The fake town that hid Seattle's Boeing plant No. 2 from the Japanese during World War II

By Jack Brummet, Seattle history ed.

After Pearl Harbor, Boeing Plant No. 2 in Seattle (where B 17 bombers were built) was put under heavy camouflage to prevent a Japanese aircraft attack. The roof of the huge plant was covered with fake houses, streets, and trees. No Japanese planes came anywhere near the factory (my Mom was a riveter there before she enlisted). The plant is under the darker area in the center of the above photograph. The middle shot shows employees (allegedly, but they seem like models/actors) hanging out on the roof, and a view of the roof from street level.

A closer view of the 35-acre roof of Boeing Plant 2, with homes built of canvas, trees and shrubs made of board and mesh, and streets of oil and dirt:

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The J.P.Patches and Gertrude statues in Fremont

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MOHAI's fantastic new home in South Lake Union

By Jack Brummet, Seattle Ed.


The Museum of History and Industry opened this year in Seattle in a beautiful new (to them) building (a converted armory) and location.  At any given time, they display around 2% of their collection.

The exhibits were excellent and their collection (four million items and growing) is amazing.

The new MOHAI, in a converted armory on the shore of South Lake Union

Some random snapshots of various objects in the museum:

The sign from the notorious, now defunct Lusty Lady, an all-female owned strip club on Second Avenue

The old sign from the Doghouse, a 24 hour dive that everyone loved

In mid-20th century Seattle, the hydroplanes were the coolest thing that happened in town. We would know the names of all the boats and drivers. One of my dad's friends, Bill Brow a/k/a The World's Fastest Milkman, drove Miss Burien (he would die in a race in Florida in the late 60's). It was cool seeing this at MOHAI today, since the annual hydroplane races are happening this weekend.

Amazing early triple bill (with Nirvana as the bottom-liners)

a poster from the 1999 WTO protests that made world-wide news

A display about a machine that enabled processors to can meat and fish.  

These are maybe half of the brands of salmon on display.

Bill Gates' notebook

The Log Lady from Twin Peaks

The sign that used to sit atop the Rainier Brewery next to Interstate-5

A sign from a famous gay bar in Pioneer Square -- lots of disco, I remember

A speaker from Mark Lanegan's band Screaming Trees

An ancient wooden tugboat

An early Boeing airplane.  They were made of spruce!

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Seattle's first famous musicians, and a mysterious disappearance: the Louise and Ferera Hawaiian troupe

By Jack Brummet, Northwest history editor

This is an instrumental Hawaiian guitar version of Alberto Pestalozza’s 1898 “Ciribiribin." by the Louise and Ferera Hawaiian troupe. Click here to download Ciribiribin. 

Frank Ferera was the first great star of Hawaiian music, and he and his future wife became the first musicians from the remote province of Seattle to achieve fame.  Ferera first visited the United States as part of the Keoki E Awai troupe, and he became famous with the troupe by performing to an estimated 17 million people in a seven-month period at the Panama-Pacific Exposition in San Francisco in 1915.   He married Helen Louise Greenus, the daughter of Seattle businessman, and they toured the U.S. as the Louise and Ferera Hawaiian troupe.  In 1915, they were signed by Columbia Records. “Ciribiribin” was the last song they recorded together.

On December 12, 1919, Helen Louise mysteriously disappeared while the couple were on board the steamship SS President, from Los Angeles back to their home in Seattle. She had apparently gone on deck for a walk at 4 a.m. and never returned.   I thought that only happened in noir movies. . .

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The Lake Of Fire

A man died and found himself in limbo, waiting in a long, long line for judgment. He noticed that some souls were allowed to march right through the pearly gates. Others were led over to Satan, who threw them into a lake of fire. Every so often, instead of hurling a condemned soul into the lake of fire, Satan would toss him or her off to one side.

After watching Satan do this several times, the men's curiosity got the better of him. He strolled over to The Great Deceiver:

"Excuse me, there, Your Darkness," he said. "I'm waiting in line for judgment, and I couldn't help wondering why you toss some people off to the side instead of flinging them into the fires of hell with the others?"

"Ah," Satan said with a grin. "Those people are from Seattle. I'm just letting them dry out so they'll burn."

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A blanket fort play facility in Seattle (with ziplines, marshmallow roasting facility, and more)?

By Jack Brummet, Seattle Metro Editor

If this isn’t a prank (I can’t actually track the permit down), it's the best land use permit ever.  It is for a lot near Eastlake in Seattle. . .and even if it IS a prank, it’s a pretty good one.  It just about has to be a prank; if not the actual business plan must be the most impractical one ever developed. . .

click to enlarge

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