Good ole days: Seattle’s best ever Fourth of July

Seattle’s 2010 Fourth of July celebration may go down as
the year Dave Ross and Tom Douglas saved the fireworks,
but it’s certainly not the most exciting of all
Independence Days.

Local historian Feliks Banel says there are several years
Seattle went big.

In 1854, Thomas Mercer suggested we name the body of water
between Puget Sound and Lake Washington Lake Union because
it would one day connect the two.

“On July 4, 1917 they actually dedicated the Lake
Washington ship canal and Mercer’s vision came true,” says
Banel.

But he says 1918 was probably the most exciting year. We
were well into World War I and Seattle pulled out all the
stops to display its patriotism.

According to Banel, four war ships were launched on July 4
and the Pageant of Democracy was on full display at four
city parks, Alki, Ballard, Mount Baker, and Woodland Park.

“They had this big display of reading the Declaration of
Independence and Washington’s farewell address and a woman
on horseback as Joan of Arc carrying the story of
democracy,” says Banel.

If that wasn’t enough, Banel says the city shut down
Second Ave. between Pine and James and had eight bands
playing.

“Something like a hundred thousand people showed up for a
big Fourth of July street dance.”

Fireworks were banned that year because they didn’t want
people to think they were under attack. However, Woodland
Park was packed for that evening’s fireworks show. Banel
says the park was sort of the Seattle Center before the
1962 World’s Fair.

The fireworks display eventually moved to Greenlake in the
1940’s where Ivar Haglund took it over in 1964. He moved
it to Elliott Bay in the 1970’s where it was a huge hit
until it went away in 2008.