Seattle Sun Newspaper - Vol. 8, Issue 1, January 2004

Copyright 2003 Seattle Sun. Please feel free to use the article below in your research. Be sure to cite the Seattle Sun as your source.

North Central Seattle exhibit

held over at History House

By JAMES BUSH

People can't get enough of the history of North Central Seattle.

At least that's been the case at the Fremont-based History House of Greater Seattle, where the neighborhoods of North Central Seattle history exhibit has been extended through January.

John Nordstrand, History House operations director, says the neighborhood focus exhibits have proven especially popular. "We get really good response," he says. "The one we did for the Central Area had 38 different exhibits, and this one has more than 40."

Each exhibit was created by a different community group or community member, sometimes with the help of History House staff. "The basic concept of History House is that we go into different communities and locate folks who have maybe already created [a historical exhibit] or have information and want help in creating something," says Nordstrand. "The message we try to get out to people in the neighborhoods is that we're not telling their story, they are."

The biggest challenge of creating neighborhood history exhibits is getting the word out, he notes. "What we try to do is go to general meetings in that area we'll be working on and make our pitch there." The process of recruiting potential exhibitors is aided by chance, he says. Quite often, the first people they contact aren't interested, but know of a neighbor with an interest in local history, or a business, church, or school with an extensive collection of historic photos or other artifacts. "Many of the churches have very strong historical archives," notes Nordstrand.

Among the longtime local businesses which contributed to the North Central Seattle exhibit are Dunn Lumber, Spud's Fish & Chips, Evergreen-Washelli Cemetery and Vitamilk, which recently sold its dairy business and closed its Green Lake plant.

The exhibits range from professional quality audio/visual work to elementary school class projects, says Nordstrand. A few Power Point and video presentations are included ("We bring [visitors] a couple of chairs to sit in and push the cassette in," says Nordstrand), although displays of historic photographs accompanied by text are far more common.

The opening Saturday of each neighborhood exhibit always includes an hour-long program. Although it includes an overview of the History House program and a general neighborhood history lesson by History House staff, the program also serves as a reception to thank neighborhood contributors. The next neighborhood focus exhibit will cover Southwest Seattle (a.k.a West Seattle) and will debut in April.

More importantly, the lessons don't stop when the exhibit opens, adds Nordstrand. Often, when residents come to tour the exhibit, the photos and stories will trigger memories of their own, he notes. "We often learn as much as we teach when we wander around with these folks."

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History House of Seattle is located at 790 N 34th St.; 675-8875. Open Wednesday through Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. ,closed during the weeks of Christmas and New Year's Day.