the second and final phase of the regrading of Denny Hill in 1928-1930. Unlike the first regrade, this project made use of belt conveyors to move material from the site out to Elliott Bay. An electric shovel removed dirt from the hill and dropped it into a hopper, which in turn fed the material onto the movable belt conveyor to self dumping scows at the pier.
| Container(s) | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/4 | 44: Man shoveling dirt near conveyor |
circa 1929 |
| 1/4 | 45: Birdseye view of regrade showing conveyors, looking south from Battery
Street near 5th Avenue
W.H. Green
(photographer)
|
1929 October 30 |
| 1/4 | 46-47: Birds-eye panorama of regrade looking northeast from 5th
Avenue |
1929 December 20 |
| 1/4 | 48: Birds-eye view of regrade looking toward 5th Avenue, showing
conveyors |
1930 April 15 |
| 1/4 | 49: Regrade looking north from Battery and 5th Avenue
W.H. Green
(photographer)
|
1930 April 18 |
| 1/4 | 50: View of regrade area looking towards 5th Avenue, showing
conveyors
W.H. Green
(photographer)
|
1930 May 21 |
| 1/4 | 51: Self-dumping scow in Elliott Bay in action |
circa 1930 |
| 1/4 | 52: Regrade area showing pipes on ground and residences in
distance |
1930 June 9 |
| 1/4 | 53-54: Panorama of regrade area from Battery and 5th Avenue
W.H. Green
(photographer)
|
1930 November 12 |
| 1/4 | 65-66: Panorama of regrade area |
1930 June 20 |
MiscellaneousReturn to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates |
|---|---|---|
Lorain L75 Electric shovels
These were probably the shovels used in the Denny Hill regrade operation, 1928-1930. All of these
photographs are inscribed on the back in black ink and in the same handwriting
|
circa 1928-1930 | |
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/5 | 55: Thew Shovel Co. L75 electric shovel, rear view
Inscribed on verso: Shows cutaway on turntable for clearance.
|
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/5 | 56: Thew Shovel Co. electric shovel, front view
Inscribed on verso: Shows special Cleveland Railway Co. L75 electric shovels at work
|
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/5 | 57: Electric shovel at work
Inscribed on verso: L75 Electric owned by Foley and Beardslee--Sand and gravel operators, Pontiac,
Michigan
|
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/5 | 58: Lorain 75 shovel at work
Inscribed on verso: One of 1st Lorain 75 Electric shovels owned by Glen Gery Hale Brick Co.-Reading,
Pa. They purchased a 2nd machine in Feb. 1928. This is very hard shale.
A very careful electric test was made on this machine by General Electric Co. which showed an average K.W. Consumption of 18 K.W. per hour. |
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/5 | 59: Electric shovel near hill
Inscribed on verso: Another view of North Lake Sand & Gravel L75 Electric showing close up of
grizzly loading bin
|
circa 1928-1930 |
| Box/Folder | ||
| 1/6 | 60: Framing inside tunnel |
undated |
| 1/6 | 61: Worker standing inside framing in tunnel, with concrete in
place |
undated |
| 1/6 | 62: Electrical transformer mounted on wall
Writing on verso: Transformer in tunnel 440 to 110 watts
|
circa 1928-1930 |
| 1/6 | 63-64: International dump truck |
undated |
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Power shovels--Electric driving--Washington (State)--Seattle
- Denny Regrade (Seattle, Wash.)
- Grading (Earthwork)--Washington (State)--Seattle
- Sewerage--Washington (State)--Seattle
- Sewers, Concrete
- Tunnels
Geographical Names
- Oregon Street (Seattle, Wash.)
- West Hanford Street (Seattle, Wash.)
Form or Genre Terms
- Photographs
Finding aid prepared by Jody Hendrickson
2009
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
