SEATTLE — In 1999, historians Walt Crowley and Paul Dorpat teamed with graphic designer Marie McCaffrey to print an encyclopedia of King County history.
“And then she had the epiphany to do it on the internet,” said Jennifer Ott, the current executive director of HistoryLink.org, the planet's first online encyclopedia of regional history.
“Before Wikipedia, before it was really an idea that was out in the world,” Ott explained.
More than a quarter century later, the website is still going strong.
“Ever growing, ever-evolving,” Ott said. “The most important reason that we tell these stories is so that we’re connected with our place where we live and the people who live around us.”
The articles featured in this nonprofit resource now cover the entire state. They’re submitted by trusted historians and carefully vetted, bringing stories of colorful characters to life.
“I love Henry Yesler’s lottery,” Ott said.
One of Seattle’s founding fathers, Yesler put together a raffle to get some cash for his floundering sawmill.
“It was illegal,” Ott said. “And he just did it.”
Sometimes their research overturns conventional wisdom. Seattle Mayor Corliss Stone was always thought to have stolen from his business partner before skipping town.
“He didn’t embezzle money,” Ott said. “It was just one of those stories that got reprinted, and then people never really looked into it.”
HistoryLink has also published about 30 books, produced a podcast and created self-guided walking tours with historical commentary.
“It’s a different way of interacting with the history,” Ott said.
They continue to innovate and create, whether it’s cataloging newly acquired photos from the early days of Boeing, or exploring more recent chapters in our region’s history.
“We have another podcast in the works about the decision to build the tunnel to replace the viaduct,” Ott said.
More than 25 years on, HistoryLink is still making history of its own.
“People have such deep connection to place, and we want to deepen that,” she said, “We want people to know where we came from so that they can be part of the conversation about where we’re going.”
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