Elliott Bay

Coordinates: 47°36′11″N 122°22′23″W / 47.603°N 122.373°W / 47.603; -122.373
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Elliott Bay
Refer to caption
Aerial view of Elliott Bay
Elliott Bay is located in Washington (state)
Elliott Bay
Elliott Bay
Coordinates47°36′11″N 122°22′23″W / 47.603°N 122.373°W / 47.603; -122.373
River sourcesDuwamish River
Ocean/sea sourcesPuget Sound
Basin countriesUnited States
Surface area21 km2 (8.1 sq mi)
SettlementsSeattle
References[1]

Elliott Bay is a part of the Central Basin region of

Alki Point in the south. Seattle was founded on this body of water in the 1850s and has since grown to encompass it completely. The waterway it provides to the Pacific Ocean has served as a key element of the city's economy, enabling the Port of Seattle
to become one of the busiest ports in the United States.

History

The

Duwamish people have lived in the vicinity of Elliott Bay and the Duwamish River for thousands of years and had established at least 17 settlements by the time white settlers came in the 1850s.[2] Among the earliest white settlements was by the Denny Party at New York Alki, which is in the present-day neighborhood of Alki in West Seattle, however after a hard winter they shifted across Elliott Bay near the present-day Pioneer Square, which became Seattle. Over the years the city expanded to cover all of the waterfront on Elliott Bay and codified it as one of its fairways (a navigable waterway).[3]

The bay was named during the

US Board on Geographic Names officially settled on the name "Elliott Bay" in 1895.[4]

Duwamish Head, West Seattle

A local legend says that the

Puget Sound Mosquito Fleet, which peaked in the early 20th century, was so-named by a Seattleite who looked out over Elliott Bay and remarked that the activity resembled that of mosquitoes.[8] Two notable sinkings related to the Mosquito Fleet occurred in the bay: the Dix in 1906, taking with it dozens of lives, and the Multnomah
in 1911. Eventually these commercial passenger services faded as automobiles and ferries rose in popularity.

The last remaining model of the Boeing 307 Stratoliner ditched into Elliott Bay in 2002 during a final test flight from Boeing Field to Everett. The craft, named the Flying Cloud, had been the subject of an eight-year restoration project meant to ready it for display at the National Air and Space Museum.[9] Despite the incident, the aircraft was again restored, flew to the Smithsonian, and was put on display.[10]

Seattle's

Crystal Pool Natatorium
used water pumped in from the Bay.

Features

Elliott Bay and the Seattle waterfront, looking north from the Pacific Coast Co. dock, c. 1907

Smith Cove
.

Elliott Bay is home to the

Vashon Island.[18]

Elliott Bay Park along the waterfront, downtown Seattle

Two

Smith Cove, with 1,200 slips.[19][20] Bell Harbor Marina, operated by the Port of Seattle, is in the Central Waterfront along Belltown. Up to 70 vessels can be moored there.[21]

Numerous piers extend into the bay, especially along Seattle's Central Waterfront. Piers 57 and 59 house tourist destinations, including the

dive site
.

As a prominent aspect of Seattle's geography, the bay has frequently been referenced in media.

The Killing, suspect Ray Seward is incarcerated in the fictional Elliott Bay Penitentiary.[27] A simplified map of Elliott Bay is used as the "Maps" icon in Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 Smartphone Operating System. Microsoft has its headquarters in the Seattle metropolitan area
.

Ecology

Elliott Bay has been a focus for

environmental concern. Urban and industrial development along its shores, and on the banks of the Duwamish River that leads into it, have caused concern over the levels of contaminants entering the water.[1] On the southern shoreline are two Superfund cleanup sites: Harbor Island[28] and the former location of Lockheed West Seattle.[29] Several other sites have been designated for cleanup, including the Pacific Sound Resources site,[30]
and others along the lower Duwamish.

The downtown waterfront offers a poor habitat for the juvenile

glass blocks in the sidewalk (cantilevered
over the bay) so that sunlight can illuminate the shallows even at the piers. Another issue that is currently prevalent in Elliott Bay is noise pollution. The level of noise that is currently present in Elliott Bay is legally considered to be harassment of marine mammals (Van, 2016; Welch, 2013; Wilson, 2015). It is also important to note that marine vehicles enter and exit the port twenty-four hours a day. This noise is continuous, and this can cause distress to marine mammals (Van, 2016; Welch, 2013; Wilson, 2015).[31]

References

  1. ^ a b "Elliott Bay/Duwamish River, WA". Damage Assessment, Remediation, & Restoration Program. NOAA Office of Response and Restoration. November 2, 2010. Archived from the original on October 14, 2012. Retrieved October 17, 2012.
  2. ^ Lange, Greg (October 15, 2000). "Seattle and King County's First White Settlers". HistoryLink. Retrieved October 16, 2012.
  3. ^ a b "SMC 16.04.070 Fairway". Seattle Municipal Code. Seattle Office of the City Clerk. Retrieved 2012-10-14.
  4. ^ a b "Elliott Bay". USGS Geographic Names Information Service. Retrieved 2012-10-14.
  5. ^ Rochester, Junius (2003-02-17). "Wilkes, Charles (1798-1877)". HistoryLink. Retrieved 2012-05-21.
  6. ^ Wilhelm, Honor L. (1902). The Coast. Vol. 5–6. Coast Publishing Co. p. 91.
  7. ^ Meany, Edmond S. (July 1918). "Origin of Washington Geographic Names". The Washington Historical Quarterly. 9 (2): 123.
  8. ISBN 978-0-7385-5607-9
    .
  9. ^ Long, Priscilla (March 29, 2002). "Historic Boeing 307 Stratoliner ditches into Elliott Bay on March 28, 2002". HistoryLink.
  10. ^ Whitford, Ellen (September 2003). "Once more with feeling". Boeing Frontiers Online. Boeing. Retrieved August 18, 2012.
  11. ^ Davidson, George (1869). Coast Pilot of California, Oregon, and Washington Territory. Washington: Government Printing Office. p. 236. . . . a very long, low sand point, called West Point, which forms the extreme northwest part of the entrance to Duwamish Bay [Elliott Bay]. The bay runs east by south six and half miles and has a width of two miles. To the south point, called Battery Point [Alki Point] . . .
  12. ^ "Chapter 13: Puget Sound, Washington". U.S. Coast Pilot 7 (PDF) (45th (2013) ed.). National Ocean Service. December 2, 2012. p. 527. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-01-03.
  13. ^ "U.S. Waterborne Foreign Trade, Containerized Cargo, Top 30 U.S. Ports, Calendar Year 2002". U.S. Department of Transportation. Archived from the original on 2007-08-07.
  14. ^ "Port Industry Statistics". AAPA. Archived from the original on 2006-10-04.
  15. ^ "Cruise Statistics". Port of Seattle. Archived from the original on April 18, 2012. Retrieved October 16, 2012.
  16. ^ "Traffic Statistics Rider Segment Report (2011)" (PDF). Washington State Ferries. May 3, 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 27, 2020. Retrieved October 18, 2012.
  17. ^ "King County Water Taxi". King County Department of Transportation. Retrieved 2012-08-18.
  18. ^ Healy, Tim (January 27, 1992). "If You've Got A Boat, Marina Has A Slip". The Seattle Times.
  19. ^ "Elliott Bay Marina Inc" (PDF). US EPA. Retrieved October 17, 2012.
  20. ^ "Bell Harbor Marina". Port of Seattle. Archived from the original on November 3, 2012. Retrieved October 17, 2012.
  21. ^ "Terminal 86 Grain Facility". Port of Seattle Centennial. Port of Seattle. Archived from the original on January 3, 2013. Retrieved October 19, 2012.
  22. ^ "Elliott Bay Fishing Pier at Terminal 86". Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife. Archived from the original on November 8, 2012. Retrieved October 19, 2012.
  23. ^ "Terminal 91". Port of Seattle Centennial. Port of Seattle. Archived from the original on February 20, 2012. Retrieved October 19, 2012.
  24. ^ "Seacrest Park Pier". Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife. Archived from the original on November 8, 2012. Retrieved October 19, 2012.
  25. ^ Mcfarland, Melanie (June 12, 1998). "MTV's Series Appears 'Real' In Name Only". The Seattle Times.
  26. ^ "Highlights From The Killing Story Sync for Season 3 Episode 10, 'Six Minutes'". The Killing Story Sync. AMC TV. Archived from the original on August 4, 2013. Retrieved August 10, 2013.
  27. ^ "Superfund Site: Harbor Island (Lead)". US EPA. Retrieved December 21, 2021.
  28. ^ "Superfund Site: Lockheed West Seattle". National Priorities List. US EPA. Retrieved December 21, 2021.
  29. ^ "Superfund Site: Pacific Sound Resources". US EPA. Retrieved December 21, 2021.
  30. ^ Munsch, Stuart (October 14, 2014). "Brighter future for salmon at downtown seawall". In Simenstad, Charles; Rice, Jeff (eds.). Encyclopedia of Puget Sound. Puget Sound Institute.

External links

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