Totem Pole, Pioneer Square, Seattle, Washington, circa 1940

Subjects: Monuments & Memorials Native American Life Squares & Plazas
Card type: Linen

Back of Totem Pole, Pioneer Square, Seattle, Washington, circa 1940, E. C. Kropp Co., WI, USA, linen postcard — Back

About this subject

A tall painted Tlingit-style totem pole stands on a small planted island in a paved plaza, surrounded by low shrubs. Behind it rise early twentieth-century brick and stone commercial buildings, including a corner block dated 1889, with a glass-roofed pergola or waiting shelter at right.

Postcard Details

Message

No message detected

PublisherSmith's Scenic Views

TOTEM POLE, PIONEER SQUARE SEATTLE, WASHINGTON --- This unique pole, 60 feet high and 8 feet in circumference, was carved from a single cedar tree by a tribe of Indians on Tongass Island, southeastern Alaska, who intended it as a monument to a distinguished family. For nearly a century the pole stood on the island, but in August 1899, it was removed by a group of Seattle businessmen, who presented it to the city. 8213 Post Card A NATURAL COLOR POST CARD Published by Smith's Scenic Views, Tacoma, Wash. — Natural Color Post Card Made in U.S.A. by E. C. Kropp Co., Milwaukee, Wis. -DBI

Addressed to

No address detected

Postcard record

Condition	Very good
Place mentioned	E. C. Kropp Co., Milwaukee, WI
Publisher	Tacoma, WA
Notes	Linen-textured stock with visible crosshatch grain; no white border; colors are typical of the linen era. Postmark: none. Undivided back, linen-textured Kropp 'Natural Color Post Card' (No. 8213); E C / K Co stamp-box corner marks. No stamp, no address, no message — only a dealer's '#59' in pencil at lower right.

Cite this card

Totem Pole, Pioneer Square, Seattle, Washington, circa 1940, postcard, n.d.. PostalPast Collection. https://postalpast.com/postcard/totem-pole-pioneer-square-seattle-washington-circa-1940. Accessed October 5, 2026.