See letters, photographs and other ephemera from two of Seattle's early families.
Narcissa Latimer letter to Sarah Latimer, November 29, 1868
Narcissa Leonora (Nora) Latimer Denny was the daughter of Alexander and Sarah Latimer. She had four sisters: Eliza Alice Latimer Fowler (1856-1934), Harriet Ellen Latimer Stephens (1859-1938), Clara Latimer Bickford (1861-1934), and Emma Chesney Latimer Reynolds (1864-1946). Narcissa married Orion Denny on April 1, 1889. The letter is addressed to her mother, Sarah, and discusses attending church and Sabbath school, gifts she received for her birthday and the differences between life in Minnesota and Illinois. The letter is written from Macomb, Illinois.
Identifier: spl_lj_008
Date: 1868-11-29
View this itemUnknown woman in Galesburg, Illinois, ca. 1880
Photograph taken by Thomas Harrison in Galesburg, Illinois.
Identifier: spl_lj_034
Date: 1880?
View this itemUnknown girl, ca. 1865
Tintype portrait of unidentified young girl.
Identifier: spl_lj_016
Date: 1865?
View this itemEmma Chesney Latimer Reynolds, ca. 1880
Emma Chesney Latimer Reynolds was the daughter of Alexander and Sarah Latimer and sister to Narcissa Latimer. Emma married Charles Reynolds in 1886 in Minnesota.
Identifier: spl_lj_020
Date: 1880?
View this itemNative American baskets in home of Mabel Thompson, ca. 1900
Transcribed from back of photograph: "Part of Mabel's collection of Indian baskets. A corner in her room - photo by O.O.W. Denny. Mabel Thompson in Seattle." In the 1900 census, H.G. and Mabel Thompson are listed at 1108 Seneca St. (later 1204 Boren), the same address as Orion Denny. Mabel was the daughter of Orion Denny and Eva Flowers Coulter (who he married in 1874 and divorced a few years later). Mabel married Howard G. Thompson in 1894.
Identifier: spl_lj_060
Date: 1890?
View this itemClara Latimer Bickford letter to mother Sarah Latimer, February 16, 1892
Clara Latimer Bickford was the daughter of Alexander and Sarah Latimer and sister of Narcissa Latimer Denny. She married Arthur Farrington Bickford in 1888 in Minnesota. They lived in Seattle from roughly 1892-1900 before moving to Oregon. The letter discusses Clara's sister and brother-in-law Narcissa and Orion Denny, along with Clara's daughter Ethel and other family matters.
Identifier: spl_lj_009
Date: 1892-02-16
View this itemUnknown man in Abington, Illinois, 1879
Photograph taken by C.H. Smith in Abingdon, Illinois.
Identifier: spl_lj_033
Date: 1879
View this itemNarcissa Latimer letter to Alexander Latimer, September 19, 1869
Narcissa Leonora (Nora) Latimer Denny was the daughter of Alexander and Sarah Latimer. She had four sisters: Eliza Alice Latimer Fowler (1856-1934), Harriet Ellen Latimer Stephens (1859-1938), Clara Latimer Bickford (1861-1934), and Emma Chesney Latimer Reynolds (1864-1946). Narcissa married Orion Denny on April 1, 1889. The letter is addressed to her father, Alexander, and discusses her schooling, desire to take vocal classes and other family matters. The letter is written from Macomb, Illinois.
Identifier: spl_lj_007
Date: 1869-09-19
View this itemBoat loading for Alaska, ca. 1897
Transcribed from back of photograph: "Scene on the dock of a boat loading for Alaska." Signs for the Oregon Improvement Company and the Galbraith Grain Company can be seen in the background.
Identifier: spl_lj_057
Date: 1897?
View this item