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Seattle, Washington

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: North American Geography

   City of Seattle
   Skyline of City of Seattle

   Official flag of City of Seattle

                                   Official seal of City of Seattle
   Flag                            Seal
   Nickname: "The Emerald City"
   Location of Seattle in King County and Washington
   Location of Seattle in
   King County and Washington
   Coordinates: 47°36′N 122°19′W
   Country United States
   State Washington
   County King County
   Incorporated December 2 1869
   Mayor Greg Nickels (D)
   Area
    - City 369.2 km²  (142.5  sq mi)
    - Land 217.2 km²  (83.87 sq mi)
    - Water 152.0 km² (58.67 sq mi)
    - Metro 21,202 km² (8,186 sq mi)
   Elevation 0–158 m  (0–520 ft)
   Population
    - City ( July 1 2005) 573,911
    - Density 2,665/km² (6,901/sq mi)
    - Metro 3,806,453
   Time zone PST ( UTC-8)
    - Summer ( DST) PDT ( UTC-7)
   Website: www.seattle.gov
   Downtown Seattle is composed of a tightly-packed financial district
   along with residential areas and a panoramic waterfront.
   Enlarge
   Downtown Seattle is composed of a tightly-packed financial district
   along with residential areas and a panoramic waterfront.

   Seattle is the largest city in the Pacific Northwest region of the
   United States. It is located in the U.S. state of Washington between
   Puget Sound and Lake Washington, nearly 108 miles (174 km) south of the
   United States–Canadian border in King County, of which it is the county
   seat.

   Seattle was first settled November 13, 1851, by Arthur A. Denny and his
   crew, which would subsequently become known as the Denny party. Its
   first name was New York, then Duwamps, then finally it was renamed
   Seattle named after Chief Noah Sealth who was chief of the two tribes
   living in the area ("Seattle" is an anglicized rendition of his last
   name). As of 2005, the city had an estimated population of 573,911 and
   a metropolitan population of 3.8 million. Seattle is the hub for the
   Greater Puget Sound region. Its official nickname is the Emerald City,
   the result of a contest by a civic-minded association in the early
   1980s to designate a pleasant nickname for the city; the name alludes
   to the lush evergreen trees in the surrounding area. It is also
   referred to informally as the Rainy City (also Rain City), the Gateway
   to Alaska, Queen City, and Jet City, due to the local influence of
   Boeing. Seattle residents are known as Seattleites.

   Seattle is often regarded as the birthplace of grunge music, and has a
   reputation for heavy coffee consumption; coffee companies founded in
   Seattle include Starbucks, Seattle's Best Coffee, and Tully's. There
   are also many successful independent artisanal espresso roasters and
   cafes. Seattle was the site of the 1999 meeting of the World Trade
   Organization, and the attendant demonstrations by anti-globalization
   activists, which were in keeping with Seattle's left-leaning history
   and reputation. Researchers at Central Connecticut State University
   ranked Seattle the most literate city in America in 2005. Moreover, a
   United States Census Bureau survey showed that Seattle has the highest
   percentage of college graduates of any major U.S. city. Based on per
   capita income, Seattle ranks 36th of 522 studied areas in the state of
   Washington.

History

Founding

   What is now Seattle has been inhabited since the end of the last
   glacial period (c. 8,000 B.C.E.—10,000 years ago). Archaeological
   excavations at West Point in Discovery Park, Magnolia confirm that the
   Seattle area has been inhabited by humans for at least 4,000 years and
   probably much longer. tohl-AHL-too (" herring house") and later
   hah-AH-poos ("where there are horse clams") at the then-mouth of the
   Duwamish River in what is now the Industrial District had been
   inhabited since the 6th entury C.E. The Dkhw'Duw'Absh and Xachua'Bsh
   people (now called the Duwamish Tribe) occupied at least 17 villages in
   the mid-1850s, living in some 93 permanent longhouses (khwaac'ál'al)
   along Elliott Bay, Salmon Bay, Portage Bay, Lake Washington, Lake
   Sammamish, and the lower Duwamish, Black, and Cedar Rivers.

   Most of the Denny Party, the most prominent of the area's early
   Caucasian settlers (and historians), arrived at Alki Point on November
   13 1851. They called the spot "New York" at first to reflect their
   aspirations to create a great trading port, later appending Alki, a
   Chinook Jargon word meaning, roughly, by and by or someday, literally
   or ironically. They relocated their settlement to Elliott Bay in April
   1852. The first plats for the Town of Seattle were filed on May 23
   1853. Nominal legal land settlement was established in 1855. The city
   was incorporated in 1865 and again in 1869, after having existed as an
   unincorporated town from 1867 to 1869.

   Seattle was named after Chief Sealth, (si'áb Si'ahl, Noah Sealth),
   high-status man (appointed chief by the territorial governor) of the
   Duwamish and Suquamish tribes. David Swinson ("Doc") Maynard, one of
   the city founders, was the primary advocate for naming the city after
   Chief Seattle. The name "Duwamish" is an Anglicization of
   Dkh^w'Duw'Absh, "the People of the Inside", and a variation of that
   name is preserved in the name of the Duwamish River. Previously, the
   city had been known as Duwamps (or Duwumps), an earlier name settlers
   used for the river.

Major events

   Visitors to Kerry Park on Queen Anne Hill can see the Space Needle, the
   Downtown Seattle skyline, and Mount Rainier (to the right).
   Visitors to Kerry Park on Queen Anne Hill can see the Space Needle, the
   Downtown Seattle skyline, and Mount Rainier (to the right).

   Major events in Seattle's history include the Great Seattle Fire of
   1889, which destroyed the central business district (but took no
   lives); the Klondike gold rush, which made Seattle a major
   transportation centre; the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition of 1909,
   which is largely responsible for the current layout of the University
   of Washington campus; the Seattle General Strike of 1919, the first
   general strike in the country; the 1962 Century 21 Exposition, a
   World's Fair; the 1990 Goodwill Games; and the WTO Ministerial
   Conference of 1999, marked by street protests and a series of riots.

   On February 28 2001, a state of emergency was declared after the
   magnitude 6.8 Nisqually earthquake rocked the region. Damage was
   moderate, but served as a reminder that the coastal Pacific Northwest —
   and the area around the Seattle Fault, in particular — is under a
   constant threat of earthquakes.

   Seattle suffered its worst mass-killing since the 1983 Wah Mee massacre
   when a 28-year-old man named Kyle Aaron Huff committed the Capitol Hill
   massacre on March 25 2006, followed by an attempted spree killing by
   Naveed Afzal Haq that left one dead at the Jewish Federation building
   in July. Seattle is relatively safe for a city its size. Its murder
   rate peaked in 1994 with 69 homicides. In 2004, Seattle's murder rate
   hit a 40-year low with 24 homicides. Seattle's crime rate has seen an
   increase in 2006, as have the crime rates in Tacoma and Lakewood,
   Washington.

Economic history

   Seattle has a history of boom and bust cycles historically common in
   cities of its size. Seattle has been sent into precipitous decline by
   the aftermaths of its worst periods as a company town, but has
   typically used those periods to successfully rebuild infrastructure.
   The Seattle Central Library, designed by Rem Koolhaas, is the result of
   a public vote on the "Libraries for All" bond measure approved by
   Seattle voters on November 3 1998.
   Enlarge
   The Seattle Central Library, designed by Rem Koolhaas, is the result of
   a public vote on the "Libraries for All" bond measure approved by
   Seattle voters on November 3 1998.

   The first such boom, covering the early years of the city, was fueled
   by the lumber industry. (It was during this period that the road now
   known as Yesler Way was nicknamed "Skid Road" after the timber skidding
   down the street to Henry Yesler's sawmill. The term later entered the
   wider American vocabulary as Skid Row.) This boom was followed by the
   construction of an Olmsted-designed park system.

   The second and largest boom was the direct result of the Klondike Gold
   Rush of 1896, which ended the national depression that had begun with
   the Panic of 1893. On July 14 1897, the S.S. Portland docked with its
   famed "ton of gold", and Seattle became the main transport and supply
   point for those heading north. It was during this economic boom that
   Seattle surpassed nearby Tacoma as the largest city on the Puget Sound.
   The boom lasted well into the early part of the 20th century and funded
   the start-up of many new companies and products. In 1907, 19-year-old
   James E. Casey founded the American Messenger Company in Seattle with
   $100 borrowed from a friend which later became UPS. Like UPS, other
   companies such as Nordstrom and Eddie Bauer, exist to this day.
   Downtown Seattle facing the Monorail station.
   Enlarge
   Downtown Seattle facing the Monorail station.

   Next came the shipbuilding boom in the early part of the 20th century,
   followed by the unused city development plan of Virgil Bogue. Seattle
   was the major point of departure during World War II for troops heading
   to the north Pacific, and Boeing manufactured many of the fighters and
   bombers.

   After the war, the local economy dipped but rose again with the
   expansion of Boeing, fueled by the growth of the commercial aviation
   industry. When this particular cycle went into a major downturn in the
   late 1960s and early 1970s, many left the area to look for work
   elsewhere, and two local real estate agents put up a billboard reading
   "Will the last person leaving Seattle — Turn out the lights."

   Seattle remained the corporate headquarters of Boeing until 2001, when
   the company announced a desire to separate its headquarters from its
   major production facilities. Following a bidding war among a number of
   major cities, Boeing moved its corporate headquarters to Chicago. The
   Seattle area is still home to Boeing's Renton narrow-body plant (where
   the 707, 720, 727, and 757 were assembled, and the 737 is assembled
   today), and Everett wide-body plant (assembly plant for the 747, 767,
   777 and the upcoming 787 Dreamliner); and BECU, formerly the Boeing
   Employees Credit Union.

   The most recent boom centered around the development of software
   technology. Microsoft; companies involved with Internet development,
   telecommunications companies such as Amazon.com, RealNetworks, McCaw
   Communications (later acquired by AT&T Corp. and renamed AT&T Wireless
   and then again acquired by Cingular Wireless and renamed Cingular), and
   VoiceStream (later acquired by Deutsche Telekom and renamed T-Mobile
   USA), and biomedical corporations such as Philips, Boston Scientific,
   and ZymoGenetics found homes in Seattle and its suburbs. Even
   locally-headquartered Starbucks held investments in numerous Internet
   and software interests. This success brought an influx of new citizens
   and saw Seattle's real estate become some of the most expensive in the
   country, along with that of San Francisco, New York City, and Los
   Angeles. Many of these companies remain relatively strong, but the
   frenzied boom years ended in early 2001.

Geography

   Map of Seattle

   Seattle is located between Puget Sound, an inlet of the Pacific Ocean,
   and Lake Washington. West beyond the Sound are the Olympic Mountains;
   east beyond Lake Washington and the Eastside suburbs are Lake
   Sammamish, the Newcastle Hills, and the Cascade Range. The rivers,
   forests, lakes, and fields were once rich enough to support one of the
   world's few sedentary hunter-gatherer societies. Opportunities for
   sailing, skiing, bicycling, camping, and hiking are nearby and
   accessible almost all the year.

   The city itself, somewhat like San Francisco, is hilly, though not
   uniformly so. Like Rome, the city lies on seven hills: First Hill,
   Capitol Hill, Queen Anne Hill, Magnolia, Beacon Hill, Mount Baker, and
   Crown Hill. West Seattle allegedly forms an eighth hill, since the
   highest point in the city rises 520 feet out of the ocean there in the
   High Point neighbourhood. The hilliest areas are near an isthmus in the
   city centre, where Downtown rises dramatically away from the chief
   harbour, an inlet of Puget Sound called Elliott Bay. The geography of
   Downtown and its immediate environs has been significantly altered by
   regrading projects, a seawall, and the construction of an artificial
   island, Harbour Island, at the mouth of the city's industrial Duwamish
   Waterway.

   The man-made Lake Washington Ship Canal bisects the city, incorporating
   four natural bodies of water: Lake Union, Salmon Bay, Portage Bay, and
   Union Bay. The canal connects Puget Sound to Lake Washington, the
   Chittenden Locks (Ballard Locks) forming the juncture where saltwater
   meets freshwater.

   An active geological fault, the Seattle Fault, runs under the city.
   Although neither the Seattle Fault nor the Cascadia Subduction Zone
   have caused an earthquake since the city’s founding, the city has been
   hit by four major earthquakes: December 14 1872 ( magnitude 7.3); April
   13 1949 (7.1); April 29 1965 (6.5); and the Nisqually Earthquake of
   February 28 2001 (6.8). The Cascadia subduction zone poses the even
   greater threat of an earthquake of magnitude 9.0 or greater, capable of
   seriously damaging the city and collapsing many buildings, particularly
   Downtown and in the Industrial District, which is built on fill.

   According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area
   of 369.2 km² (142.5 mi²)^ GR1, 217.2 km² (83.9 mi²) of which is land
   and 152.0 km² (58.7 mi²) water. The total area is 41.16% water.

   See also: Seattle neighborhoods, List of Seattle parks, Bodies of water
   of Seattle, Seven hills of Seattle

   Annexations:
     * May 3 1891
     * October 20 1905
     * From January 7 1907 to September 12 1907
     * March 29 1910
     * January 4 1954

Climate

   Downtown Seattle is bounded by Elliott Bay and the Alaskan Way Viaduct
   (lower left) and I-5 (from upper left to lower right)
   Enlarge
   Downtown Seattle is bounded by Elliott Bay and the Alaskan Way Viaduct
   (lower left) and I-5 (from upper left to lower right)

   Seattle has a cool mild temperate marine climate, since the temperature
   is moderated by the sea, and the area is protected from harsh winds and
   large storms by the Cascade and Olympic mountain ranges. Despite being
   partially in the rain shadow of the Olympic Mountains, the city of
   Seattle has a reputation for frequent rain. In reality, the so-called
   "rainy city" receives an unremarkable 38 inches (1016 mm) of
   precipitation a year, which is much less precipitation than New York
   City, Atlanta, and Houston and most cities of the Eastern Seaboard of
   the United States. Seattle's worldwide reputation for rain derives from
   the fact that it is cloudy (not rainy) an average of 226 days per year
   (vs. 132 in New York City). Most of the precipitation falls as drizzle
   or light rain, with snow typically falling within the city limits about
   four times a year. The winters are filled with days on which rain does
   fall, and on days when it does not rain it usually looks as if it may
   because of overcast skies. As for temperature, average annual
   temperatures range from a low of mid-upper 30s°F (around 2 or 3 °C) on
   winter nights to a high of mid-upper 70s°F (lower-mid 20 °C) on summer
   days. Seattle's hottest official recorded temperature was 100 °F (38.9
   °C) on July 20, 1994; the coldest recorded temperature was 0 °F (-17.7
   °C) on January 31, 1950. However, record maximum and minimum
   temperatures of 102 F and -4 F, have been unofficially observed, on
   July 21, 1994, and on January 3, 1864, respectively.

   To the west 80 miles (130 km), the Hoh Rain Forest, in Olympic National
   Park on the western flank of the Olympic Mountains, receives an annual
   average rainfall of 142 inches (3600 mm), and the state capital,
   Olympia, south of the rain shadow, receives an annual average rainfall
   of 52 inches (1320 mm). Snowfall is infrequent, especially at lower
   altitudes and near the coast, and is usually light and fleeting,
   lasting only a few days. On January 13, 1950, Seattle's record for
   snowfall was set at 20 inches (508 mm). Sunnier and drier " California
   weather" typically dominates from mid-July to mid-September. An average
   of 1.0 inches (26.4 mm) of rain falls in July and an average of 0.8
   inches (19.3 mm) falls in August.
   Seattle on a sunny afternoon.
   Enlarge
   Seattle on a sunny afternoon.

   The Puget Sound Convergence Zone is an important feature of Seattle's
   weather. In the convergence zone, air arriving in the area from the
   north meets air flowing in from the south. Both streams of air
   originate over the Pacific Ocean; airflow is split by the Olympic
   Mountains to Seattle's west, then reunited by the Cascade Mountains to
   the east. When the air currents meet, they are forced upward, resulting
   in convection.

   Thunderstorms caused by this activity can occur north and south of
   town, but Seattle itself rarely receives worse weather than occasional
   thunder and ice pellet showers. Thunderstorms in the Cascades sometimes
   produce frequent lightning, which makes for a brilliant light show for
   those in town.

   An exception to Seattle's dampness often occurs in El Niño years, when
   the marine weather systems track as far south as California and little
   precipitation falls in the Puget Sound area. Since the region's water
   comes from mountain snowpacks during the drier summer months, El Niño
   winters not only produce substandard skiing but can result in water
   rationing and a shortage of hydro-electric power the following summer.
   SEATTLE SAND PT WSFO, KING COUNTY data derived from NCDC TD 9641 Clim
   81 1961-1990 Normals. 30 years between 1961 and 1990. Retrieved
   November 10, 2006. Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
   Avg high °F (°C) 45 (7) 49 (9.5) 53 (12) 57 (14) 64 (18) 69 (20.5) 75
   (24) 76 (24) 70 (21) 60 (16) 51 (11) 45 (7) 60 (15)
   Avg low temperature °F (°C) 35 (1.5) 38 (3) 39 (4) 42 (6) 47 (8) 52
   (11) 56 (13) 57 (14) 53 (12) 48 (9) 41 (5) 35 (1.5) 46 (8)
   Rainfall inches ( millimeters) 3.90 (98.0) 2.10 (54.6) 4.20 (106.5)
   3.50 (88.6) 2.00 (50.0) 1.40 (36.1) 1.00 (26.4) 0.80 (19.3) 1.40 (34.3)
   2.20 (54.7) 6.91 (175.51) 4.78 (120.9) 34.19 (868.42)

Demographics

    City of Seattle
   Population by year
   1900 80,671
   1910 237,194
   1920 315,312
   1930 365,583
   1940 368,302
   1950 467,591
   1960 557,087
   1970 530,831
   1980 493,846
   1990 516,259
   2000 563,374

   As of the census^ GR2 of 2000, there were 563,374 people, 258,499
   households, and 113,400 families residing in Seattle. The racial makeup
   of the city was 70.09% White, 8.44% African American, 13.12% Asian,
   1.00% Native American, 0.50% Pacific Islander, 2.38% from other races,
   and 4.46% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were
   5.28% of the population. Seattle has seen a major increase in legal and
   illegal immigration in recent decades. The foreign-born population
   increased 40% between the 1990 and 2000 censuses. Hispanics are
   believed to be the most rapidly growing ethnic group in Washington,
   with an estimated increase of 10% just from 2000 to 2002, though they
   have tended to settle outside the city, in rural areas where
   agricultural jobs are abundant. The percentage of Seattle's population
   that identifies as gay or lesbian is estimated to be 12.9 percent, the
   second highest among the largest 50 cities in the U.S. behind San
   Francisco, California.

   The median income for a household in the city is $45,736, and the
   median income for a family is $62,195. Males have a median income of
   $40,929 versus $35,134 for females. The per capita income for the city
   is $30,306. 11.8% of the population and 6.9% of families are below the
   poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 13.8% are
   under the age of 18 and 10.2% are 65 or older.

   It is estimated that 1.25% of the population is homeless, and that up
   to 14% of Seattle's homeless are children and young adults. Despite
   many blemishes in Seattle's treatment of homeless citizens, local
   charities have made attempts to lower the ballooning homeless
   population of some 8,000. Local non-profit organizations dealing with
   poverty and related issues include the Fremont Public Association, the
   Asian Counseling and Referral Service, Peace for the Streets by Kids
   from the Streets, and the Seattle Indian Centre. In September 2005,
   King County adopted a "Ten-Year Plan to End Homelessness", one of the
   near-term results of which is a shift of funding from homeless shelter
   beds to permanent housing.

   In 2006, after growing by 4,000 citizens per year for the previous 16
   years, regional planners expect the population of Seattle to grow by
   200,000 people by 2040. However, Mayor Nickels supports plans that
   would increase the population by 60 percent, or 350,000 people, by 2040
   and is currently working on ways to accommodate this growth while
   keeping Seattle's single-family housing zoning laws. In 2006, the
   Seattle City Council voted to relax height limits on buildings in the
   greater part of Downtown, partly with the aim of increasing residential
   density in the city centre.

   In 2005, Men's Fitness magazine named Seattle the fittest city in the
   United States.

Government and politics

   Seattle is a charter city, with a Mayor-Council form of government,
   unlike many of its neighbors that use the Council-Manager form.
   Seattle's mayor and nine city council members are elected at large,
   rather than by geographic subdivisions. The only other elected office
   is the city attorney. All offices are non-partisan.

   The city government provides more utilities than many cities – either
   by running the whole operation, such as the water, sewer, and
   electricity services, or by handling the billing and administration,
   but contracting out the rest of the operations such as trash and
   recycling collection. In most neighboring cities, for example,
   electricity is provided by either a private company such as Puget Sound
   Energy, or a county public utility district. See the Utilities section
   for more details.

   As with most U.S. cities, the county judicial system handles felony
   crimes — the Seattle Municipal Court deals with parking tickets,
   traffic infractions, and misdemeanors. Seattle does not have its own
   jail, contracting out inmates it convicts to either the King County
   Jail (which is located downtown), the Yakima County Jail, or (for
   short-term holdings) the Renton City Jail. In 2004, there were only
   twenty-four murders in Seattle, the fewest since 1965. Violent crime
   has declined by nearly 42% since 1994, to a rate of approximately seven
   per 1,000 people. Auto theft has increased about 44% in the same
   period; the Seattle Police Department has responded by nearly doubling
   the number of auto theft detail detectives, and is starting a "bait
   car" program. A Money magazine table, using 2001 statistics, ranked
   Seattle 18th highest in crime rate in the U.S., with 80.5 crimes per
   1,000 citizens.

   Seattle's politics have leaned to the left in the last few decades
   compared to the United States as a whole, although there is a small
   libertarian movement within the metro area. Only two precincts in
   Seattle—one located in the famously exclusive Broadmoor community, and
   one encompassing condos within neighboring Madison Park—voted for
   Republican George W. Bush in the 2004 presidential election. Bush won
   the Broadmoor precinct by a moderate margin, although much smaller than
   in the 2000 presidential election. Madison Park was very close, also
   much closer than in 2000. The remaining precincts carried by Bush in
   2000 all went for Kerry in 2004. In partisan elections, such as for the
   Washington State Legislature and United States Congress, most elections
   are won by Democrats, with Greens getting more votes than in many other
   cities. Seattle dominates Washington's 7th congressional district, in
   which Representative Jim McDermott routinely wins by a large margin.

Official nickname, flower, slogan, and song

   In 1981, Seattle held a contest to come up with a new official nickname
   to replace "the Queen City." "Queen City" had been devised by real
   estate promoters and used since 1869, but was also the nickname of:
   Cincinnati; Denver; Toronto; Buffalo; Bangor, Maine; Helena, Montana;
   Burlington, Vermont and Charlotte, North Carolina. The winner of this
   contest, selected in 1982, was "the Emerald City". Submitted by
   Californian Sarah Sterling-Franklin, it referred to the lush
   surroundings of Seattle that were the result of frequent rain. Seattle
   has also been known in the past as "the Jet City"—though this nickname,
   related to Boeing, was entirely unofficial. (This nickname is the
   origin of the title of the song "Jet City Woman" by Seattle progressive
   metal band Queensrÿche). Rat City, a nickname originally earned by the
   White Centre area, is also occasionally used by locals.

   Seattle's official flower has been the dahlia since 1913. Its official
   song has been "Seattle the Peerless City" since 1909. In 1942, its
   official slogan was "The City of Flowers"; 48 years later, in 1990, it
   was "The City of Goodwill", for the Goodwill Games held that year in
   Seattle. On October 20 2006, the Space Needle was adorned with the new
   slogan " Metronatural." The slogan is a result of a 16-month, $200,000
   effort by the Seattle Convention and Visitor's Bureau. The official
   bird of Seattle is the Great Blue Heron, named by the City Council in
   2003.

Seattle mayors of note

     * Bertha Knight Landes, mayor from 1926 to 1928. She was the first
       woman mayor of a major American city.

     * Bailey Gatzert was mayor from 1875 to 1876. He was the first Jewish
       mayor of Seattle, and narrowly missed being the first Jewish mayor
       of a major American city (Moses Bloom became mayor of Iowa City,
       Iowa in 1873). He has been the only Jewish mayor of Seattle to
       date.
     * Arthur B. Langlie, 1938-1941, three term Governor of Washington
       (1941-45, 1949-57).

     * Robert Moran mayor from 1888 to 1909, was instrumental in the
       rebuilding after the great fire of 1889. A successful shipbuilder,
       most famous for the Battleship Nebraska built in Seattle between
       1902 and 1907, Moran eventually donated what became Moran State
       Park (over 5000 acres, including Mt. Constitution on Orcas Island)
       .

   See also: Current leaders of Seattle, Washington

Sister cities

   Seattle is internationally partnered with a number of sister cities to
   promote global cooperation, cultural exchange and economic
   collaboration. See List of Seattle sister cities for a complete list.

Economy

   Five companies on the 2006 Fortune 500 list of the United States'
   largest companies, based on total revenue, are currently headquartered
   in Seattle: financial services company Washington Mutual (#99),
   Internet retailer Amazon.com (#272), department store Nordstrom (#293),
   coffee chain Starbucks (#338), and insurance company Safeco Corporation
   (#339). Just shy of making the list is global logistics firm Expeditors
   International (#506). Other Fortune 500 companies popularly associated
   with Seattle are based in nearby Puget Sound cities. Warehouse club
   chain Costco Wholesale Corp. (#28), the largest company in Washington,
   is based in Issaquah. Microsoft (#48), Nintendo of America, and
   cellular telephone pioneer McCaw Cellular (now part of Cingular), are
   all located in Redmond. Weyerhaeuser, the forest products company
   (#90), is based in Federal Way. Finally, Bellevue is home to truck
   manufacturer PACCAR (#157) and international mobile telephony giant
   T-Mobile's U.S. subsidiary T-Mobile USA. See List of companies based in
   Seattle for a more detailed compilation.

   Prior to moving its headquarters to Chicago, aerospace manufacturer
   Boeing (#26) was the largest company based in Seattle. Its largest
   division is still headquartered in Renton, and the company has large
   aircraft manufacturing plants in Everett and Renton, so it remains one
   of the largest private employers in the Seattle metropolitan area.

   Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels announced a desire to spark a new economic
   boom driven by the biotechnology industry in 2006. Major redevelopment
   of the South Lake Union neighbourhood is underway in an effort to
   attract new and established biotech companies to the city, joining
   current biotech companies Corixa (acquired by GlaxoSmithKline), Immunex
   (now part of Amgen), and ZymoGenetics. The effort has public support
   and some financial backing from Paul Allen (whose contribution has
   resulted in some calling the neighbourhood "Allentown"). The same year,
   Expansion Magazine ranked Seattle among the top 10 metropolitan areas
   in the nation for climates favorable to business expansion. In 2005,
   however, Forbes ranked Seattle as the most expensive American city for
   buying a house based on the local income levels.

Education

   Of the city's population over the age of 25, 47.2% (vs. a national
   average of 24%) hold a bachelor's degree or higher; 93% (vs. 80%
   nationally) have a high school diploma or equivalent. In fact, United
   States Census Bureau survey showed that Seattle has the highest
   percentage of college graduates of any major U.S. city. In addition to
   the obvious institutions of education, there are significant adult
   literacy programs and considerable homeschooling. Seattle is also the
   most literate city in the United States based on a study done by
   Central Connecticut State University.
   Inside Suzzallo Library, University of Washington campus.
   Enlarge
   Inside Suzzallo Library, University of Washington campus.

   Like most urban American public school systems, Seattle Public Schools
   has been subject to numerous controversies. Seattle's schools
   desegregated without a court order but continue to struggle to achieve
   racial balance in a somewhat ethnically divided city (the south part of
   town having more ethnic minorities than the north). The schools have
   maintained high enough educational standards to keep white flight (and
   middle-class flight in general) to a minimum, but some of the area's
   suburban public school systems — not all of them in wealthy suburbs —
   have consistently higher test scores. Notably, Seattle schools seem to
   be failing their minority students, as high academic standards are not
   realized uniformly by all racial groups in many of the city's secondary
   schools. In 2006, Seattle's often trademarked racial tie-breaking
   system was ruled by the Supreme Court unconstitutional. And in 2002,
   West Seattle's West Seattle High School made headlines in the midst of
   protests of the school's "Indian" mascot. Despite bitter battles
   between SPS and Alumni Association President/Attorney Robert Zoffel,
   the school would later change its mascot to the "Wildcats".

   The public school system is supplemented by a moderate number of
   private schools: five of the high schools are Catholic, one is
   Lutheran, and six are secular.

   Post-secondary education in Seattle is dominated by the University of
   Washington. With over 40,000 under-graduates and post-graduates, it is
   the largest school in the Pacific Northwest and is ranked among the top
   research universities in the United States. Most prominent of the
   city's other universities are Seattle University, a Jesuit university,
   and Seattle Pacific University, founded by the Free Methodists. There
   are also a handful of smaller schools, such as City University, a
   private secular school; Antioch University Seattle , which provides
   graduate and undergraduate degrees for working adults; and others
   mainly in the fine arts, business and psychology. The venerable Cornish
   College of the Arts offers bachelor's degrees in such disciplines as
   dance, music, and theatre. Seattle is also served by North Seattle,
   Seattle Central, and South Seattle Community Colleges. Time magazine
   chose Seattle Central Community College for best college of the year in
   2001, claiming that the school "pushes diverse students to work
   together in small teams".

Culture

Landmarks

   Howard Dean and Vanna White have both caught the "flying fish" at the
   Pike Place Market, one of Seattle's most popular tourist destinations.
   Enlarge
   Howard Dean and Vanna White have both caught the "flying fish" at the
   Pike Place Market, one of Seattle's most popular tourist destinations.

   The Space Needle is Seattle's most recognizable landmark, having been
   featured in the logo of the television show Frasier and the backgrounds
   of the television series Grey's Anatomy, not to mention several films.
   "The Needle", dates from the 1962 Century 21 Exposition. Contrary to
   popular belief, the Space Needle is neither the tallest structure in
   Seattle nor is it in Downtown. This misconception results from the
   Space Needle often being photographed from Queen Anne Hill, where it is
   closer to the viewer than are the downtown skyscrapers. The fairgrounds
   surrounding the Needle have been converted into Seattle Centre, which
   remains the site of many local civic and cultural events, such as
   Bumbershoot, Folklife, and the Bite of Seattle. The Seattle Centre
   Monorail runs from Seattle Centre to Westlake Centre, a downtown
   shopping mall: a distance of about a mile.

   Other notable Seattle landmarks include the Smith Tower, Pike Place
   Market, the Fremont Troll, the Experience Music Project (which is at
   Seattle Centre), the new Seattle Central Library, the Washington Mutual
   Tower, Broadway, a street made famous by the Sir Mix-A-Lot song Posse
   On Broadway, and the Columbia Centre, which is the fourth tallest
   skyscraper west of the Mississippi River and the twelfth tallest in the
   nation. (On June 16 2004, the 9/11 Commission reported that the
   original plan for the September 11, 2001 attacks included the Columbia
   Centre as one of ten targeted buildings.)

   Starbucks Coffee has been at Pike Place Market since the coffee company
   was founded there in 1971. The first store is still operating a block
   south of its original location.

Annual cultural events and fairs

   Among Seattle's best-known annual cultural events and fairs are the
   24-day Seattle International Film Festival, Northwest Folklife over the
   Memorial Day weekend, numerous Seafair events throughout the summer
   months (ranging from a Bon Odori celebration to hydroplane races), and
   the Bite of Seattle. Bumbershoot, over the Labor Day weekend, Capitol
   Hill Block Party , and Endfest (held every year by 107.7 The End )
   provide Seattlites with much-anticipated alternative and independent
   music concerts. All are typically attended by over 100,000 people
   annually, as are Hempfest and two separate Independence Day
   celebrations.

   Several dozen Seattle neighborhoods have one or more annual street
   fairs, and many have an annual parade or foot race. The largest of the
   street fairs feature hundreds of craft and food booths and multiple
   stages with live entertainment, and draw more than 100,000 people over
   the course of a weekend; the smallest are strictly neighbourhood
   affairs with a few dozen craft and food booths, barely distinguishable
   from more prominent neighborhoods' weekly farmers' markets.
   Green Lake Park, popular among runners, contains a 2.8 mile trail
   circling the lake.
   Enlarge
   Green Lake Park, popular among runners, contains a 2.8 mile trail
   circling the lake.

   Other significant events include numerous Native American powwows, a
   Greek Festival hosted by St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church in
   Montlake, and numerous ethnic festivals associated with Festal at
   Seattle Centre.

   As in most large cities, there are numerous other annual events of more
   limited interest, ranging from book fairs; the premier anime convention
   in the Pacific Northwest, Sakura-Con; and specialized film festivals,
   such as the Seattle Gay and Lesbian Film Festival, to a two-day,
   9,000-rider Seattle-to-Portland bicycle ride and a Gay Pride parade and
   festival. In the past, the Gay Pride parade and festival have been
   centred on Capitol Hill. Since 2006, festivities have been held
   city-wide, and the parade has followed a route in Downtown to the
   Seattle Centre amusement park.

Performing arts

   Seattle has been known as a significant centre for regional performing
   arts for many years. The century-old Seattle Symphony Orchestra is
   among the world's most recorded orchestras and performs primarily at
   Benaroya Hall. The Seattle Opera and Pacific Northwest Ballet, which
   perform at McCaw Hall (which opened 2003 on the site of the former
   Seattle Opera House at Seattle Centre), are comparably distinguished,
   with the Opera being particularly known for its performances of the
   works of Richard Wagner and the PNB School (founded in 1974) ranking as
   one of the top three ballet training institutions in the United States.
   The Seattle Youth Symphony is the largest symphonic youth organization
   in the United States, and among the most distinguished.

   The historic 5th Avenue Theatre, built in 1926, has continued to stage
   Broadway quality musical shows featuring both local talent and
   international stars. The theatre's "Chinese Timber Architecture" is
   based on The Forbidden City's Imperial and Summer Palaces. In addition,
   Seattle has about twenty other live theatre venues, a slim majority of
   them being associated with fringe theatre. It has a strong local scene
   for poetry slams and other performance poetry, and several venues that
   routinely present public lectures or readings. The largest of these is
   Seattle's 900-seat, Romanesque Revival Town Hall on First Hill.

   Seattle is often thought of as the home of grunge rock musicians like
   Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, Green River, and
   Mudhoney, all of whom reached vast audiences in the early 1990s. The
   city is also home to such varied musicians as avant-garde jazz
   musicians Bill Frisell and Wayne Horvitz, rapper Sir Mix-a-Lot, smooth
   jazz saxophonist Kenny G, heavy metal band Nevermore, industrial
   rockers KMFDM, and such poppier rock bands as Goodness and the
   Presidents of the United States of America. Such musicians as Jimi
   Hendrix, Duff McKagan, Nikki Sixx, and Quincy Jones spent their
   formative years in Seattle. Ann and Nancy Wilson of the band Heart,
   often attributed to Seattle, were actually from neighboring Bellevue,
   as were progressive metal band Queensrÿche.

   Since the grunge era, the Seattle area has hosted a diverse and
   influential alternative music scene. The Seattle-based record label Sub
   Pop—the first to sign Nirvana—has signed such non-grunge bands as
   Murder City Devils, Sunny Day Real Estate, Skinny Puppy, The Postal
   Service, and The Shins. Other Seattle-area bands of note in this period
   include Death Cab for Cutie ( Bellingham), Foo Fighters, Modest Mouse
   (Issaquah), and Sleater-Kinney ( Olympia).

   Earlier Seattle-based popular music acts include the collegiate folk
   group The Brothers Four; The Wailers, a 1960s garage band; the Allies
   and the Heaters (later "the Heats"), 1980s teen-pop bands; from that
   same era, the more sophisticated pop of the short-lived Visible Targets
   and the still-performing Young Fresh Fellows and Posies; and the
   pop-punk of The Fastbacks and the outright punk of the Fartz (later Ten
   Minute Warning), The Gits, and Seven Year Bitch.

   Seattlites have also collaborated with innovative, experimental
   musicians from around the world, while the city has hosted their
   performances. French composer Jean-Jacques Perrey, who pioneered
   electronica in the 1960s, has worked with Seattle native Dana
   Countryman, best known for his work with the 1980s Seattle pop/humour
   group the Amazing Pink Things. Perrey performed the tracks resulting
   from his work with Countryman at his first American show, in Seattle in
   2006.

   Spoken word and poetry are also staples of the Seattle arts scene,
   paralleling the explosion of the independent music scene during the
   late 1980s and early 1990s. Seattle's performance poetry scene
   blossomed with the importation of the poetry slam from Chicago (its
   origin) by transplant Paul Granert. This and the proliferation of
   weekly readings, open mics, and poetry-friendly club venues like the
   Weathered Wall, the OK Hotel, and the Ditto Tavern (all now defunct),
   allowed spoken-word/performance poetry to take off in a big way. The
   Seattle Poetry Slam is the city's longest running weekly show, now held
   at Tost in the Fremont Neighbourhood. Seattle annually sends a team of
   slammers to the National Poetry Slam and boasts as the home of some of
   the best performance poets in the world: Buddy Wakefield:two-time
   Individual World Poetry Slam Champ; Anis Mojgani: two-time National
   Poetry Slam Champ; Christa Bell: 2005 National Poetry Slam Finalist.
   Seattle has had such a wonderful reputation for poetry that is hosted
   the 2001 national poetry Slam Tournament. The Seattle Poetry Festival
   (launched first as the Poetry Circus in 1997) has featured local,
   regional, national, and international names in poetry such as Michael
   McClure, Anne Waldman, Ted Jones, Gwendolyn Brooks, Ismael Reed, Sekou
   Sundiata, and many others. Regionally famed poets like Bart Baxter,
   Tess Gallagher, and Rebecca Brown have also been featured at the Poetry
   Festival, as well as numerous other events such as the world-famous
   Bumbershoot Arts Festival.

Museums and art collections

   Prominent Seattle buildings circa 1893
   Enlarge
   Prominent Seattle buildings circa 1893

   The Henry Art Gallery opened in 1927, making it the first museum in
   Washington. The main Seattle Art Museum opened in 1933. Art collections
   are also housed at the Frye Art Museum and the Seattle Asian Art
   Museum.

   Regional history collections are at the Loghouse Museum in Alki,
   Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, the Museum of History and
   Industry and the Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture.
   Industry-specific collections are housed at the Centre for Wooden
   Boats, the Seattle Metropolitan Police Museum, and the Museum of
   Flight. Regional ethnic collections include the Nordic Heritage Museum
   and the Wing Luke Asian Museum.

   In addition, Seattle has a thriving artist-run gallery scene, including
   10 year veteran Soil Art Gallery, and the newer Crawl Space Gallery.

Other attractions

   The Woodland Park Zoo, opened as a private zoo in 1889, is the oldest
   on the West Coast, and has been a leader in innovations in naturalistic
   zoo exhibits. The Seattle Aquarium has been open on the downtown
   waterfront since 1977 (undergoing a renovation 2006). The Seattle
   Underground Tour, an exhibit of places that existed before the Great
   Fire, is also popular. There are also many community centers for
   recreation, including Rainier Beach, Van Asselt, Rainier, and Jefferson
   south of the Ship Canal and Green Lake, Laurelhurst, and Loyal Heights
   north of the Canal.

Sports

   Club Sport League Stadium
   Seattle Mariners Baseball Major League Baseball - AL Safeco Field
   Seattle Seahawks Football National Football League (NFL) - NFC Qwest
   Field
   Seattle Sounders Soccer USL First Division (men's)
   W-League (women's) Qwest Field
   Seattle Storm Basketball Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
   KeyArena
   Seattle SuperSonics Basketball National Basketball Association (NBA)
   KeyArena
   Seattle Thunderbirds Ice Hockey Western Hockey League KeyArena

   Seattle's professional sports history began at the start of the 20th
   century with the PCHA's Seattle Metropolitans, which in 1917 became the
   first American hockey team to win the Stanley Cup. Today Seattle has
   teams in nearly every major professional sport. The four major
   professional teams are the NBA's Seattle SuperSonics, the NFL's Seattle
   Seahawks, the MLB's Seattle Mariners, and the WNBA's Seattle Storm.
   Seattle also boasts a strong history in collegiate sports, the NCAA
   Division I school University of Washington and the NCAA Division II
   schools Seattle Pacific University and Seattle University.

Outdoor activities

   Seattle's cool mild climate helps a huge proportion of its population
   engage in outdoor recreation, including walking, bicycling, hiking, and
   swimming, among others. The downtown REI is that chain's flagship
   store, and carries gear for all those activities. In town many people
   walk around Green Lake, through the forests and along the bluffs and
   beaches of 535-acre Discovery Park (the largest park in the city) in
   Magnolia, along the shores of Myrtle Edwards Park on the Downtown
   waterfront, or along Alki Beach in West Seattle. Also popular are hikes
   and skiing in the nearby Cascade or Olympic Mountains and kayaking and
   sailing in the waters of Puget Sound, the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and
   the Strait of Georgia. The San Juan Islands, with their sunny climate
   and labyrinthine waterways, are especially popular among sailing
   enthusiasts and passengers aboard the Washington State Ferries on their
   way to Victoria.

Infrastructure

   Downtown Seattle at night
   Enlarge
   Downtown Seattle at night

Significant Buildings

     * The Columbia Centre is the tallest building in Seattle and the
       fourth tallest building by height west of the Mississippi river.
       (the tallest building in the picture)
     * The Space Needle is a defining symbol of the Seattle skyline. (not
       included in the picture)
     * The Smith Tower, the oldest skyscraper in Seattle, was the tallest
       building on the West Coast from its completion in 1914 until the
       Space Needle overtook it in 1962. (in the picture the Smith Tower
       is the smaller building furthest on the right)
     * The Washington Mutual Tower is the second tallest building in the
       Seattle skyline and is the former headquarters of Washington
       Mutual. (the building in the middle with the pyramid style spire)

Transportation

   Even though Seattle is old enough that railways and streetcars once
   dominated its transportation system, the city is now largely dominated
   by automobiles. Seattle is also serviced by an extensive network of bus
   routes and two commuter rail routes connecting it to many of its
   suburbs.

Public transportation

   The first streetcars appeared in 1889 and were instrumental in the
   creation of a relatively well-defined downtown and strong neighborhoods
   at the end of their lines. Unfortunately, the advent of the automobile
   proved to be the death knell for rail in Seattle. Tacoma-Seattle
   railway service ended in 1929 and the Everett-Seattle service came to
   an end in 1939, replaced by inexpensive automobiles running on the
   recently developed highway system. With the removal or paving over of
   the rails on city streets and the arrival of trolleybuses, 1941 brought
   the end of streetcars in Seattle. This left only an extensive network
   of buses to provide mass transit within the city and throughout the
   region.

   Seattle is serviced by three transit authorities. King County Metro
   provides frequent stop bus service within the city and surrounding
   county. Like Vancouver and San Francisco, Seattle is one of the few
   cities in North America that use electric trolleybuses.

   The second transit authority that services Seattle is Sound Transit,
   which provides express bus service between the suburbs and downtown
   Seattle. Beginning September 18, 2000, Sound Transit began operating "
   Sounder", a commuter rail system that connects Seattle to Tacoma and a
   number of other suburbs to the south and Everett and other suburbs to
   the north. Sound Transit also began construction on the 15.7 mile
   Central Link Light Rail in November 2003 that will connect downtown
   Seattle to SeaTac Airport. Ultimately the Link Light Rail system will
   connect downtown to University of Washington and Northgate Mall to the
   north, Bellevue and Redmond to the east, and Federal Way, Des Moines,
   and possibly as far south as Tacoma.
   A view of Downtown Seattle and the Bainbridge Island ferry.
   Enlarge
   A view of Downtown Seattle and the Bainbridge Island ferry.

   The third, and possibly most interesting, transit authority is the
   largest network of ferries in the United States, third largest in the
   world, that connects Seattle to Bainbridge Island and Vashon Island in
   Puget Sound and Bremerton and Southworth on the Kitsap Peninsula. This
   ferry system is operated by Washington State Ferries and consists of 10
   routes (4 servicing Seattle), 20 terminals (2 in Seattle), and 28
   vessels (8 servicing Seattle).

   A monorail line constructed for the 1962 Exposition still exists today
   between Seattle Centre and downtown and is used by tourists and by
   commuters from the north, who often find it cheaper to park at Seattle
   Centre and take the 1 mile route to work rather than taking their car
   downtown. On November 26 2005 the monorail's two trains collided on a
   curve near Westlake Centre where a design flaw made it impossible to
   pass safely. Both trains are currently being repaired at an estimated
   cost of $3-4 million and are not expected to be in operation until
   summer 2006.

   In the 1990s the city proposed building a longer monorail as a real
   commuter service replacing the existing tourist attraction, but nothing
   came of two voter approved initiatives in the 90s. Ultimately Seattle
   voters approved the creation of the 14 mile Green Line connecting West
   Seattle and Ballard to downtown in November 2002. Controversy over
   scope, governance, financial difficulties, and other issues led to two
   additional votes with the final vote, November 2005, bringing the Green
   Line to an end.

   The South Lake Union line of the Seattle Streetcar passed full City
   Council on June 27, 2005. The streetcar is "on track" to be built and
   operating by 2007. The 2.6 mile (4.2 km) streetcar line will run
   between the Westlake Centre shopping mall in Downtown and the Fred
   Hutchinson Cancer Research Centre in Eastlake. Property owners along
   the right-of-way will pay about $25 million of the $45 million total
   capital cost through a local improvement district.

Airports

   Seattle's commercial airport is Seattle-Tacoma International Airport,
   locally known as Sea-Tac Airport and located in the city of SeaTac,
   which is named for the airport. It is operated by the Port of Seattle
   and provides service to many destinations throughout North America,
   Europe, and East Asia. The airport is a hub for Alaska Airlines and its
   regional subsidiary Horizon Air. Seattle is also a focus city for
   Northwest Airlines. In 2005, Seattle-Tacoma International Airport was
   the 17th busiest in the U.S. and 30th busiest in the world, with
   29,289,026 air passengers.

   Seattle's general-aviation airport is Boeing Field. It is also used for
   cargo flights and testing/delivery of Boeing airliners. Southwest
   Airlines recently requested permission to move its services from
   Sea-Tac to Boeing Field but did not receive permission.

Street layout

   Seattle's streets are laid out in a cardinal-direction grid pattern,
   except in the central business district: early city leaders Arthur
   Denny and Carson Boren insisted on orienting their plats relative to
   the shoreline rather than to true North, so streets meet at unusual
   angles where Denny's plat meets "Doc" Maynard's to the south and
   Boren's to the north. This inconsistency creates frequent confusion for
   visitors and newcomers when they attempt to navigate the streets at the
   edges of the business district. Largely as a result of Seattle's
   topography, only one street and one freeway run uninterrupted through
   the city from north to south.

Utilities

   Seattle Steam Company
   Enlarge
   Seattle Steam Company

   Unlike most neighboring cities, water and electricity are provided by
   public city agencies: Seattle Public Utilities and Seattle City Light.
   Privately owned utility companies serving Seattle are Puget Sound
   Energy (natural gas), Seattle Steam Company ( steam), Qwest (landline
   telephone service), and Comcast (and to a lesser extent Millennium
   Digital Media) ( cable television).

Medical centers and hospitals

   Group Health Cooperative is a leading proponent and developer of
   managed care in the northwest, and the University of Washington is
   consistently ranked among the country's top leading institutions in
   medical research. Seattle has seen local developments of modern
   paramedic services with the establishment of Medic One in 1970. In
   1974, a 60 Minutes story on the success of the then four-year-old Medic
   One paramedic system called Seattle "the best place in the world to
   have a heart attack".

   Most of Seattle's hospitals are located on First Hill. Harborview
   Medical Centre, the public county hospital, is the only Level I trauma
   hospital serving Washington, Alaska, Montana, and Idaho. Swedish
   Medical Centre, Providence Medical Centre and Virginia Mason Medical
   Centre are also located in this part of Seattle. This concentration of
   hospitals resulted in the neighbourhood's nicknames "Pill Hill" and
   "Hospital Hill".

   Located in the Laurelhurst neighbourhood, Children’s Hospital and
   Regional Medical Centre is the pediatric referral centre for
   Washington, Alaska, Montana, and Idaho. The Fred Hutchinson Cancer
   Research Centre has a campus in the Eastlake neighborhood and also
   shares facilities with the University of Washington Medical Centre.
   Finally, in the University District is University of Washington Medical
   Centre which, along with Harborview, is operated by the University of
   Washington.

Gallery

   Rainier Tower

   Looking down the Pike Street Hillclimb

   The Seattle skyline, as seen from Lake Union

   Pike Place Market, main arcade

   Zeitgeist Coffee, Pioneer Square

   Sunset at Alki Beach

   Two Seattle icons: The Space Needle and a ferry

   Space Needle through Seattle Centre's Fun Forest
   A big Seattle skyline panorama view
   A big Seattle skyline panorama view

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