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CONTENTS

COVER
STORY

PLANT
LIFE

TASTE

ON
FITNESS

NORTHWEST
LIVING

NOW &
THEN

SUNDAY
PUNCH

PREVIOUS
ISSUES OF PACIFIC NW

WRITTEN BY PAUL
DORPAT

Ready for Reunions

COURTESY OF THE MUSEUM OF HISTORY &
INDUSTRY

That little has
changed in its front façade facing Stevens Street in the 66 years
covered in this week's comparison is heartening evidence that the
forces of preservation were standing guard during the recent
renovation of West Seattle High School.

CLAY EALS

HERE IS A Seattle sesquicentennial
puzzle for "Now & Then" readers: What do the initials "SWSHSBSLHM"
mean?

The answer will be revealed for those who continue (or jump) to the end
of this feature on what — its graduates claim — is the high school with
the largest alumni association in the country. There are about 18,000 with
confirmed addresses, and many will be attending the All-School Reunion on
Friday. A record turnout is expected because this is the first reunion
since the school was reopened.

This week's comparison reveals that the two-year renovation of West
Seattle High School under the supervision of architect Marilyn Brockman
was also a restoration. Besides the landscaping, little is different
between the 1937 scene and the "now" view that West Seattle historian Clay
Eals photographed. The observant reader might notice that the cupola has
changed. A 1983 fire burned a hole in the roof, and the original cupola
went with it. The new cupola was built to the full size — 6 feet taller —
described in the original architect Edgar Blair's blueprints but not
followed in the first construction.

West Seattle High School opened in 1917 to about 400 students, most of
whom were girls because many of the boys were either enlistees or working
in the mobilization for America's entry into World War I.

The stories of the West Seattle Indians (this past April renamed the
Wildcats) will continue to be told after Friday's reunion with cherished
artifacts, ephemera and photographs in the new exhibit "Rich Traditions"
just mounted at the Southwest Seattle Historical Society's Birthplace of
Seattle Log House Museum. And that is SWSHSBSLHM for short. The address is
3003 61st Ave. S.W. Call 206-938-5293 for times.

Paul Dorpat specializes in historical photography and has published
several books on early Seattle.

PACIFIC NORTHWEST
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