The City of Seattle routinely photographs public works projects, City events, City sites, facilities, and elected officials for current use and as a record of events. The “Then” photo was taken to record the creation of a traffic channel for motorist to use when turning right onto 3rd Ave NW at NW 65th Street. This “channelization” was later enhanced with the installation of a traffic island at the same spot.

On the left side of the “Then” photo you can see a service station called “H.G. Ross, Independent Dealer, Gilmore Products”. After WWII, more people were able to afford luxury items, like automobiles, and as a result our little neighborhood had several service stations within a short walk of each other on NW 65th. The “Now” photo shows a seven unit apartment building that was built in 1967 on the same corner.

On the right side of the “Then” photo, you see “Berg’s Grocery”, which is now home to Olsen’s Violin. This 1931 building is a good example of mixed use commercial and apartment buildings that developed along main arterials such as 3rd Avenue NW. For most of its existence the building has housed a grocery store. In the 1930s it was “Carl Berg’s IGA” store, a member of a local grocers’ cooperative that allowed members to make bulk purchases and thus charge lower prices. More recently, it has been the showroom for All Aboard Second Hand Furniture and Olsen’s Violin.

The black & white photo was taken in March 1944 and is courtesy the Seattle Municipal Archives Photograph Collection.