Collection Search

SMA photographs date from the 1880s to the present and include public works and infrastructure, events, places (including neighborhoods, parks, and facilities), and employees and elected officials. A large number of photographs are from the Engineering Department, Seattle City Light, and the Department of Parks and Recreation. Images are continually added to the database and include born-digital photos as well as scanned images from negatives, prints, and slides. Note that a large volume of photographs not yet digitized are described in Finding Aids.

Photographs are public record (unless otherwise indicated) and do not require permission for use. Please cite photographs published online or in print "Courtesy Seattle Municipal Archives" and include the identifying number of the image(s). When an item does not have a link to download a high resolution file, a scan can be created for $8. (See Rule 2017-01.) Please contact the Archives to make a request.

SMA’s moving image collection consists of motion picture film, video, and digital video, and includes both finished products and outtakes. The majority of content dates from the 1940s forward and was created by Seattle Channel, Seattle City Light, and the Engineering Department, with additional content from the Department of Parks and Recreation and the Seattle Fire Department as well as other agencies. Digital content of selected items is also available on YouTube and Internet Archive. Content created by the City of Seattle is a public record and available for use at no charge. Please cite content used as "Courtesy Seattle Municipal Archives" and cite the item number. When there is no digital content associated with an item, please contact the Archives for digitization cost information.

The majority of audio recordings in the Seattle Municipal Archives are of full City Council meetings and City Council committee meetings, dating from 1955 to the present, although there are very few recordings before 1969. Associated digital audio is available online. If you do not see a meeting you are looking for, please contact the Archives. Digitization of reel-to-reel analog tapes is in progress so not all meetings are currently available digitally. Audio from the World Trade Organization (WTO) Accountability Committee is included as well as audio from a small number of other record series. Audio content created by the City of Seattle is available for use at no charge. Please cite audio content with the credit “Courtesy Seattle Municipal Archives” and include the item number.

SMA’s map collection contains maps and atlases showing the Seattle area from the late 1800s to the present day. Cedar River Watershed maps (1891-1970) and zoning maps for the years 1923, 1947, 1961, and 1973 are significant parts of the collection. Maps from a variety of departments are included, such as Department of Community Development neighborhood study maps for the Central Area from the late 1950s and early 1960s, and Engineering maps from a wide range of time periods and on a variety of topics. Please note the SPU Engineering Records Vault contains aerial photography, engineering quarter section maps, and sewerage and drainage topography maps.

While the majority of SMA’s textual records are not digitized, the Digital Collections site does include small numbers of scanned documents and folders. A few select series - General Files, 1999 World Trade Organization Accountability Review Committee Documents, Olmsted Brothers Correspondence from the Don Sherwood Parks History Collection and Proceedings of the Seattle City Council (1881-1901) – have been scanned in full and are searchable on the site, some with full-text search.

A small number of architectural drawings are cataloged, and of those, a few have associated digital objects. The largest number of drawings were created by the Department of Construction and Inspections, Seattle City Light, and the Engineering Department. Note that drawings without digital objects are described in Finding Aids. Permit records and plans are located at the Department of Construction and Inspections Public Resource Center, although only plans from 1974 forward are available for residential buildings.

The Seattle Municipal Archives City Publications Collection is a reference collection of documents published by City agencies, reports by consultants hired by the City, and publications of joint projects supported by Seattle City government. A small portion of the documents in this collection are available online in Digital Collections; all items may be reviewed in the Municipal Archives Research Room on Floor 3 of City Hall. Seattle Public Library and the University of Washington also have extensive collections of City government publications.

SMA's electronic records full-text search interface includes processed born-digital textual records, the bulk of which are electronic Word documents, PDFs, spreadsheets and PowerPoint presentations including subject files, correspondence, reports, and memos. Records date mostly from 2005 onward, with a few going back to the mid 1990s. This search tool is available for use on site only in SMA's research room.

Electronic Records include selected series from councilmembers Tim Burgess, Sally Clark, Jim Compton, Richard Conlin, David Della, Jan Drago, Jean Godden, Kirsten Harris-Talley, Nick Licata, Richard McIver, Judy Nicastro, John Okamoto, Margaret Pageler, Tom Rasmussen, Peter Steinbrueck, Heidi Willis, as well as Mayor Greg Nickels and Mayor Paul Schell. Contact SMA to make an appointment. See our Digital Archives page for information on accessing all digital collections.

SMA provides access to processed email collections through ePADD, software specifically designed for searching and viewing historical email archives. Series available include electronic correspondence for councilmembers Jon Okamoto, Kristen Harris-Talley, and Tim Burgess as well as Mayors Mike McGinn and Greg Nickels. These collections are available for use on site only in SMA's research room. Contact SMA to make an appointment to view these records. See our Digital Archives page for information on accessing all digital collections.

City of Seattle websites have been harvested quarterly since 2012 and are publicly available through Archive-It. From the City's main Archive-It page, you can search for specific departments, topics, people, programs, or other keywords. Search results will display all dates for which captures are available. With the exception of a select number of sites that were no longer available for capture as of 2020, social media sites are available through ArchiveSocial. See our Digital Archives page for information on accessing all digital collections.

ArchiveSocial captures official City social media accounts (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and others), as well as some older legacy accounts. Captures include all posts and comments back to the beginning of the account. ArchiveSocial is publicly accessible and fully searchable. A select number of sites that were no longer available for capture as of 2020 may be found through Archive-It. See our Digital Archives page for information on accessing all digital collections.