Seattle

Seattle Lushootseed:dᶻidᶻəlal̕ič
City
Downtown Seattleskyline with Mount Rainierin the background Space Needleand Climate Pledge Arena, with the Olympic Mountainsin the background Seattle Great Wheel Pike Place Market Amazon Spheres
Flag Seal Wordmark
Nickname(s): The Emerald City, Jet City, Rain City
Motto(s): The City of Flowers, The City of Goodwill
Show Seattle Show King County Show Washington Show the United States
Seattle Show map of Washington (state) Seattle Show map of the United States
Coordinates:47°36′35″N122°19′59″W / 47.60972°N 122.33306°W /47.60972; -122.33306
Country	United States
State	Washington
County	King
Founded	November 13, 1851(1851-11-13)[a]
Incorporated as a town	January 14, 1865(1865-01-14)
Incorporated as a city	December 2, 1869(1869-12-02)
Named for	Chief Si'ahl
Government
• Type	Mayor–council
• Body	Seattle City Council
•Mayor	Bruce Harrell(D)
Area [1]
•City	142.07 sq mi (367.97 km2)
• Land	83.99 sq mi (217.54 km2)
• Water	58.08 sq mi (150.43 km2)
• Metro	8,186 sq mi (21,202 km2)
Elevation [citation needed]	175 ft (53 m)
Highest elevation	520 ft (158 m)
Lowest elevation	0 ft (0 m)
Population ( 2020) [2]
•City	737,015
• Estimate (2023) [2]	755,078
• Rank	58thin North America 18thin the United States 1stin Washington
• Density	8,775.03/sq mi (3,387.95/km2)
•Urban [3]	3,544,011 (US:13th)
• Urban density	3,607.1/sq mi (1,392.7/km2)
•Metro [4]	4,018,762 (US:15th)
Demonym	Seattleite[5]or Seattlite[6]
GDP [7]
• Seattle (MSA)	US$517.803 billion (2022)
Time zone	UTC−8(PST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−7(PDT)
ZIP Codes	ZIP Codes [8] [9] 98101–98119, 98121–98122, 98124–98127, 98129, 98131, 98133–98134, 98136, 98138–98139, 98141, 98144–98146, 98148, 98154–98155, 98158, 98160–98161, 98164–98166, 98168, 98170, 98174–98175, 98177–98178, 98181, 98185, 98188, 98190–98191, 98194–98195, 98198–98199
Area code	206
FIPS code	53-63000
GNISfeature ID	1512650[10]
Website	seattle.gov
ASN	3401

Seattle(/siˈætəl/^ⓘsee-AT-əl) is aseaportcity on theWest Coast of the United States. It is theseatofKing County,Washington. With a 2023 population of 755,078^[2]it is themost populous cityin both thestateof Washington and thePacific Northwestregion ofNorth America, and the18th-most populous cityin the United States. TheSeattle metropolitan area's population is 4.02 million, making it the15th-largestin the United States.^[11]Its growth rate of 21.1% between 2010 and 2020 made it one of the country's fastest-growing large cities.^[12]

Seattle is situated on anisthmusbetweenPuget Sound, an inlet of thePacific Ocean, andLake Washington. It is the northernmost major city in the United States, located about 100 miles (160 km) south of theCanadian border. A gateway for trade withEast Asia, thePort of Seattleis the fourth-largest port in North America in terms of container handling as of 2021^[update].^[13]

The Seattle area has been inhabited byNative Americans(such as theDuwamish, who had at least 17 villages around Elliot Bay) for at least 4,000 years before the first permanent European settlers.^[14]Arthur A. Dennyand his group of travelers, subsequently known as theDenny Party, arrived fromIllinoisviaPortland, Oregon, on theschoonerExactatAlki Pointon November 13, 1851.^[15]The settlement was moved to the eastern shore ofElliott Bayin 1852 and named "Seattle" in honor of ChiefSeattle, a prominent 19th-century leader of the localDuwamishandSuquamishtribes. Seattle currently has high populations of Native Americans alongside Americans with strong Asian, African, European, and Scandinavian ancestry, and, as of 2015, hoststhe fifth-largest LGBT communityin the U.S.^[16]

Loggingwas Seattle's first major industry, but by the late 19th century the city had become a commercial and shipbuilding center as a gateway toAlaskaduring theKlondike Gold Rush. The city grew afterWorld War II, partly due to the localBoeingcompany, which established Seattle as a center for its manufacturing of aircraft.

Beginning in the 1980s, the Seattle area developed into atechnology center;Microsoftestablished its headquarters in the region. In 1994, Internet retailerAmazonwas founded in Seattle, andAlaska Airlinesis based inSeaTac, Washington, servingSeattle–Tacoma International Airport, Seattle's international airport. The stream of new software,biotechnology, and Internet companies led to an economic revival, which increased the city's population by almost 50,000 in the decade between 1990 and 2000.

The culture of Seattle is heavily defined by itssignificant musical history. Between 1918 and 1951, nearly 24jazznightclubs existed along Jackson Street, from the currentChinatown/International Districtto theCentral District. The jazz scene nurtured the early careers ofErnestine Anderson,Ray Charles,Quincy Jones, and others. In the late 20th and early 21st century, the city also was the origin of severalrockbands, includingFoo Fighters,Heart, andJimi Hendrix, and the subgenre ofgrungeand its pioneering bands, includingAlice in Chains,Nirvana,Pearl Jam,Soundgarden, and others.^[17]

Archaeological excavationssuggest thatNative Americanshave inhabited the Seattle area for at least 4,000 years.^[14]By the time the first European settlers arrived, theDuwamish peopleoccupied at least 17 villages in the areas aroundElliott Bay.^[18][19][20]The name for the modern city of Seattle inLushootseed,dᶻidᶻəlal̓ič, meaning "little crossing-over place", comes from one of these villages, which was located at the present-dayKing Street Station.^[21][22]

In May 1792,George Vancouverwas the first European to visit the Seattle area during his1791–1795 expeditionfor theRoyal Navy, which sought to chart thePacific Northwestfor the British.^[23]

In 1851, a large party ofAmerican pioneersled by Luther Collins made a location on land at the mouth of theDuwamish River; they formally claimed it on September 14, 1851.^[25]Thirteen days later, members of the Collins Party on the way to their claim passed three scouts of the Denny Party.^[26]Members of the Denny Party claimed land onAlki Pointon September 28, 1851.^[27]The rest of the Denny Party set sail on theschoonerExactfromPortland, Oregon, stopping inAstoria, and landed at Alki Point during a rainstorm on November 13, 1851.^[27]After a difficult winter, most of the Denny Party relocated across Elliott Bay and claimed land a second time at the site of present-dayPioneer Square,^[27]naming this new settlementDuwamps.^[28]

Charles Terry and John Low remained at the original landing location, reestablished their old land claim and called it "New York", but renamed "New York Alki" in April 1853, from aChinookword meaning, roughly, "by and by" or "someday".^[29][30]For the next few years, New York Alki and Duwamps competed for dominance, but in time Alki was abandoned and its residents moved across the bay to join the rest of the settlers.^[31]

David Swinson "Doc" Maynard, one of the founders of Duwamps, was the primary advocate to name the settlement Seattle afterChief Seattle(Lushootseed:siʔaɫ, anglicized as "Seattle"), chief of the Duwamish andSuquamishtribes.^[32][33][34]

The name "Seattle" appears on officialWashington Territorypapers dated May 23, 1853, when the first plats for the village were filed. In 1855, nominal land settlements were established. On January 14, 1865, the Legislature of Territorial Washington incorporated the Town of Seattle with aboard of trusteesmanaging the city. The Town of Seattle was disincorporated on January 18, 1867, and remained a mere precinct of King County until late 1869, when a new petition was filed and the city was re-incorporated December 2, 1869, with amayor–council government.^[27][35]The corporate seal of the City of Seattle carries the date "1869" and a likeness of Chief Seattle in left profile.^[36]That same year, Seattle acquired the epithet of the "Queen City", a designation officially changed in 1982 to the "Emerald City".^[37]

Seattle has a history of boom-and-bust cycles, like many other cities near areas of extensive natural and mineral resources. Seattle has risen several times economically, then gone into precipitous decline, but it has typically used those periods to rebuild solid infrastructure.^[38]

The first such boom, covering the early years of the city, rode on the lumber industry. During this period the road now known asYesler Waywon the nickname "Skid Road", supposedly after the timber skidding down the hill toHenry Yesler's sawmill. The later dereliction of the area may be a possible origin for the term which later entered the wider American lexicon asSkid Row.^[39]Like much of theU.S. West, Seattle experienced onflicts between labor and management and ethnic tensions that culminated in theanti-Chinese riots of 1885–1886.^[40]This violence originated with unemployed whites who were determined to drive the Chinese from Seattle; anti-Chinese riots also occurred inTacoma.

Seattle had achieved sufficient economic success when theGreat Seattle Fireof 1889 destroyed the central business district. However, a far grander city center rapidly emerged in its place.^[41]Finance companyWashington Mutual, for example, was founded in the immediate wake of the fire.^[42]ThePanic of 1893hit Seattle hard.^[43]

The second and most dramatic boom resulted from theKlondike Gold Rush, which ended the depression that had begun with thePanic of 1893. In a short time, Seattle became a major transportation center. On July 14, 1897, theS.S. Portlanddocked with its famed "ton of gold", and Seattle became the main transport and supply point for the miners inAlaskaand theYukon. Few of those working men found lasting wealth. However, it was Seattle's business of clothing the miners and feeding them salmon that panned out in the long run. Along with Seattle, other cities likeEverett,Tacoma,Port Townsend,Bremerton, andOlympia, all in the Puget Sound region, became competitors for exchange, rather thanmother lodesfor extraction, of precious metals.^[44]

The boom lasted into the early part of the 20th century, and funded many new Seattle companies and products. In 1907, 19-year-oldJames E. Caseyborrowed $100 from a friend and founded theAmerican Messenger Company(laterUPS). Other Seattle companies founded during this period includeNordstromandEddie Bauer.^[42]Seattle brought in theOlmsted Brotherslandscape architecture firm to design a system of parks and boulevards.^[45]

The Gold Rush era culminated in theAlaska–Yukon–Pacific Expositionof 1909, which is largely responsible for the layout of today'sUniversity of Washingtoncampus.^[46]

Ashipbuildingboom in the early part of the 20th century became massive duringWorld War I, making Seattle somewhat of a company town. The subsequent retrenchment led to theSeattle General Strike of 1919, an earlygeneral strikein the country.^[47]A 1912 city development plan byVirgil Boguewent largely unused. Seattle was mildly prosperous in the 1920s but was particularly hard hit in the Great Depression, experiencing some of the country's harshest labor strife in that era. Violence during theMaritime Strike of 1934cost Seattle much of its maritime traffic, which was rerouted to thePort of Los Angeles.^[48]

TheGreat Depressionin Seattle affected many minority groups, one being the Asian Pacific Americans; they were subject to racism, loss of property, and failed claims of unemployment due to citizenship status.^[49]

Seattle was one of the major cities that benefited from programs such as theWorks Progress Administration,CCC,Public Works Administration, and others.^[50][51]The workers, mostly men, built roads, parks, dams, schools, railroads, bridges, docks, and even historical and archival record sites and buildings. Seattle faced significant unemployment, loss of lumber and construction industries asLos Angelesprevailed as the biggerWest Coastcity. Seattle had building contracts that rivaledNew York CityandChicago, but also lost to Los Angeles. Seattle's eastern farm land faded due toOregon's and theMidwest's, forcing people into town.^[52][53]

Hoovervillearose during the Depression, leading to Seattle's growing homeless population. Stationed outside Seattle, the Hooverville housed thousands of men but very few children and no women. With work projects close to the city, Hooverville grew and the WPA settled into the city.^[54]

A movement of women arose from Seattle during theGreat Depression, fueled in part byEleanor Roosevelt's 1933 bookIt's Up to the Women; women pushed for recognition, not just as housewives, but as the backbone to family. Using newspapers and journalsWorking WomanandThe Woman Today, women pushed to be seen as equal and receive some recognition.^[55]

The Great Depression did not impact theUniversity of Washingtonnegatively. As schools across Washington lost funding and attendance, the university actually prospered during the time period as they focused on growing their student enrollment. WhileSeattle public schoolswere influenced by Washington's superintendent Worth McClure,^[56]they still struggled to pay teachers and maintain attendance.^[57]

Seattle was the home base of impresarioAlexander Pantageswho, starting in 1902, opened a number of theaters in the city exhibitingvaudevilleacts and silent movies. He went on to become one of America's greatest theater and movie tycoons. Scottish-born architectB. Marcus Pritecadesigned several theaters for Pantages in Seattle, which were later demolished or converted to other uses. Seattle's survivingParamount Theatre, on which he collaborated, was not a Pantages theater.^[58]

War work again brought local prosperity duringWorld War II, centered on the production ofBoeingaircraft. The war dispersed the city's numerous Japanese-American businessmen due to theJapanese American internment. After the World War II, however, the local economy dipped. It rose again with Boeing's growing dominance in the commercialairlinermarket.^[59]Seattle celebrated its restored prosperity and made a bid for world recognition with theCentury 21 Exposition, the1962 World's Fair, for which theSpace Needlewas built.^[60]

Another major local economic downturn was in the late 1960s and early 1970s, at a time when Boeing was heavily affected by theoil crises, loss of government contracts, and costs and delays associated with theBoeing 747. Many people left the area to look for work elsewhere, and two local real estate agents put up a billboard reading "Will the last person leaving Seattle – Turn out the lights."^[61]

Seattle remained the corporate headquarters of Boeing until 2001, when the company separated its headquarters from its major production facilities; the headquarters were moved to Chicago.^[62]The Seattle area is still home to Boeing'sRenton narrow-body plantandEverett wide-body plant.^[63]The company'scredit unionfor employees,BECU, remains based in the Seattle area and has been open to all residents of Washington since 2002.^[64]

On March 20, 1970, twenty-eight people were killed when the Ozark Hotel was burned by an unknown arsonist.^[65]TheWah Mee massacrein 1983 resulted in the killing of 13 people in an illegal gambling club in theSeattle Chinatown-International District.^[66]

Prosperity began to return in the 1980s beginning withMicrosoft's 1979 move fromAlbuquerque, New Mexico, to nearbyBellevue, Washington.^[67]

Seattle and its suburbs became home to a number of technology companies, includingAmazon,F5 Networks,RealNetworks,Nintendo of America, andT-Mobile.^[68]This success brought an influx of new residents with a population increase within city limits of almost 50,000 between 1990 and 2000,^[69]and saw Seattle's real estate become some of the most expensive in the country.^[70]

Seattle in this period attracted attention as home to the companies opened operations in or around the city. In 1990, theGoodwill Gameswere held in the city.^[71]Three years later, in 1993, theAPECleaders was hosted in Seattle.^[72]The 1990s also witnessed a growing popularity ingrungemusic, a sound that was largely developed in Seattle's independent music scene.^[73]

In 1993, the movieSleepless in Seattlebrought the city further national attention,^[74]as did the television sitcomFrasier. Thedot-com boomcaused a great frenzy among the technology companies in Seattle but the bubble ended in early 2001.^[75][76]

In 1999, theWorld Trade Organizationheld its conference in Seattle, which was met withprotest activity. The protests and police reactions to them largely overshadowed the conference itself.^[77]

In 2001, the city was impacted by theMardi Gras Riotsand then by theNisqually earthquakethe following day.^[78]

Another boom began as the city emerged from theGreat Recession, commencing whenAmazonmoved its headquarters from NorthBeacon HilltoSouth Lake Union. The move initiated a historic construction boom which resulted in the completion of almost 10,000 apartments in Seattle in 2017, more than any previous year and nearly twice as many as were built in 2016.^[79][80]

From 2010 to 2015, Seattle gained an average of 14,511 residents per year, with the growth strongly skewed toward the center of the city,^[81]and unemployment dropped from roughly 9 percent to 3.6 percent.^[82]The city has found itself "bursting at the seams", with over 45,000 households spending more than half their income on housing andat least 2,800 people homeless, and with the country's sixth-worst rush-hour traffic.^[82]

Seattle is located between the saltwaterPuget Sound(an arm of the Pacific Ocean) to the west andLake Washingtonto the east. The city's chief harbor,Elliott Bay, is part of Puget Sound, making the city an oceanic port. To the west, beyond Puget Sound, are theKitsap PeninsulaandOlympic Mountainson theOlympic Peninsula; to the east, beyond Lake Washington and theEastsidesuburbs, areLake Sammamishand theCascade Range. Lake Washington's waters flow to Puget Sound through theLake Washington Ship Canal(consisting of two man-made canals,Lake Union, and theHiram M. Chittenden LocksatSalmon Bay, ending inShilshole Bayon Puget Sound).^{[citation needed]}

The sea, rivers, forests, lakes, and fields surrounding Seattle were once rich enough to support one of the world's few sedentaryhunter-gatherersocieties. In modern times the surrounding area lends itself well to sailing, skiing, bicycling, camping, and hiking year-round.^[83][84]

The city is hilly in some places.^[85]Like Rome, the city is said to lie onseven hills;^[86]the lists vary but typically includeCapitol Hill,First Hill,West Seattle,Beacon Hill,Queen Anne, Magnolia, and the formerDenny Hill. TheWallingford,Delridge,Mount Baker,Seward Park,Washington Park,Broadmoor,Madrona,Phinney Ridge,Sunset Hill,Blue Ridge,Broadview,Laurelhurst,Hawthorne Hills,Maple Leaf, andCrown Hillneighborhoods are all located on hills. Many of the hilliest areas are near the city center, with Capitol Hill, First Hill, and Beacon Hill collectively constituting something of a ridge along an isthmus between Elliott Bay and Lake Washington.^[87]The break in the ridge between First Hill and Beacon Hill is man-made, a result of two of the manyregrading projectsthat reshaped the topography of the city center.^[88]The topography of the city center was also changed by the construction of aseawalland the artificialHarbor Island(completed 1909) at the mouth of the city's industrialDuwamish Waterway, the terminus of theGreen River. The highest point within city limits is atHigh Pointin West Seattle, which is located near 35th Ave SW and SW Myrtle St.

North of the city center, the Lake Washington Ship Canal connects Puget Sound to Lake Washington. It incorporates four natural bodies of water:Lake Union,Salmon Bay,Portage Bay, andUnion Bay.^{[citation needed]}

Due to its location in thePacific Ring of Fire, Seattle is in a majorearthquake zone. On February 28, 2001, themagnitude 6.8Nisqually earthquakedid significant architectural damage, especially in thePioneer Squarearea (built onreclaimed land, as are theIndustrial Districtand part of the city center), and caused one fatality.^[89]Other strong earthquakes occurred onJanuary 26, 1700(estimated at 9 magnitude),December 14, 1872(7.3 or 7.4),^[90]April 13, 1949(7.1),^[91]and April 29, 1965 (6.5).^[92]The1965 quakecaused three deaths in Seattle directly and one more by heart failure.^[92]Although theSeattle Faultpasses just south of the city center, neither it^[93]nor theCascadia subduction zonehas caused an earthquake since the city's founding. The Cascadia subduction zone poses the threat of an earthquake of magnitude 9.0 or greater, capable of seriously damaging the city and collapsing many buildings, especially in zones built on fill.^[94]

According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 142.5 square miles (369 km²),^[95]84 square miles (220 km²) of which is land and 58.1 square miles (150 km²) is water (41% of the total area).^[1]

According to theKöppen climate classificationsystem, Seattle has a warm-summerMediterranean climate(Csb),^[96][97][98]while under theTrewarthasystem, it is labeled anoceanic climate(Do).^[99][100]It has cool, wet winters and mild, relatively dry summers, covering characteristics of both climate types.^[101][102]The climate is sometimes characterized as a "modified Mediterranean" climate because it is cooler and wetter than a "true" Mediterranean climate, but shares the characteristic dry summer (which has a strong influence on the region's vegetation).^[103]

Temperature extremes are moderated by the adjacentPuget Sound, greaterPacific Ocean, andLake Washington. Thus extremeheat wavesare rare in the Seattle area, as are very cold temperatures (below about 15 °F; −9 °C). The Seattle area is the cloudiest region of theContinental United States, due in part to frequent storms andlowsmoving in from the adjacent Pacific Ocean. Seattle is cloudy 201 days out of the year and partly cloudy 93 days.^[104]With many more "rain days" than other major American cities, Seattle has a well-earned reputation for frequent rain:^[105]In an average year, there are 150 days in which at least 0.01 inches (0.25 mm) of precipitation falls, more days than in nearly all U.S. cities east of theRocky Mountains.^[106]However, because it often has merely a light drizzle falling from the sky for many days, Seattle actually receives significantly less rainfall (or other precipitation) overall than many other U.S. cities likeNew York City,Miami, orHouston.

According to the 2012–2016American Community Survey(ACS), the racial makeup of the city was 65.7%White Non-Hispanic, 16.9%Asian, 6.8%Black or African American, 6.6%HispanicorLatinoof any race, 0.4%Native American, 0.9%Pacific Islander, 0.2% other races, and 5.6%two or more races.^[112]

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1860	188		—
1870	1,107		488.8%
1880	3,533		219.2%
1890	42,837		1,112.5%
1900	80,671		88.3%
1910	237,194		194.0%
1920	315,312		32.9%
1930	365,583		15.9%
1940	368,302		0.7%
1950	467,591		27.0%
1960	557,087		19.1%
1970	530,831		−4.7%
1980	493,846		−7.0%
1990	516,259		4.5%
2000	563,374		9.1%
2010	608,660		8.0%
2020	737,015		21.1%
2023 (est.)	755,078	[2]	2.5%
U.S. Decennial Census[113] 2010–2020[2]

Racial composition	2023[114]	2020[115]	2010[116]	1990[117]	1970[117]	1940[117]
White(non-Hispanic)	62.2%	59.5%	66.3%	73.7%	85.3%[d]	n/a
Asian(non-Hispanic)	16.3%	16.9%	13.7%	11.8%	4.2%	2.8%
Hispanic or Latino	7.2%	8.2%	6.6%	3.6%	2.0%[d]	n/a
Black or African American(non-Hispanic)	6.8%	6.8%	7.7%	10.1%	7.1%	1.0%
Other (non-Hispanic)	n/a	0.6%	0.2%	n/a	n/a	n/a
Two or more races(non-Hispanic)	8.8%	7.3%	4.4%	n/a	n/a	n/a

Seattle's population historically has been predominantly white.^[117]The 2010 census showed that Seattle was one of the whitest big cities in the country, although its proportion of white residents has been gradually declining.^[118]In 1960, whites constituted 91.6% of the city's population,^[117]while in 2010 they constituted 69.5%.^[119][120]According to the 2006–2008American Community Survey, approximately 78.9% of residents over the age of five spoke only English at home. Those who spokeAsian languagesother than Indo-European languages made up 10.2% of the population, Spanish was spoken by 4.5% of the population, speakers of otherIndo-European languagesmade up 3.9%, and speakers of other languages made up 2.5%.^{[citation needed]}

Seattle's foreign-born population grew 40% between the 1990 and 2000 censuses.^[121]TheChinesepopulation in the Seattle area has origins inmainland China, Hong Kong, Southeast Asia, andTaiwan. The earliest Chinese-Americans that came in the late 19th and early 20th centuries were almost entirely fromGuangdong Province. The Seattle area is also home to a largeVietnamesepopulation of more than 55,000 residents,^[122]as well as over 30,000Somaliimmigrants.^[123]The Seattle-Tacoma area is also home to one of the largestCambodiancommunities in the United States, numbering about 19,000 Cambodian Americans,^[124]and one of the largestSamoancommunities in the mainland U.S., with over 15,000 people having Samoan ancestry.^[119][125]Additionally, the Seattle area had the highest percentage of self-identified mixed-race people of any large metropolitan area in the United States, according to the 2000 United States Census Bureau.^[126]According to a 2012HistoryLinkstudy, Seattle's 98118 ZIP code (in the Columbia City neighborhood) was one of the most diverse ZIP Code Tabulation Areas in the United States.^[127]

According to the ACS 1-year estimates, in 2018, the median income of a city household was $93,481, and the median income for a family was $130,656.^[128]11.0% of the population and 6.6% of families were below the poverty line. Of people living in poverty, 11.4% were under the age of 18 and 10.9% were 65 or older.^[128]According to a 2024 study byHenley & Partners, the city of Seattle has an estimated 54,200 millionaires and 11 billionaires.^[129]

It is estimated that King County has 8,000 homeless people on any given night, and many of those live in Seattle.^[130]In September 2005, King County adopted a "Ten-Year Plan to End Homelessness", one of the near-term results of which is a shift of funding fromhomeless shelterbeds to permanent housing.^[131]

In recent years, the city has experienced steady population growth, and has been faced with the issue of accommodating more residents. In 2006, after growing by 4,000 citizens per year for the previous 16 years, regional planners expected the population of Seattle to grow by 200,000 people by 2040.^[132]However, former mayor Greg Nickels supported plans that would increase the population by 60%, or 350,000 people, by 2040 and worked on ways to accommodate this growth while keeping Seattle's single-family housing zoning laws.^[132]The Seattle City Council later voted to relax height limits on buildings in the greater part of Downtown, partly with the aim to increase residential density in the city center.^[133]As a sign of increasing downtown core growth, theDowntownpopulation crested to over 60,000 in 2009, up 77% since 1990.^[134]

In 2021 Seattle experienced its first population decline in 50 years.^[135]

Seattle has a relatively high number of adults living alone. According to the 2000 U.S. Census interim measurements of 2004, Seattle has the fifth highest proportion of single-person households nationwide among cities of 100,000 or more residents, at 40.8%.^[136]

Seattle has a notably largelesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendercommunity. According to a 2006 study byUCLA, 12.9% of city residents polled identified as gay, lesbian, or bisexual. This was the second-highest proportion of any major U.S. city, behindSan Francisco.^[137]Greater Seattle also ranked second among major U.S. metropolitan areas, with 6.5% of the population identifying as gay, lesbian, or bisexual.^[137]According to 2012 estimates from the United States Census Bureau, Seattle has the highest percentage of same-sex households in the United States, at 2.6 percent, surpassing San Francisco (2.5 percent).^[138]TheCapitol Hilldistrict has historically been the center of LGBT culture in Seattle.^[139]

This section needs to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (April 2021)

Seattle's economy is driven by a mix of older industrial companies and new-economy internet and technology companies, as well as service, design, andclean technologycompanies. The city's gross metropolitan product (GMP) was $231 billion in 2010, making it the11th-largest metropolitan economyin the United States.^[140][141]ThePort of Seattle, which also operatesSeattle–Tacoma International Airport, is a major gateway for trade with Asia and cruises to Alaska. It also is the 8th-largest port in the United States when measured by container capacity. Its maritime cargo operations merged with thePort of Tacomain 2015 to form theNorthwest Seaport Alliance.^[142][143]

Although it was impacted by theGreat Recession, Seattle has retained a comparatively strong economy, and is noted for start-up businesses, especially in green building and clean technologies.^[144]In February 2010, the city government committed Seattle to become North America's first "climate neutral" city, with a goal of reaching net-zero per-capita greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.^[145]

Large companies continue to dominate the business landscape. Seven companies onFortune500's 2022 list of the United States' largest companies (based on total revenue) are headquartered in Seattle: Internet retailerAmazon(#2), coffee chainStarbucks(#120), freight forwarderExpeditors International of Washington(#225), department storeNordstrom(#245), forest products companyWeyerhaeuser(#354), online travel companyExpedia Group(#404), and real-estate tech companyZillow(#424) .^[146]Other Fortune 500 companies commonly associated with Seattle are based in nearby Puget Sound cities. Warehouse club chainCostco(#11), the largest retail company in Washington, is based inIssaquah.Microsoft(#14) is located inRedmond. Furthermore, Bellevue is home to truck manufacturerPaccar(#151).^[146]Other major companies headquartered in the area includeNintendo of Americain Redmond,T-Mobile USin Bellevue, andProvidence Health & Services(the state's largest health care system and fifth-largest employer) inRenton. The city has a reputation for heavycoffee consumption;^[147]coffee companies founded or based in Seattle include Starbucks,^[148]Seattle's Best Coffee,^[149]andTully's.^[150]There are also many successful independent artisanal espresso roasters and cafés.^{[147][needs update]}

Before moving its headquarters toChicagoand then ultimatelyArlington County, Virginia, aerospace manufacturerBoeing(#60) was the largest company based in Seattle. Its largest division,Boeing Commercial Airplanes, is still headquartered within the Puget Sound region.^[151][e]The company also has large aircraft manufacturing plants in Everett and Renton; it remains the largest private employer in the Seattle metropolitan area.^[152]In 2006 former Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels announced a desire to spark a new economic boom driven by thebiotechnologyindustry. Major redevelopment of theSouth Lake Unionneighborhood is underway in an effort to attract new and established biotech companies to the city, joining biotech companiesCorixa(acquired byGlaxoSmithKline), Immunex (now part of Amgen),Trubion, and ZymoGenetics.Vulcan Inc., the holding company of billionairePaul Allen, is behind most of the development projects in the region. While some see the new development as an economic boon, others have criticized Nickels and theSeattle City Councilfor pandering to Allen's interests at taxpayers' expense.^[153]In 2005,Forbesranked Seattle as the most expensive American city for buying a house based on the local income levels.^[154]Owing largely to the rapidly increasing cost of living, Seattle and Washington State have some of thehighest minimum wages in the country, at $15 per hour for smaller businesses and $16 for the city's largest employers.^[155]

Operating a hub at Seattle–Tacoma International Airport,Alaska Airlinesmaintains its headquarters in the city ofSeaTac, next to the airport.^[156]Seattle is a hub for global health with the headquarters of theBill & Melinda Gates Foundation,PATH (global health organization),Infectious Disease Research Institute,Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, and theInstitute for Health Metrics and Evaluation. In 2015, the Washington Global Health Alliance counted 168 global health organizations in Washington state. Many are headquartered in Seattle.^[157]

Many ofSeattle's neighborhoodshost one or morestreet fairs or parades.^[158]

Seattle has been a regional center for theperforming artsfor many years. The century-oldSeattle Symphony Orchestrahas won many awards and performs primarily atBenaroya Hall.^[159]TheSeattle OperaandPacific Northwest Ballet, which perform atMcCaw Hall(opened in 2003 on the site of the former Seattle Opera House at Seattle Center), are comparably distinguished,^[160][161]with the Opera being particularly known for its performances of the works ofRichard Wagner^[162][163]and the PNB School (founded in 1974) ranking as one of the top three ballet training institutions in the United States.^[164]TheSeattle Youth Symphony Orchestras(SYSO) is the largest symphonic youth organization in the United States.^[165]The city also boasts lauded summer and winterchamber musicfestivals organized by theSeattle Chamber Music Society.^[166]

The5th Avenue Theatre, built in 1926, stagesBroadway-stylemusical shows^[167]featuring both local talent and international stars.^[168]Seattle has "around 100" theatrical production companies^[169]and over two dozen live theatre venues, many of them associated withfringe theatre;^[170][171]Seattle is probably second only to New York for number ofequitytheaters^[172](28 Seattle theater companies have some sort ofActors' Equitycontract).^[169]In addition, the 900-seatRomanesque RevivalTown Hallon First Hill hosts numerous cultural events, especially lectures and recitals.^[173]

Between 1918 and 1951, there were nearly two dozen jazz nightclubs along Jackson Street, running from the current Chinatown/International District to the Central District. The jazz scene developed the early careers ofRay Charles,Quincy Jones,Bumps Blackwell,Ernestine Anderson, and others.^[174]

Early popular musical acts from the Seattle/Puget Sound area include the collegiate folk groupThe Brothers Four, vocal groupThe Fleetwoods, 1960s garage rockersThe WailersandThe Sonics, and instrumental surf groupThe Ventures, some of whom are still active.^[174]

Seattle is considered the home ofgrungemusic,^[17]having produced artists such asNirvana,Soundgarden,Alice in Chains,Pearl Jam, andMudhoney, all of whom reached international audiences in the early 1990s.^[174]The city is also home to such varied artists asavant-garde jazzmusiciansBill FrisellandWayne Horvitz,hot jazzmusicianGlenn Crytzer,hip hopartistsSir Mix-a-Lot,Macklemore,Blue Scholars, andShabazz Palaces,smooth jazzsaxophonistKenny G,classic rockstaplesHeartandQueensrÿche, and alternative rock bands such asFoo Fighters,Harvey Danger,The Presidents of the United States of America,The Posies,Modest Mouse,Band of Horses,Death Cab for Cutie, andFleet Foxes. Rock musicians such asJimi Hendrix,Duff McKagan, andNikki Sixxspent their formative years in Seattle.

The Seattle-basedSub Poprecord company continues to be one of the world's best-known independent/alternative music labels.^[174]Over the years,a number of songs have been written about Seattle.

Seattle annually sends a team ofspoken wordslammers to theNational Poetry Slamand considers itself home to such performance poets asBuddy Wakefield, two-timeIndividual World Poetry SlamChamp;^[175]Anis Mojgani, two-time National Poetry Slam Champ;^[176]andDanny Sherrard, 2007 National Poetry Slam Champ and 2008 Individual World Poetry Slam Champ.^[177]Seattle also hosted the 2001 national Poetry Slam Tournament. The Seattle Poetry Festival is a biennial poetry festival that (launched first as the Poetry Circus in 1997) has featured local, regional, national, and international names in poetry.^[178]

The city also has movie houses showing bothHollywoodproductions and works byindependent filmmakers.^[179]Among these, theSeattle Cineramastands out as one of only three movie theaters in the world still capable of showing three-panelCineramafilms.^[180]

Among Seattle's prominent annual fairs and festivals are the 24-daySeattle International Film Festival,^[182]Northwest Folklife over theMemorial Dayweekend, numerousSeafairevents throughout July and August (ranging from aBon Odoricelebration to theSeafair Cuphydroplaneraces), theBite of Seattle, one of the largestGay Pridefestivals in the United States, and the art and music festivalBumbershoot, which programs music as well as other art and entertainment over the Labor Day weekend. All are typically attended by 100,000 people annually, as are theSeattle Hempfestand two separateIndependence Daycelebrations.^{[183][184][185][186]}

Other significant events include numerous Native Americanpow-wows, a Greek Festival hosted bySt. Demetrios Greek Orthodox ChurchinMontlake, and numerous ethnic festivals (many associated withFestál at Seattle Center).^[187]

There are other annual events, ranging from the Seattle Antiquarian Book Fair & Book Arts Show;^[188]ananimeconvention,Sakura-Con;^[189]Penny Arcade Expo, a gaming convention;^[190]a two-day, 9,000-riderSeattle to Portland Bicycle Classic;^[191]and specialized film festivals, such as theMaelstrom International Fantastic Film Festival, theSeattle Asian American Film Festival, Children's Film Festival Seattle, Translation: the Seattle Transgender Film Festival, theSeattle Queer Film Festival, Seattle Latino Film Festival, and theSeattle Polish Film Festival.^[192][193]

TheHenry Art Galleryopened in 1927, the first public art museum in Washington.^[194]TheSeattle Art Museum(SAM) opened in 1933 and moved to their current downtown location in 1991 (expanded and reopened in 2007); since 1991, the 1933 building has been SAM'sSeattle Asian Art Museum(SAAM).^[195]SAM also operates theOlympic Sculpture Park(opened in 2007) on the waterfront north of the downtown piers.^[196]TheFrye Art Museumis a free museum onFirst Hill.^[197]

Regional history collections are at the Log House Museum in Alki,Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, theMuseum of History and Industry, and theBurke Museum of Natural History and Culture. Industry collections are at theCenter for Wooden Boatsand the adjacentNorthwest Seaport, and theMuseum of Flight. Regional ethnic collections include theNational Nordic Museum, theWing Luke Asian Museum, and theNorthwest African American Museum. Seattle has artist-run galleries,^[198]including ten-year veteran Soil Art Gallery,^[199]and the newer Crawl Space Gallery.^[200]

TheSeattle Great Wheel, one of the largestFerris wheelsin the US, opened in June 2012 as a new, permanent attraction on the city's waterfront, atPier 57, next toDowntown Seattle.^[201]The city also has manycommunity centersfor recreation, including Rainier Beach, Van Asselt, Rainier, and Jefferson south of the Ship Canal and Green Lake, Laurelhurst, Loyal Heights north of the Canal, and Meadowbrook.^[202]

Woodland Park Zooopened as a privatemenageriein 1889 but was sold to the city in 1899.^[203]TheSeattle Aquariumhas been open on the downtown waterfront since 1977 (undergoing a renovation in 2006).^[204]TheSeattle UndergroundTour is an exhibit of places that existed before the Great Fire.^[205]

Since the mid-1990s, Seattle has experienced significant growth in the cruise industry, especially as a departure point for Alaska cruises. In 2008, a record total of 886,039 cruise passengers passed through the city, surpassing the number for Vancouver, BC, the other major departure point for Alaska cruises.^[206]

This section needs to be updated. The reason given is: This survey is more than eight years old. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (December 2022)

A 2024 Household Pulse Survey from the United States Census Bureau estimated that 64 percent of adults in the Seattle area never attend religious services or attend less than once a year, the highest percentage among large U.S. metropolitan areas.^[207]

According to a 2014 study by thePew Research Center, the largest religious groupings areChristians(52%), followed by those ofno religion(37%),Hindus(2%),Buddhists(2%),Jews(1%),Muslims(1%) and a variety of other religions have smaller followings.^[208]According to the same study by thePew Research Center, about 34% of Seattleites areProtestant, and 15% areRoman Catholic. Meanwhile, 6% of the residents in Seattle call themselvesagnostics, while 10% call themselvesatheists.^[209][210]

Religious composition	2014
Christian	52%
—Evangelical Protestant	23%
—Mainline Protestant	10%
—Black Protestant	1%
—Catholic	15%
Non-Christian faiths	10%
—Jewish	1%
—Muslim	< 1%
—Buddhist	2%
—Hindu	2%
Unaffiliated	37%
Don't know	1%

Club	Sport	League	Venue (capacity)	Founded	Titles	Record attendance
Seattle Seahawks	American football	NFL	Lumen Field(69,000)	1976	1	69,005
Seattle Mariners	Baseball	MLB	T-Mobile Park(47,574)	1977	0	46,596
Seattle Kraken	Ice hockey	NHL	Climate Pledge Arena(17,100)	2021	0	17,151[211]
Seattle Sounders FC	Soccer	MLS	Lumen Field(69,000)	2007[A]	2	69,274[212]
Seattle Seawolves	Rugby	MLR	Starfire Sports(4,500)[213]	2017	2	4,500
Seattle Storm	Basketball	WNBA	Climate Pledge Arena(18,100)	2000	4	18,100[214]
Seattle Reign FC	Soccer	NWSL	Lumen Field(69,000)	2013	0	42,054[215]
Ballard FC	Soccer	USL2	Interbay Soccer Field (1,000) Memorial Stadium(12,000)	2022	1	3,146[216]
West Seattle Junction FC	Soccer	USL2	TBD	2024[217]	0	—

Notes

^AOriginally founded in 1974, the MLS version of the Sounders franchise was legally re-incorporated in 2007 and entered the league for the 2009 season.

Seattle has four major men'sprofessional sportsteams: theNational Football League(NFL)'sSeattle Seahawks,Major League Baseball(MLB)'sSeattle Mariners, theNational Hockey League(NHL)'sSeattle Kraken, andMajor League Soccer(MLS)'sSeattle Sounders FC. Other professional sports teams include theWomen's National Basketball Association(WNBA)'sSeattle Storm, theNational Women's Soccer League'sSeattle Reign FC; andMajor League Rugby(MLR)'sSeattle Seawolves.

Seattle's professional sports history began at the start of the 20th century with thePCHA'sSeattle Metropolitans, which in 1917 became the first American hockey team to win theStanley Cup.^[218]In 1969, Seattle was awarded a Major League Baseball franchise, theSeattle Pilots. Based atSick's StadiuminMount Baker, home to Seattle'sformer minor-league teams, the Pilots played in Seattle forone seasonbefore relocating toMilwaukeeand becoming theMilwaukee Brewers.^[219]The city, alongside the county and state governments, sued the league and was offered a second expansion team, later named theSeattle Mariners, as settlement.^[220]

The Mariners began play in 1977 at themulti-purposeKingdome, where the team struggled for most of its time. Relative success in the mid-to-late 1990s saved the team from being relocated and allowed them to move to a purpose-built baseball stadium,T-Mobile Park(formerlySafeco Field), in 1999.^[221][222]The Mariners have never reached aWorld Seriesand only appeared in the MLB playoffs five times, mostly between 1995 and 2001, but had Hall of Fame players and candidates likeKen Griffey Jr.,Randy Johnson,Ichiro Suzuki, andAlex Rodriguez.^[223]The team tied the all-time MLB single regular season wins record in 2001 with 116 wins.^[224]From 2001 to 2022, the Mariners failed to qualify for the playoffs—the longestactive postseason droughtin major North American sports, at 20 seasons.^[225]

The Seattle Seahawks entered the National Football League in 1976 as anexpansion teamand have advanced to theSuper Bowlthree times:2005,2013and2014.^[226]The team played in theKingdomeuntil it was imploded in 2000 and moved into Qwest Field (nowLumen Field) at the same site in 2003.^[226]The Seahawks lostSuper Bowl XLin 2005 to thePittsburgh SteelersinDetroit, but wonSuper Bowl XLVIIIin 2013 by defeating theDenver Broncos43–8 atMetLife Stadium. The team advanced to the Super Bowl the following year, but lost to theNew England PatriotsinSuper Bowl XLIXon a last-minute play.^[226]Seahawks fans have set stadium noise records on several occasions and are collectively known as the "12th Man".^[226][227]

Seattle Sounders FC has played in Major League Soccer since 2009, as the latest continuation of theoriginal 1974 Sounders teamof theNorth American Soccer Leagueafteran incarnationin thelower divisions of American soccer.^[228]Sharing Lumen Field with the Seahawks, the team set variousattendance recordsin its first few MLS seasons, averaging over 43,000 per match and placing themselves among the top 30 teams internationally.^[229][230]The Sounders have won theMLS Supporters' Shieldin 2014^[231]and theU.S. Open Cupon four occasions:2009,2010,2011, and2014.^[232]The Sounders won the first of their twoMLS Cuptitles in2016, defeatingToronto FC5–4 in apenalty shootoutin Toronto,^[233]before finishing as runners-up in a rematch against Toronto inMLS Cup 2017. In2019the Sounders made their first-ever home-field appearance in MLS Cup, once again against Toronto FC, and won the game 3–1 to earn their second MLS Cup title in front of a club-record attendance of 69,274.^[234]The stadium also hosted the second leg of the2022 CONCACAF Champions League Final, played in front of 68,741 to break the tournament attendance record. The Sounders became the first MLS team to win a continental title since 2000 and the first to win the modernChampions League.^[235]

Seattle's Major League Rugby team, theSeattle Seawolves, play in nearbyTukwilaatStarfire Sports Complex, a small stadium that is also used by the Sounders for theirU.S. Open Cupmatches.^[236]The team began play in 2018 and wonthe league's inaugural championship.^[237]They successfully defended their title in the2019 seasonand finished as runners-up in the2022 championship game.^[238][239]

From 1967 to 2008, Seattle was home to theSeattle SuperSonicsof theNational Basketball Association(NBA). A frequent playoff participant, the Sonics were the1978–79 NBA champions, and also contended for the championship in1978and1996. Following a team sale in 2006, a failed effort to replace the agingKeyArena, and settlement of a lawsuit to hold the team to the final two years of its lease with the city,the SuperSonics relocatedtoOklahoma Cityand became theOklahoma City Thunderahead of the2008–09 season.^[240][241]Aneffort in 2013to purchase theSacramento Kingsfranchise and relocate it to Seattle as a resurrected Sonics squad was denied by the NBA board of governors.^[242]

TheSeattle Stormof theWomen's National Basketball Associationhave also played their games at KeyArena (nowClimate Pledge Arena) since their foundation in 2000. The WNBA granted Seattle their expansion side following the popularity of the recently foldedSeattle Reign, a women's professional basketball team that played from 1996 to 1998 in the rivalAmerican Basketball League.^[243]The Storm began as a sister team to the now-defunctSonicsof the NBA, but sold to separate Seattle-based ownership in 2006. Tied for the league record, the Storm have claimed theWNBA championshipon four occasions, winning in2004,2010,2018, and2020.^[244][245]The team also won the first-everWNBA Commissioner's Cupin2021.

TheSeattle Thunderbirdshockey team has represented Seattle in the Canadian major-juniorWestern Hockey Leaguesince 1977. Originally playing inMercer Arenaand theSeattle Center Coliseum(which had hostedprevious minor-league hockey teams), the Thunderbirds have been based at theShoWare Centerin the suburb ofKentsince 2007, and have won one WHL championship in2017.^[246]In 1974, Seattle wasawarded a conditional expansion franchisein theNational Hockey League; however, this opportunity did not come to fruition. In 2018, a new Seattle-based group successfully applied for an expansion team in the NHL, which was named theSeattle Krakenand began play in 2021.^{[247][248][249]}The SuperSonics' former home arena, KeyArena (nowClimate Pledge Arena), underwent major renovations from 2018 to 2021 to accommodate the new NHL team.^[250]The NHL ownership group reached its goal of 10,000 deposits within 12 minutes of opening a ticket drive, which later increased to 25,000 in 75 minutes.^[251]

Seattle Reign FC,^[252]a founding member of theNational Women's Soccer League, was founded in 2012, holding their home games in Seattle from 2014 to 2018 and again since 2022. The team name was chosen to honor thedefunct women's basketball team of the same name.^[243]The club played atStarfire Sports Complexin nearby Tukwila for the league's inaugural 2013 season before moving toSeattle Center'sMemorial Stadiumin 2014. Under new management, the team moved toTacoma'sCheney Stadiumin 2019, before moving to Seattle's Lumen Field in 2022.^[253]In 2020, OL Groupe, theparent companyof French clubsOlympique LyonnaisandOlympique Lyonnais Féminin, became the team's majority owner and rebranded the club as OL Reign.^[253]The Seattle Reign name was restored in 2024.^[254]

Seattle has also been home to various minor-league professional teams, of which currentlyBallard FCandWest Seattle Junction FCofUSL League 2in soccer remain. Representing the Seattle neighborhood ofBallard, Ballard FC was founded in 2022 as an independent, semi-professional soccer team in the fourth-divisionUSL League 2. The team is owned by a group led by former Sounders playerLamar Neagleand wonits first national title in 2023. Ballard FC's primary home is the 1,000-seat Interbay Soccer Stadium (also home toSeattle Pacific University's andBallard High School's soccer teams), but during that field's renovations in the 2024 season, Ballard will play out of Memorial Stadium at the Seattle Center.^[255][256]Starting in 2024, Ballard FC's division will be joined by a new cross-town rival,West Seattle Junction FCrepresenting the neighborhood ofWest Seattle.^[217]

The short-livedSeattle Sea Dragons, originally the Dragons, of theXFLplayed at Lumen Field in the league's inaugural season in 2020 prior to its suspension due to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[257]The Sea Dragons returned alongside the XFL in2023after the league's re-launch under new ownership.^[258]The team folded prior to the 2024 season during the XFL's merger with theUnited States Football Leagueto form theUnited Football League.^[259]

Seattle also boasts two collegiate sports teams based at theUniversity of WashingtonandSeattle University, both competing inNCAA Division Ifor various sports.^[260]The University of Washington's athletic program, nicknamed theHuskies, competes in thePac-12 Conference, and Seattle University's athletic program, nicknamed theRedhawks, mostly competes in theWestern Athletic Conference. The Huskies teams use several facilities, including the 70,000-seatHusky Stadiumforfootballand theHec Edmundson Pavilionfor basketball and volleyball.^[261][262]The two schools have basketball and soccer teams that compete against each other in non-conference games and have formed a local rivalry due to their sporting success.^[260]

TheMajor League Baseball All-Star Gamehas been held in Seattle three times, once at the Kingdome in1979, and twice at T-Mobile Park in2001and2023.^[263]TheNBA All-Star Gamewas also held in Seattle twice: the first in1974at theSeattle Center Coliseumand the second in1987at the Kingdome.^[264]Lumen FieldhostedMLS Cup 2009, played betweenReal Salt Lakeand theLos Angeles Galaxy, as a neutral site in front of 46,011 spectators.^[265]Seattle will be one of eleven US host cities for the2026 FIFA World Cup, with matches played at Lumen Field and training facilities atLongacresinRenton, Washington.^[266]

Seattle's mild, temperate marine climate allows year-round outdoor recreation, including walking, cycling, hiking, skiing, snowboarding, kayaking, rock climbing, motorboating, sailing, team sports, and swimming.^[267]In town, many people walk aroundGreen Lake, through the forests and along the bluffs and beaches of 535-acre (2.2 km²)Discovery Park(the largest park in the city) inMagnolia, along the shores ofMyrtle Edwards Parkon the Downtown waterfront, along the shoreline of Lake Washington atSeward Park, along Alki Beach in West Seattle, or along theBurke-Gilman Trail.^{[citation needed]}Gas Works Parkfeatures the preservedsuperstructureof acoal gasificationplant closed in 1956. Located across Lake Union from downtown, the park provides panoramic views of the Seattle skyline.^{[citation needed]}Also popular are hikes and skiing in the nearby Cascade or Olympic Mountains and kayaking and sailing in the waters of Puget Sound, theStrait of Juan de Fuca, and theStrait of Georgia.^{[citation needed]}

Seattle is acharter city, with amayor–council form of government. From 1911 to 2013, Seattle's nine city councillors were elected at large, rather than by geographic subdivisions.^[268]For the 2015 election, this changed to a hybrid system of seven district members and two at-large members as a result of a ballot measure passed on November 5, 2013. The only other elected offices are thecity attorneyand Municipal Court judges. All city offices are officiallynon-partisan.^[269]Like some other parts of the United States, government and laws are also run by a series of ballot initiatives (allowing citizens to pass or reject laws), referendums (allowing citizens to approve or reject legislation already passed), and propositions (allowing specific government agencies to propose new laws or tax increases directly to the people).^[270]

Seattle is widely considered one of the most socially liberal cities in the United States.^[271]In the 2012 U.S. general election, a majority of Seattleites voted to approve Referendum 74 and legalize gay marriage in Washington state.^[272]In the same election, an overwhelming majority of Seattleites also voted to approve the legalization of the recreational use ofcannabisin the state.^[273]Like much of thePacific Northwest(which has the lowest rate ofchurch attendancein the United States and consistently reports the highest percentage ofatheism^[274][275]), church attendance, religious belief, and political influence of religious leaders are much lower than in other parts of America.^[276]Seattle's political culture is very liberal andprogressivefor the United States, with over 80% of the population voting for theDemocratic Party. All precincts in Seattle voted for Democratic Party candidateBarack Obamain the2012 presidential election.^[277]In partisan elections for theWashington State LegislatureandUnited States Congress, nearly all elections are won by Democrats. Although local elections are nonpartisan, most of the city's elected officials are known to be Democrats, the most notable exception beingSeattle City AttorneyAnn Davison.^{[citation needed]}

In 1926, Seattle became the first major American city to elect a female mayor,Bertha Knight Landes.^[278]It has also elected an openly gay mayor,Ed Murray,^[279]and a third-party socialist councillor,Kshama Sawant.^[280]For the first time in United States history, an openly gay black woman was elected to public office when Sherry Harris was elected as a Seattle city councilor in 1991.^[281][282]In 2015, the majority of the city council was female.^[283]

Bruce Harrellwas elected as mayor in the2021 mayoral election, succeedingJenny Durkan, and took office on January 1, 2022. The mayor's office also includes threedeputy mayors, appointed to advise the mayor on policies.

In 2023, the city council voted to bancaste discriminationas part of the city's anti-discrimination laws. The ban is the first in the United States.^[284]

Seattle lies within four districts on theKing County Council: the 1st district includes the northeastern corner of the city; the 2nd district generally covers areas east ofInterstate 5and south of Northeast 65th Street; the 4th district consists of the northwestern neighborhoods of Ballard, Fremont, Magnolia, and Queen Anne; and the 8th district includes Downtown Seattle, First Hill, SODO, and West Seattle.^[285]At the state level, Seattle is divided into six districts that each have onestate senatorand twostate representatives.^[286][287]

Federally, Seattle is split between two congressional districts. Most of the city is in7th congressional district,^[288]represented by DemocratPramila Jayapal, the first Indian-American woman elected to Congress. She succeeded 28-year incumbent and fellow DemocratJim McDermott.^[289]Part of southeastern Seattle is in the9th congressional district,^[288]represented by DemocratAdam Smithsince 1997.^[290]The border between the two districts follows the Tukwila city limits around Boeing Field, Interstate 5, South Dearborn Street, 4th Avenue South, James Street, Madison Street, East Union Street, Martin Luther King Jr. Way, and East Yesler Way.^[288]

This section needs to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (April 2021)

Of the city's population over the age of 25, 53.8% (vs. a national average of 27.4%) hold abachelor's degreeor higher, and 91.9% (vs. 84.5% nationally) have a high school diploma orequivalent. A 2008 United States Census Bureau survey showed that Seattle had the highest percentage of college and university graduates of any major U.S. city.^[291]The city was listed as the most literate of the country's 69 largest cities in 2005 and 2006, the second most literate in 2007 and the most literate in 2008 in studies conducted byCentral Connecticut State University.^[292]

Seattle Public Schoolsis the school district for the vast majority of the city.^[293]That school district desegregated without a court order^[294]but continue to struggle to achieve racial balance in a somewhat ethnically divided city (the south part of town having more ethnic minorities than the north).^[295]In 2007, Seattle's racial tie-breaking system was struck down by theUnited States Supreme Court, but the ruling left the door open for desegregation formulae based on other indicators (e.g., income or socioeconomic class).^[296]A very small portion of the city is within theHighline School District.^[293]

The public school system is supplemented by a moderate number of private schools: Five of the private high schools areCatholic, one isLutheran, and six aresecular.^[297]

Seattle is home to theUniversity of Washingtonand its professional and continuing education unit, theUniversity of Washington Educational Outreach. In 2017,U.S. News & World Reportranked the University of Washington eleventh in the world.^[298]The UW receives more federal research and development funding than any public institution. Over the last 10 years, it has also produced morePeace Corpsvolunteers than any other U.S. university.^[299]

Seattle also has a number of smaller private universities, includingSeattle UniversityandSeattle Pacific University, the former a Jesuit Catholic institution, the latter a Free Methodist institution. TheSeattle Colleges Districtoperates three colleges:North Seattle College,Seattle Central College, andSouth Seattle College. Universities aimed at the working adult are theCity UniversityandAntioch University. Seminaries includeWestern Seminaryand a number of arts colleges, such asCornish College of the Arts,Pratt Fine Arts Center. In 2001,Timemagazine selected Seattle Central Community College as community college of the year, saying that the school "pushes diverse students to work together in small teams."^[300]

As of 2019^[update], Seattle has one major daily newspaper,The Seattle Times. TheSeattle Post-Intelligencer, known as theP-I, published a daily newspaper from 1863 to March 17, 2009, before switching to a strictly on-line publication. There is also theSeattle Daily Journal of Commerce,^[301]and the University of Washington publishesThe Daily, a student-run publication, when school is in session. The most prominent weeklies are theSeattle WeeklyandThe Stranger; both consider themselves"alternative" papers.^[302]The weekly LGBT newspaper is theSeattle Gay News.Real Changeis a weeklystreet newspaperthat is sold mainly byhomelesspersons as an alternative topanhandling. There are also several ethnic newspapers, includingThe Facts,Northwest Asian Weeklyand theInternational Examineras well as numerous neighborhood newspapers.^{[citation needed]}

Seattle is also well served by television and radio, with all major U.S. networks represented, along with at least five other English-language stations and two Spanish-language stations.^[303]Seattle cable viewers also receiveCBUT2 (CBC) fromVancouver, British Columbia.^{[citation needed]}

Non-commercialradio stations includeNPRaffiliatesKUOW-FM94.9 andKNKX88.5 (Tacoma), as well asclassical musicstationKING-FM98.1. Other non-commercial stations includeKEXP-FM90.3 (affiliated with the UW),community radioKBCS-FM91.3 (affiliated withBellevue College), andhigh school radioKNHC-FM89.5, which broadcasts anelectronic dance musicradio format, is owned by the public school system and operated by students ofNathan Hale High School. Many Seattle radio stations are available throughInternet radio, with KEXP in particular being a pioneer of Internet radio.^[304]Seattle also has numerous commercial radio stations. In a March 2012 report by the consumer research firmArbitron, the top FM stations wereKRWM(adult contemporaryformat),KIRO-FM(news/talk), andKISW(active rock) while the top AM stations wereKOMO(all news),KJR (AM)(all sports),KIRO (AM)(all sports).^[305]

The University of Washington is consistently ranked among the country's leading institutions in medical research, earning special merits for programs in neurology and neurosurgery. The university-runUW Medicinesystem encompasses several major local hospitals, includingHarborview Medical Center, the public county hospital and the only Level Itrauma hospitalfor Washington, Alaska, Montana, and Idaho.^[306]Harborview and two other major hospitals—Virginia Mason Medical CenterandSwedish Medical Center—are located on First Hill, which is nicknamed "Pill Hill" for its concentration of medical facilities.^[307]

Located in theLaurelhurstneighborhood,Seattle Children's, formerlyChildren's Hospital and Regional Medical Center, is the pediatric referral center for Washington, Alaska, Montana, and Idaho. TheFred Hutchinson Cancer Research Centerhas a campus in the Eastlake neighborhood. The University District is home to theUniversity of Washington Medical Centerwhich, along with Harborview, is operated by the University of Washington. Seattle is also served by aVeterans Affairshospital onBeacon Hill, a third campus of Swedish in Ballard, andUW Medical Center - NorthwestnearNorthgate Station.^[308]

Seattle has seen local developments of modern paramedic services with the establishment ofMedic Onein 1970.^[309]In 1974, a60 Minutesstory on the success of the then four-year-old Medic One paramedic system called Seattle "the best place in the world to have a heart attack."^[310]The city also has severalpharmacychains; these includeBartell Drugs, which was family-run in Seattle until its acquisition byRite Aidin 2020. As of 2024^[update], Seattle lacks a 24-hour retail pharmacy due to the closure of locations across several chains.^[311][312]

Thefirst streetcarsappeared in 1889 and were instrumental in the creation of a relatively well-defined downtown and strong neighborhoods at the end of their lines. The advent of the automobile began the dismantling of rail in Seattle. Tacoma–Seattle railway service ended in 1929 and the Everett–Seattle service came to an end in 1939, replaced by automobiles running on the recently developed highway system. Rails on city streets were paved over or removed, and the opening of theSeattle trolleybus systembrought the end ofstreetcars in Seattlein 1941. This left an extensive network of privately owned buses (later public) as the only mass transit within the city and throughout the region.^[313]

King County Metroprovides regular bus service in the city and county, and theSouth Lake Union Streetcarline and theFirst Hill Streetcarline.^[314]Seattle is one of the few cities in North America whose bus fleet includes electric trolleybuses.Sound Transitprovides an express bus service within the metropolitan area, twoSounder commuter raillines between the suburbs and downtown, and its1 Linelight railline betweenNorthgateand Angle Lake.^[315][316]Washington State Ferries, which manages the largest network of ferries in the United States and third-largest in the world, connects Seattle toBainbridgeandVashon Islandsin Puget Sound and to Bremerton andSouthworthon the Kitsap Peninsula.^[317]King Street Stationin Pioneer Square servesAmtrakintercity trains and Sounder commuter trains, and is located adjacent to theInternational District/Chinatown light rail station.^[318]

According to the 2007American Community Survey, 18.6% of Seattle residents used one of the three public transit systems that serve the city, giving it the highest transit ridership of all major cities without heavy or light rail prior to the completion of Sound Transit's 1 Line.^[319]The city has also been described byBert Sperlingas the fourth most walkable U.S. city and byWalk Scoreas the sixth most walkable of the fifty largest U.S. cities.^[320][321]

Seattle–Tacoma International Airport, locally known as Sea-Tac Airport and located just south in the neighboring city of SeaTac, is operated by the Port of Seattle and provides commercial air service to destinations throughout the world. Closer to downtown,Boeing Fieldis used for general aviation, cargo flights, and testing/delivery of Boeing airliners. A secondary passenger airport,Paine Field, opened in 2019 and is located inEverett, 25 miles (40 km) north of Seattle. It is predominantly used by Boeing and theirlarge assembly plantlocated nearby.^[322][323]

The main mode of transportation, however, is the street system, which is laid out in acardinal directionsgrid pattern, except in the central business district where early city leadersArthur DennyandCarson Boreninsisted on orienting the plats relative to the shoreline rather than to true North.^[324]Only two roads,Interstate 5andState Route 99(both limited-access highways) run uninterrupted through the city from north to south. From 1953 to 2019, State Route 99 ran through downtown Seattle on theAlaskan Way Viaduct, an elevated freeway on the waterfront. However, due to damage sustained during the 2001 Nisqually earthquake the viaduct was replaced by a tunnel. The 2-mile (3.2 km)Alaskan Way Viaduct replacement tunnelwas originally scheduled to be completed in December 2015 at a cost of US$4.25 billion. The world's largesttunnel boring machine, named "Bertha", was commissioned for the project, measuring 57 feet (17 m) in diameter. The tunnel's opening was delayed to February 2019 due to issues with the machine, which included a two-year halt in excavation.^[325]Seattle has the 8th-worst traffic congestion of all American cities, and is 10th among all North American cities according toInrix.^[326]

The city has started moving away from the automobile and toward mass transit. From 2004 to 2009, the annual number of unlinked public transportation trips increased by approximately 21%.^[327]In 2006, voters in King County passed the Transit Now proposition, which increased bus service hours on high ridership routes and paid for fivelimited-stopbus lines calledRapidRide.^[328]After rejecting aroads and transit measurein 2007, Seattle-area voters passed a transit only measure in 2008 to increase ST Express bus service, extend theLink light railsystem, and expand and improveSounder commuter railservice.^[329]

A light rail line (now the1 Line) from downtown heading south to Sea-Tac Airport began service in 2009, giving the city its first rapid transit line with intermediate stations within the city limits. An extension north to theUniversity of Washingtonopened on March 19, 2016,^[330]followed by theNorthgateextension in October 2021.^[331]Further extensions are planned to reachLynnwoodto the north,Federal Wayto the south, and Bellevue and Redmond to the east by 2026.^[332][333]Voters in the Puget Sound region approved an additional tax increase, part of theSound Transit 3package, in November 2016 to expand light rail to West Seattle and Ballard as well as Tacoma, Everett, and Issaquah.^[334]

Water and electric power are municipal services, provided bySeattle Public UtilitiesandSeattle City Light, respectively. Other utility companies serving Seattle includePuget Sound Energy(natural gas, electricity),Seattle Steam Company(steam),Waste Management, IncandRecologyCleanScapes (curbside recycling, composting, and solid waste removal),CenturyLink,Frontier Communications,Wave Broadband, andComcast(telecommunications and television).^{[citation needed]}About 90% of Seattle'selectricityis produced usinghydropower. Less than 2% of electricity is produced usingfossil fuels.^[335]

Seattle Public Utilities manages twotap watersupply systems on theCedar RiverandTolt River.^[336]These systems are fed by meltedsnowpackin the Cascade Mountains over the autumn and winter that fill reservoirs as they melt.^[337]The city'swastewatersystem includes 1,422 miles (2,288 km) of sewers that reachtreatment plantsthat discharge into Puget Sound; a 485-mile (781 km) network of separate tunnels forstormwaterserve other treatment facilities.^[338]Older areas of the city have acombined sewersystem that dumps stormwater and untreated wastewater into Puget Sound during overflow events.^[339]

In 2023, Seattle had 5000 violentcrimes, and from 2013-2018 there was a slow increase in crimes, however it dipped in 2020, before spiking up again in 2021 and 2022. As of 2023 the city has a violent crime rate of 683 per 100,000 people, and 5,174 property crimes per 100,000 people.^[340]

Crimes in Seattle

Year	Violent Crimes	Property Crimes	Total
2008	3,301	33,542	36,843
2009	3,672	35,476	39,148
2010	3,293	33,736	37,029
2011	3,357	32,503	35,860
2012	3,580	32,598	36,178
2013	3,564	37,168	40,732
2014	3,783	41,029	44,812
2015	3,831	38,191	42,022
2016	4,060	38,999	43,059
2017	4,395	38,625	43,020
2018	4,804	39,356	44,160
2019	4,701	37,792	42,493
2020	4,507	38,903	43,410
2021	5,428	42,600	48,028
2022	5,642	44,428	50,070
2023	5,333	40,387	45,720
2024 (Jan-Mar)	1,230	8,673	9,903

Seattle has the followingsister cities:^[341]

• List of people from Seattle
• List of television shows set in Seattle
• USSSeattle—two ships

• Jones, Nard(1972).Seattle. New York: Doubleday.ISBN978-0-385-01875-3.
• Morgan, Murray(1982) [1951].Skid Road: an Informal Portrait of Seattle(revised and updated, first illustrated ed.). Seattle and London: University of Washington Press.ISBN978-0-295-95846-0.
• Ochsner, Jeffrey Karl, ed. (1998) [1994].Shaping Seattle Architecture: A Historical Guide to the Architects. Seattle and London: University of Washington Press.ISBN978-0-295-97366-1.
• Sale, Roger(1976).Seattle: Past to Present. Seattle and London: University of Washington Press.ISBN978-0-295-95615-2.
• Speidel, William C.(1978).Doc Maynard: The Man Who Invented Seattle. Seattle: Nettle Creek Publishing Company. pp.196–197, 200.ISBN978-0-914890-02-7.
• Speidel, William C. (1967).Sons of the profits; or, There's no business like grow business: the Seattle story, 1851–1901. Seattle: Nettle Creek Publishing Company. pp.196–197, 200.ISBN978-0-914890-00-3.

• Klingle, Matthew (2007).Emerald City: An Environmental History of Seattle. New Haven: Yale University Press.ISBN978-0-300-11641-0.
• MacGibbon, Elma (1904)."Seattle, the city of destiny"(DJVU).Leaves of knowledge. Washington State Library's Classics in Washington History collection. Shaw & Borden.OCLC61326250.
• Pierce, J. Kingston (2003).Eccentric Seattle: Pillars and Pariahs Who Made the City Not Such a Boring Place After All. Pullman, Washington: Washington State University Press.ISBN978-0-87422-269-2.
• Sanders, Jeffrey Craig.Seattle and the Roots of Urban Sustainability: Inventing Ecotopia(University of Pittsburgh Press; 2010) 288 pages; the rise of environmental activism

• Official website
• Historylink.org, history of Seattle and Washington
• Seattle Photographs from the University of Washington Digital Collections
• Seattle Historic Photograph Collection from the Seattle Public LibraryArchivedOctober 23, 2013, at theWayback Machine
• Seattle Civil Rights and Labor History Project
• Seattle, a National Park ServiceDiscover Our Shared HeritageTravel Itinerary