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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)
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.
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Biographical Note

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.

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Content Description

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.

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Use of the Collection

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

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Administrative Information

Location of Collection

2a.4.9

Acquisition 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.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

The following section contains a detailed listing of the materials in the collection.

  • Oregon Street Sewer, circa 1924

    18 photographs 7.5 x 9. 5

    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.

  • Description: Reproductions for legal exhibits

    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.

    Dates: 1926

  • West Hanford Street Tunnel, circa 1928-1930

    25 photographs

    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."

  • Denny Hill regrade, 1929-1930

    11 photographs

    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.

  • Miscellaneous

    10 photographs

    • Lorain L75 Electric shovels, circa 1928-1930

      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

      • Description: 55: Thew Shovel Co. L75 electric shovel, rear view

        Inscribed on verso: Shows cutaway on turntable for clearance.

        Dates: circa 1928-1930
        Container: Box/Folder 1/5
        Location: Miscellaneous / Lorain L75 Electric shovels, circa 1928-1930
      • Description: 56: Thew Shovel Co. electric shovel, front view

        Inscribed on verso: Shows special Cleveland Railway Co. L75 electric shovels at work

        Dates: circa 1928-1930
        Container: Box/Folder 1/5
        Location: Miscellaneous / Lorain L75 Electric shovels, circa 1928-1930
      • Description: 57: Electric shovel at work

        Inscribed on verso: L75 Electric owned by Foley and Beardslee--Sand and gravel operators, Pontiac, Michigan

        Dates: circa 1928-1930
        Container: Box/Folder 1/5
        Location: Miscellaneous / Lorain L75 Electric shovels, circa 1928-1930
      • Description: 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.

        Dates: circa 1928-1930
        Container: Box/Folder 1/5
        Location: Miscellaneous / Lorain L75 Electric shovels, circa 1928-1930
      • Description: 59: Electric shovel near hill

        Inscribed on verso: Another view of North Lake Sand & Gravel L75 Electric showing close up of grizzly loading bin

        Dates: circa 1928-1930
        Container: Box/Folder 1/5
        Location: Miscellaneous / Lorain L75 Electric shovels, circa 1928-1930
    • Description: 60: Framing inside tunnel
      Dates: undated
      Container: Box/Folder 1/6
      Location: Miscellaneous
    • Description: 61: Worker standing inside framing in tunnel, with concrete in place
      Dates: undated
      Container: Box/Folder 1/6
      Location: Miscellaneous
    • Description: 62: Electrical transformer mounted on wall

      Writing on verso: Transformer in tunnel 440 to 110 watts

      Dates: circa 1928-1930
      Container: Box/Folder 1/6
      Location: Miscellaneous
    • Description: 63-64: International dump truck
      Dates: undated
      Container: Box/Folder 1/6
      Location: Miscellaneous

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

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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