little-noted Seattle-Trump connection. (Everett: mineral rights, crime, hotel)

[travis t]

From a book The Making of Donald Trump by progressive writer and former NYT reporter David Cay Johnston:

Donald Trump's grandfather Frederich Trump (originally 'Drumpf') was from Kallstadt in SW Germany, and came to the US in 1885 at age 16. He initially stayed with an older sister in NY who had immigrated earlier, but Fredrich soon took the advice 'go west, young man,' moving to Seattle, WA,

where he opened The Dairy Restaurant. It also had a curtained-off area that most likely served as a low-rent whorehouse, according to Gwenda Blair, who had the family's cooperation in her history of the Trumps.

He later sold the restaurant and headed for the Yukon Territory, where he started a bar and grill called 'The Arctic.' The Arctic offered "hard liquor and 'sporting ladies.' He made a small fortune, and returned home to Germany to bring over a bride.

He wound up in NYC where he ran a barbershop, which in those days

were often fronts for illegal businesses and--because men of dubious means could come in for a daily shave or just to hang out--they could also have been opportune places to gather business intelligence and engage in sub rosa transactions....

Seattle until around 1980 or so was a hub of sex trade. Seattle's last GOP mayor, 'Dorm' Braman, who left office in 1969, pursued a 'tolerance policy' towards prostitution and gambling, ostensibly to keep out-of-town organized crime interests at bay. It was not until the progressive movement of the late 20th/early 21st centuries that crack-downs against the sex trade were undertaken in Seattle.

[pnwguy2]

Originally Posted by travis t

From a book The Making of Donald Trump by progressive writer and former NYT reporter David Cay Johnston:

Donald Trump's grandfather Frederich Trump (originally 'Drumpf') was from Kallstadt in SW Germany, and came to the US in 1885 at age 16. He initially stayed with an older sister in NY who had immigrated earlier, but Fredrich soon took the advice 'go west, young man,' moving to Seattle, WA,



He later sold the restaurant and headed for the Yukon Territory, where he started a bar and grill called 'The Arctic.' The Arctic offered "hard liquor and 'sporting ladies.' He made a small fortune, and returned home to Germany to bring over a bride.

He wound up in NYC where he ran a barbershop, which in those days

Seattle until around 1980 or so was a hub of sex trade. Seattle's last GOP mayor, 'Dorm' Braman, who left office in 1969, pursued a 'tolerance policy' towards prostitution and gambling, ostensibly to keep out-of-town organized crime interests at bay. It was not until the progressive movement of the late 20th/early 21st centuries that crack-downs against the sex trade were undertaken in Seattle.

Interesting and so true about the sex trade in “squeaky clean” Seattle in the 70’s. I was just a teen but remember the newspaper ads for the adult theaters on First Avenue, even the all male offerings which at first I didn’t understand! Most of these theaters are gone or repurposed today.

I love Presidential history however unimportant it is. Some know that Obama also has a Seattle connection as he lived on Capitol Hill the first year of his life with his single mother.

[Yorkshire Kooky]

I'm living on the corner of 2nd and Pike. I haven't been far yet (too busy unpacking and furniture shopping!) but I've already seen some colourful signs for showgirls. I like a place with a bit of a buzz

[homesinseattle]

Originally Posted by Yorkshire Kooky

I'm living on the corner of 2nd and Pike. I haven't been far yet (too busy unpacking and furniture shopping!) but I've already seen some colourful signs for showgirls. I like a place with a bit of a buzz

Welcome to town, Yorkshire! Yeah, I have heard about this connection. Check out this about Frederick Trump, so Trumpian:

"In Monte Cristo, WA, Frederick Trump chose a plot of land near the train station that he wanted to build a hotel on, but could not afford the $1,000-per-acre fee to purchase it. Instead, he filed a "gold placer" claim on the land, which allowed him to claim exclusive mineral rights to the land without having to pay for it, even though the land had already been claimed by Everett resident Nicholas Rudebeck. Despite the placer's claim providing Trump no right to build any structure on the land, he quickly bought lumber to build a new boarding house and operate it similarly to the Dairy Restaurant. He never tried to mine gold on the land".

[Thx-1138]

Yes, welcome to town Yorkshire, glad to have you with us!


Oh, I remember several strip clubs and "accessories" shops right across the street from the Pike Market, can't remember the name of the place, but they moved closer to the Elephant car wash.


And I am pretty liberal, but I can't say I appreciated the "barkers" in front of the club, sometimes some patron with a glass of beer standing alongside adding their own bit of crassness, glad they moved it, it was tacky being right there in the thick of the tourists to say the least.


Hot enough for ya?


Don't you worry, our summer is just around the corner I'm sure.


Thx

[travis t]

Originally Posted by homesinseattle

Welcome to town, Yorkshire! Yeah, I have heard about this connection. Check out this about Frederick Trump, so Trumpian:

"In Monte Cristo, WA, Frederick Trump chose a plot of land near the train station that he wanted to build a hotel on, but could not afford the $1,000-per-acre fee to purchase it. Instead, he filed a "gold placer" claim on the land, which allowed him to claim exclusive mineral rights to the land without having to pay for it, even though the land had already been claimed by Everett resident Nicholas Rudebeck. Despite the placer's claim providing Trump no right to build any structure on the land, he quickly bought lumber to build a new boarding house and operate it similarly to the Dairy Restaurant. He never tried to mine gold on the land".

I didn't know about that, but it certainly comports with David Cay Johnston's account of Frederich (or Frederick; it appears he used both spellings). DCJ calls him the former at first, and later in the book switches to the latter.

He says that when Frederich went to the Yukon, he had no interest in mining for gold. Instead, his idea was to 'mine the miners.'

[travis t]

Originally Posted by Yorkshire Kooky

I'm living on the corner of 2nd and Pike. I haven't been far yet (too busy unpacking and furniture shopping!) but I've already seen some colourful signs for showgirls. I like a place with a bit of a buzz

I gather there are still strip clubs operating in the city, but it's nothing like it was even 25 years ago. Seattle started ramping up prostitution stings around 2002. I recall a big Craigslist sting that netted over 100 arrests.

Seattle police, along with the FBI, conducted a massive raid on "Rick's" in Lake City in early 2008. The was really the end of an era. The club was closed (forfeited to the gov't and later sold & re-opened). The club owners were convicted of felonies.

[travis t]

In the 1950s and 1960s it was wide open, with brothels openly operating (albeit with plenty of payoffs to police). This is detailed in a book Seattle Vice by the late Seattle Weekly investigative reporter Rick Anderson. He passed away late in 2018, IIRC age 77.

[pnwguy2]

All this to say Seattle was not a shy, timid city back in the day. It was rough and tumble and definitely a rowdy area. What happened?

[travis t]

Originally Posted by pnwguy2

All this to say Seattle was not a shy, timid city back in the day. It was rough and tumble and definitely a rowdy area. What happened?

Interesting question; I think it's kind of a repeat of what happened generally in the late 19th/early 20th centuries, namely the rise of progressivism. Prostitution and other vices were generally tolerated in 19th century America. The clampdown was a project of progressivism. The 'Mann Act,' criminalizing prostitution was passed in 1910, followed by prohibition, another progressive endeavor.

I wasn't here but my impression is that Seattle was not very progressive until at least around 1980. There were GOP state reps from Seattle as late as the 1970s, and Seattle's last GOP mayor (Dorm Braman) left office in 1969.