Seattle--Underground

Seattle has an area of downtown with underground passageways that we toured with John and Wendi. The story goes that the original downtown was built right on the tide flats and so was notorious for flooding. After a big fire burnt all the buildings to the ground, it was decided to regrade above sea level. This was going to take a few years, so in the meantime, owners rebuilt their businesses knowing the roadbed would be built 12 to 30 feet higher than the original road. They planned to eventually use the upper floor as the entrance.

We also heard in great detail about the trouble with the gravity-fed sewer system that drained into the bay and backed up daily with high tide. Fascinating, no?


On the tour, they take you down to where the original sidewalks were. They pointed out these "skylights" that were installed in the new sidewalks so there would be natural light in the passageways.

This is a display of one of the original "pipes" used for the original water system. Rustic.

And then there was the gift shop at the end of the tour. Not sure what a horse head mask has to do with underground Seattle, but Nicole couldn't resist. And, or course, if she can't resist trying it on, I'm not about to resist taking a picture!