Beacon Hill
Past and Present
Our People
Beacon Hill is historically the land of the Duwamish people. In the 1800s, European explorers and settlers arrived, colonized the land, and joined the City of Seattle. During the time of racial redlining, Beacon Hill was one of the few neighborhoods in Seattle where people of color could own property. Through the 20th century to the present, Beacon Hill has welcomed immigrants from all over the world - people from Italy, Serbia, Japan, Vietnam, Somalia, and many other countries have made their homes here. Read more about the history of Beacon Hill here.
Activitists in 1972 occupied the abandoned school that would become El Centro de la Raza
Petting the lion at the 2012 Beacon Hill Festival
Our History
We want to preserve the diverse stories, welcoming ways and struggles of Beacon Hill. The BHC Cultural & Historic Preservation Task Force aims to gather 100 stories of significant/special people, places and events both past and present.
INTERESTED IN READING MORE ABOUT OUR BEACON HILL ?
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Wilma, D. (February 2001). Seattle Neighborhoods: Beacon Hill – Thumbnail History. Retrieved from History Link website https://www.historylink.org/File/3004
online resources
Seattle Public Library
Available at Public Library
Seattle’s Beacon Hill
by Latoszek, M
and Merrell, F.
(Images of America: Washington)
Arcadia 2003.
“Ride the trolley up the ridge of Beacon Hill and discover one of South Seattle’s most interesting districts. Unique among Seattle neighborhoods, Beacon Hill is a community where immigrants from all over the globe have settled side by side for over 100 years. This new book tells the story of the people and businesses of Beacon Hill in vintage photographs, the majority of which date before World War II. Readers will learn about the immigrants who worked on farms, opened shops, and labored in shipyards, the building of Jefferson Park, as well as the activism and political struggles that shaped the Beacon Hill neighborhood.”