West Seattle Land and Improvement Company
West Seattle ferry terminal and waterfront, circa 1913.
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| Land development with ancillary ferry service | |
| Founded | 1888 |
| Headquarters | West Seattle |
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Area served
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West Seattle |
| Services |
Shipping company
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| Total assets | $2.1 million initial (including subsidiaries) |
| Subsidiaries |
Oreg. & Wash. Ferry & Nav. Co. |
| Competitors | Lady of the Lake |
West Seattle
Routes: Elliott Bay
Terminals: Seattle waterfront (east), West Seattle (west)
Shipping company
Oreg. & Wash. Ferry & Nav. Co.
West Seattle Cable Rwy Co.
West Seattle Elec. Lt. & Wtr Co.
The West Seattle Land and Improvement Company was a real estate development concern that conducted business in West Seattle starting in 1888. Through a subsidiary, the Oregon and Washington Ferry and Navigation Company, the company also owned and operated two ferries that operated between the company's developments in West Seattle and Seattle itself, which was then a separate city which was difficult to reach over land routes of the time.
The West Seattle Land & Improvement Company was incorporated July 11, 1888, and was reported to have been capitalized at $1,500,000. Most of the capital came from San Francisco. Thomas Ewing was the president and Morris S. Bates was secretary and general manager.
Several subsidiaries or affiliated companies were later organized, all with Ewing as president and Bates as secretary. These included West Seattle Cable Railway Co, incorporated February 26, 1890, capitalized at $500,000, and West Seattle Electric Light & Water Co. incorporated February 25, 1890, and capitalized at $100,000.
In 1890, the company's main office was in West Seattle, at the corner of Railroad and Grand streets. The company had a branch office in Seattle, at the foot of Marion Street. The company's ferry ticket agent was Arthur I. Gould.
The company purchased and replatted much of what later became the Admiral district. To attract potential buyers, the company organized a ferry service, constructing a terminal and purchasing a ferry, the City of Seattle In September 1890, the company also built a two-mile long cable railway, leading from the ferry dock to the top of the high ground where the company's real estate development was underway. The company had $300,000 worth of real estate sales in 1890, but was hit hard by the Panic of 1893. The cable line closed in 1897. The company's ferry operation continued without the cableway. In 1900 the company held a mail contract for the ferry route, which paid $250 per year.
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Wikipedia