Going Underground of Seattle, Washington

Well I did it. I finally made the move into The City! Although I’m still further away from downtown Seattle than initially wanted; a $2.50/30 minute bus ride beats a 2.5 hour drive any day. Moving day went fairly smoothly- thanks to my amazing friday Sydney for helping out! In less than 8 hours, we drove 2 hours, loaded a u-haul, drove 2 hrs back, and unloaded.  One of the best parts about moving was that my mom came to visit/help me get settled!

When my mom first decided to come into town, we had the plan to organize, hang and turn my apartment into a home. We accomplished this over the course of 5 days (well, we kind of waited to hang things until Sunday) but it involved a few trips to Michaels, Costco, Ross, Target, MANY, MANY Redbox movies and one free, beautiful, sunny day in Seattle. I spent a few days trying to think of something touristy to do with my mom because let’s be honest she can’t come all the way to Seattle and not see Seattle. We both decided the best thing was learn the bus/train system to ease my transition a little easier. It was fairly easy to learn and we ended up choosing Pioneer Square as our destination. Pioneer Square is known for one BIG thing in the tourist world- Underground Tours. Here’s a little history:

Pioneer Square a.k.a. “Skid Road” is home to Seattle’s original downtown dating back to 1852. This district is characterized by late nineteenth century brick and stone buildings, and one of the nation’s best surviving collections of Romanesque Revival style urban architecture. In the early years of the neighborhood, many of the buildings were mostly wood, which were all nearly destroyed in the Great Seattle Fire in 1889. Following the fire, Pioneer Square was quickly rebuilt, however this time the main floors were build 1-level above the original. The reason for the elevation of main street had mostly to do with the ‘drainage’ problem that was occurring, since much of the main housing was up on a hill causing the nickname “Skid-Road” (and by ‘drainage’ I mean sewer). With the elevated first floor, the original entrances are now a part of Underground Seattle, some of which is accessible during these tours.  After the rebuild, Seattle and Pioneer Square became a center for travel during the Klondike Gold Rush in 1897 and 1898.

You will notice in the pictures (Go Here) of a lot of debris, and unfortunately I can’t say that those are from the original downtown but from a major earthquake that hit the city.  It’s kind of creepy knowing now that I walk above the original Seattle, but make me happy at the same time knowing I live in an amazing city that has something as unique as an Underground. Want more information regarding Pioneer Square and all it has to offer…Click Here!

Until next mapless adventure!

Don't Forget to Save for Later...Pin Me