Eli and Esther Rashkov papers, 1954-1986

Overview of the Collection

Title
Eli and Esther Rashkov papers
Dates
1954-1986 (inclusive)
Quantity
9.69 cubic feet (10 boxes)
Collection Number
4564 (Accession No. 4564-001)
Summary
Papers of Seattle community activists Eli Rashkov and his wife Esther concerning the development of Seattle area parks and the use of Forward Thrust funds.
Repository
University of Washington Libraries, Special Collections
Special Collections
University of Washington Libraries
Box 352900
Seattle, WA
98195-2900
Telephone: 2065431929
Fax: 2065431931
speccoll@uw.edu
Access Restrictions

Open to all users.

Languages
English
Sponsor
Funding for encoding this finding aid was partially provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Biographical NoteReturn to Top

Eli Rashkov (1920-1994) and his wife, Esther Rashkov, were community activists in the Seattle, Washington area who were concerned with urban development issues.

Both were heavily involved in the political reform group Choose an Effective City Council (CHECC) in the 1970s and early 1980s. Esther was president of CHECC from 1977 to 1980, and Eli served as president in the early 1980s. CHECC intervened in a number of Seattle municipal policy issues, including the Westlake development project of the late 1970s.

The Rashkovs were also involved in the Citizen’s Rate Advisory Committee, which formed in 1978 out of concerns about the 1979 Seattle City Light rate adjustment. The Committee grew to deal with other issues relating to both City Light and general energy concerns, such as the Washington Public Power Supply System and its nuclear power policies.

In the seventies the Rashkovs were also active members of the Wallingford Community Council (WCC) and each chaired various subcommittees. Eli Rashkov did significant work concerning Lake Union shoreline issues, chairing the WCC’s Lake Union Study Committee and serving as the Council’s representative on the Executive Committee of the Lake Union Coalition. Esther Rashkov was heavily involved in the issue of the Woodland Park Zoo development plans of the 1970s.

Both Rashkovs were also members of Citizens Against the R. H. Thomson (CARHT) – a group of concerned individuals that originally formed to stop the construction of the R. H. Thomson Expressway in Seattle. In the 1970s this group also struggled against the extension of Interstate 90 through Seattle and remained involved in other transportation issues.

Esther Rashkov was a member of the board of CARHT and Eli Rashkov served as vice-chair. Esther Rashkov was president of Community Research Associates, an organization that prepared research, reports, and court exhibits on behalf of other community activist organizations. Eli Rashkov was also a member of this organization, and both he and his wife compiled many reports and speeches that were presented on behalf of CHECC and the CRAC.

Eli Rashkov helped found the Group Health Cooperative of Puget Sound in 1947. Both Eli and Esther served on the District Executive Committee and Eli edited the local flyer. He was also involved in the 43rd Legislative District Democratic Organization, which worked on local electoral campaigns.

Eli Rashkov was a pharmacist by trade and owned two drugstores in Seattle. Throughout his life he maintained an interest in local artists and collected the works of Mark Tobey, Guy Anderson, Morris Graves and others.

Eli Rashkov died of cancer on August 1, 1994.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

Boxes 1 and 2 contain personal papers of Eli and Esther Rashkov, including speeches, writings and subject files relating to various civic interests not associated with any of the organizations in which the Rashkovs participated. Among these subject files is material concerning the development of Seattle area parks and the use of Forward Thrust funds. Correspondence in these papers includes letters from Mark Tobey and Guy Anderson, as well as miscellaneous information regarding Eli Rashkov’s art collection.

Boxes 2-4 contain records from Choose an Effective City Council (CHECC); the bulk of this material dates from 1977-1979 and pertains to the struggle against the Westlake redevelopment project. Also included are correspondence with city council members and other local officials, reports and subject files pertaining to issues of Seattle urban development.

Boxes 4-8 contain the records of the Citizen’s Rate Advisory Committee, the bulk of which dates from 1976 to 1980. This series includes minutes, agenda, correspondence and organizational materials of the Committee. The “Meeting Packets” series contains agenda, minutes, and various writings that were sent to members of CRAC members as preparatory material for upcoming meetings. Speeches, writings, and reports include both materials prepared by the CRAC and its members as well as those of other institutions. Much of the material pertains to Seattle electric rate issues, but all material on general energy issues, such as nuclear power and the Washington Public Power Supply System are included in this subgroup as well.

Boxes 8 and 9 contain the records of the Wallingford Community Council (WCC). The bulk of these materials dates from 1973 to 1979 and consists of subject files about issues affecting the Wallingford district of Seattle. Two of the main issues documented in the papers are use and conservation of Lake Union shoreline areas and development of the Woodland Park Zoo. Both of these subject series contain materials of the WCC and those of various organizations with which the Council allied itself when working on these projects, such as the Lake Union Coalition.

Box 9 also contains materials of three other organizations. The records of Citizens Against the R. H. Thomson (CARHT) date from 1970 to 1979 and include materials of their campaigns against the Interstate 90 extension through Seattle and for the Gas Tax Initiative 384, as well as other information on transportation issues. The series does not contain any records of the group’s original struggle against the proposed R. H. Thomson Expressway. The 43rd Legislative District Democratic Organization records document in Eli Rashkov’s involvement in local elections. The Group Health Cooperative of Puget Sound series includes materials from membership meetings and a small amount of writings, organizational materials and ephemera.

The accession does not contain any organizational records of Community Research Associates, but speeches, writings and testimony were prepared by the Rashkovs as part of CRA on behalf of other organizations and can be found in the CHECC and CRAC subgroups.

Major correspondents in this accession include Councilman Tim Hill, Councilwoman Phyllis Lamphere, Seattle City Light, Charles Royer, Benella Caminiti, Mark Tobey and Guy Anderson. Major subject areas represented in the papers include Seattle civic activism, Seattle urban development, Seattle parks, the downtown Seattle Westlake development project, Seattle City Light rate policies, the Washington Public Power Supply System, the Wallingford district of Seattle, Lake Union development and use policies, and the Woodland Park Zoo.

Use of the CollectionReturn to Top

Restrictions on Use

Creator's literary rights transferred to the University of Washington Libraries.

Preferred Citation

Eli and Esther Rashkov Papers, Accession No. 4564-001, Special Collections Division, University of Washington Libraries.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Arrangement

Arranged into 7 series:

  • Personal Papers, 1954-1982
  • Choose an Effective City Council, 1972-1986
  • Citizen's Rate Advisory Committee, 1973-1982
  • Wallingford Community Council, 1958-1979
  • Citizens Against the R.H. Thomson, 1970-1979
  • 43rd Legislative District Democratic Organization, 1972-1976
  • Group Health Coopertive of Puget Sound, 1972-1974

Acquisition Information

Donated by Esther Rashkov on May 31, 1996.

Processing Note

Processing completed in April 2002.

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

 

Personal Papers, 1954-1982Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Incoming Letters
Box
1
Anderson, Guy
1954, 1962, 1966, undated
1
Kapka, Alice
1966
1
Tobey, Mark
1954, 1959, undated
Box
1
Outgoing Letters
1972, 1977-1979, undated
General Correspondence
Box
1
re: Eli Rashkov's art collection
1956-1965
1
Miscellaneous
1960-1974
Box
1
Correspondence of Others
1973, 1978
1
Speeches and Writings
1974-1980, undated
1
Speeches and Writings of Others
1974-1977, undated
Reports
Box
1
Report of the Neighborhood Transition Committee to Mayor Charles Royer
1978
1
Miscellaneous
1964-191980
News Releases
Box
1
From the Office of the Mayor (Seattle)
1978-191980
Box
1
Legislation and Ordinances
1977-1981
1
Newsletters
1975-1979
Subject Files
Candidates
Box
1
Mayoral
1977
1
Miscellaneous
1973-1979
Box
1
Capital Improvement
1978
box:oversize
10
Capital Improvement
Box
1
Citizen Participation
1978, undated
1
City Charter (Seattle) Amendments
1977, undated
1
City/County Consolidation
circa 1974
1
Community Development
undated
1
Health Care
1979, undated
1
Initiatives
undated
1
LaConner, Washington
1974, undated
1
Land Use
1979-1980, undated
Parks
Box
1
Correspondence
1975-1977
1
Agenda
1975-1977
1
Speeches and Writings
1975-1978, 1982, undated
1
Reports
1974, 1977, undated
1
Ordinances
1977, undated
1
Clippings
1967, undated
1
Miscellany
undated
2
Arboretum
undated
2
Forward Thrust
1977, undated
2
Sand Point
1977, 1979, undated
Box
2
Seattle City Budget
Includes photograph.
1975-1977, 1981, undated
2
Seattle Development Planning
1966, 1976-1978, undated
2
Seattle Downtown Parking
1975-1976
2
Seattle Water and Sewer
1974, undated
2
Solid Waste
1980, undated
2
South Park/Duwamish Annexation
1979
Box
2
Notes
undated
2
Ephemera
undated
2
Clippings
1971-1981, undated

Choose an Effective City Council (CHECC), 1972-1986Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box
2
Organization
1972, 1978
Incoming Letters
Box
2
Hill, Tim
1977-1978
2
A-Z
1977-1979
Box
2
Outgoing Letters
1977-1978, undated
General Correspondence
Box
2
United States Internal Revenue Service
1979
Box
2
Financial Records
1977, 1979
2
Speeches and Writings
1977-1979, undated
2
Newsletters with Drafts
1978-1979, undated
2
Reports
1974-1980
Subject Files
Box
3
Downtown
1980-1981, undated
3
Land Use/Housing
1977-1978, 1981, undated
box:oversize
10
Land Use/Housing
1977-1978, 1981, undated
Box
3
Municipal Bonds
1977, 1983
3
Overnight Use of City Vehicles
1974-1976, undated
Westlake
Box
3
General Correspondence
1975-1982
3
Minutes and Agenda (of various groups)
1976-1982
3
Speeches and Writings
1975-1978, undated
3
Fact Sheets
1977-1978, undated
3
Reports
1973, 1983-1984, undated
3
Financial Records
1980-1981, undated
3
News Releases
1979-1982
Hearings
Box
3
Testimony
1977-1978, 1983
3
Exhibits
1977-1978
4
Miscellaneous
1978-1979, undated
Box
4
Bills
1977, undated
4
Laws and Regulations
1978, undated
4
Ordinances
1977, 1983, undated
4
Resolutions
1977, undated
4
Court Papers
1978, 1979
4
Contract
1976
Subject Files
Box
4
Analysis of Westlake Development Authority Charter
1977
4
City of Seattle Debt Management Policy
1976
4
Monorail
1979
Box
4
Lists
undated
4
Timelines
1977-1978
Notes
undated
Box
4
Drawings and Charts
undated
box:oversize
10
Drawings and Charts
undated
Box
4
Clippings
1974-1980
4
Miscellany
1976
Box
4
Lists
1976-1978, undated
4
Ephemera
1975-1979, undated
4
Clippings
1967-1986

Citizens' Rate Advisory Committee (CRAC), 1973-1982Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box
4
Historical Features
1978-1979
4
Organization
1980, undated
Incoming Letters
Box
4
Seattle City Light A - Z
1978-1980
4
Miscellaneous A - Z
1979
Box
4
Outgoing Letters
1976, 1978-1979
4
Correspondence of Others
1975, 1977-1980
4
Memoranda
1978-1980
4
Minutes and Agenda
1978-1980
4
Minutes and Agenda of Others
1977-1982
4-5
Meeting Packets
1978-1980
Speeches and Writings
Box
4-5
CRAC
1978-1982, undated
4-5
Rashkov, Eli and Esther
1974-1978, undated
4-5
Seattle City Light
1973, 1977, 1980
4-5
Daniggelis, Nick - City Light Accountant
1977, undated
4-5
Seattle (Miscellaneous City Offices)
1975-1980
4-5
Miscellaneous
1977-1980, undated
Reports
Box
4-5
CRAC Committees
1977-1978
5-6
Seattle City Light
1978-1980, undated
5-6
Seattle (Other City Offices)
1973-1979
5-6
Washington (Miscellaneous State Offices)
1977-1978
5-6
United States (Miscellaneous Federal)
1975, 1978, undated
5-6
Miscellaneous
1976
Box
5-6
Testimony
1977-1978, 1981
Subject Files
Box
5-6
Bonneville Power Association
1978-1981, undated
6
Copper Creek Dam
1977-1979, undated
6
Drought Surcharge
1977
7
Ecological Issues
1976-1978, undated
7
Hearings
1977-1979
7
Light Brigade
1978-1979
7
Nuclear Power
1977-1978, undated
7
Proposed Energy Code
1979
7
Public vs. Private Utilities
1979
7
Public Utilities Regulatory Policies Act
1978-1980
7
Rate Data and Comparisons
1976-1977, undated
7
Rate Increase Proposal
1974
7
Rate Relief/ Rate Discounts
1978
7
Regional Power Plans
1976-1978, undated
7
Ross Dam
1977
7
Seattle City Finances
1976
7
Seattle City Light Budget and Finances
1974-1979
7
Solar, Wind and Energy Alternatives
1978-1980, undated
7
Washington Public Power Supply System (WPPSS)
1978-1979
Box
7
Resolutions
1977-1979
7
Legislation
1979, undated
7
Conferences and Conventions
1977-1979
7
Newsletters (of Various Groups)
1978-1980
7
Fact Sheets
1977, undated
7
Timelines and Schedules
1976-1980
box:oversize
10
Timelines and Schedules
1976-1980
Box
7
Lists
1976-1978, undated
7
Pamphlets - Seattle City Light
1977, undated
7
Questionnaire
undated
7
Notes
undated
8
Clippings
1977-1980
8
Miscellany
undated
8
Conservation Subcommittee
1979-1980
8
Costing and Pricing Methodologies Subcommittee
1977-1978, undated
8
Financial Subcommittee
1978
8
Programs, Projects and Resources Subcommittee
1978

Wallingford Community Council (WCC), 1958-1979Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box
8
Organization
1972-1976
8
Incoming Letters
1974
8
Outgoing Letters
1977
General Correspondence
Box
8
Nominating Esther Rashkov to Seattle Board of Park Commissioners
1974
Box
8
Speeches and Writings
1974-1977, undated
8
Speeches and Writings of Others
1973-1974, undated
8
Court Papers
1972-1974
Subject Files
Box
8
Good Shepherd Home
1969, 1973-1978, undated
box:oversize
10
Good Shepherd Home
1974-1977
Box
8
Lake Union Shoreline
Box
8
General Correspondence
1965, 1970-1975
8
Speeches and Writings
1971-1974, undated
8
Legislation
1971-1972, 1978
8
Court Papers
1968, 1975
8
Notes
undated
8
Maps
undated
box:oversize
10
Maps
undated
Box
8
Clippings
1974-1976, undated
8
Gas Works Tavern Waterside Sign
1975
8
Lake Union Coalition
1973, undated
8
Lake Union Special Review District
1973
8
Marine Power and Equipment Company
1975
8
Roanoke Reef
1973-1974
8
Shoreline Master Program
1974-1975
8
Waterway 11
1975
8
Rezoning
1978-1979
8
Seattle City Charter Annotations
undated
8
Wallingford Community Council vs. City of Seattle et al.
1975
Woodland Park Zoo
Box
8
General Correspondence
1973-1979, undated
Minutes and Agenda
Box
8
Zoo Steering Committee
1975-1976
8
Park Board
1975-1976
8
Unidentified
1975
Speeches and Writings
Box
8
WCC
1974-1975
8
David Hancocks (Director of Zoo)
1975
8
Benella Caminiti
1974-1978
8
Miscellaneous
1976, undated
Box
8
Reports
1974-1977
8
Financial Records
1974, undated
8
Agreement
undated
8
Resolution
circa 1968
8
News Releases
1975
8
Development Bulletins
circa 1975
8
Comprehensive Plan
1976
8
Zoo Fee
1976
8
Schedules
1976, undated
8
Notes
undated
box:oversize
10
Maps
undated
Box
8
Clippings
1974-1976, undated
Box
9
Newsletters
1973, 1975
9
News Releases
1975
9
Ordinances
1974, undated
9
Resolutions
1958, 1974
box:oversize
10
Maps
undated
Box
9
Notes
undated
9
Ephemera
1975, undated
9
Clippings
1972-1974, undated
9
Miscellany
undated

Citizens Against the R. H. Thomson (CARHT), 1979-1979Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box
9
Organization
1974, 1977
9
Outgoing Letters
1974, 1977, undated
9
Speeches and Writings
1976-1977, undated
9
Speeches and Writings of Others
1978, undated
9
Reports
1976-1977
Subject Files
Box
9
Bay Freeway
1970, undated
9
Gas Tax
1977-1978
9
Interstate 90
1976-1979, undated
9
Seattle Transportation Policy Plan
1977-1978

43rd Legislative District Democratic Organization, 1972, 1975-1976, undatedReturn to Top

Container(s): Box 9

Group Health Cooperative of Puget Sound, 1972-1974Return to Top

Container(s): Box 9

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Art--Collectors and collecting--Washington (State)--Seattle--Archives
  • City planning--Washington (State)--Seattle--Citizen participation
  • Civic leaders--Washington (State)--Seattle--Archives
  • Community organization--Washington (State)--Seattle
  • Highway planning--Washington (State)--Seattle--Public opinion
  • Parks--Washington (State)--Seattle--Planning--Citizen participation
  • Political activists--Washington (State)--Seattle--Archives
  • Public utilities--Rates--Washington (State)--Seattle

Personal Names

  • Caminiti, Benella--Correspondence
  • Hill, Tim, 1936- --Correspondence
  • Lamphere, Phyllis--Correspondence
  • Rashkov, Eli--Archives
  • Rashkov, Esther--Archives
  • Royer, Charles, 1939- --Correspondence
  • Tobey, Mark--Correspondence

Corporate Names

  • CARHT (Organization : Seattle, Wash.)
  • Choose an Effective City Council (Organization : Seattle, Wash.)
  • Citizens' Rate Advisory Committee (Seattle, Wash.)
  • Group Health Cooperative of Puget Sound
  • Seattle City Light
  • Wallingford Community Council
  • Woodland Park Zoo

Geographical Names

  • Lake Union
  • Seattle (Wash.)--Politics and government
  • Wallingford (Seattle, Wash.)
  • Westlake Mall (Seattle, Wash.)

Form or Genre Terms

  • Clippings (Books, newspapers, etc.)
  • Correspondence
  • Drawings
  • Ephemera
  • Financial records
  • Minutes
  • Reports
  • Speeches, addresses, etc
  • Writings

Other Creators

  • Personal Names
    • Rashkov, Esther (creator)

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Personal Papers/Corporate Records (University of Washington)