Walking along the streets in Seattle’s historic Pioneer Square, I noticed what appeared to be purple glass block windows under my feet.  That was certainly a curiosity.  But, it wasn’t long before I discovered that, indeed it was glass and it had a very specific purpose.  I learned about that, and some of Seattle’s other “deep” secrets, when I took the Underground Tour. 
The tour begins inside Doc Maynard’s Public House, a restored 1890s saloon, with a briefing about what was going to take place and a little of Seattle’s history.

Pioneer Square was the original footprint of the city of Seattle, built on the tide flats of Elliott Bay.  The advantage of the location was the ease of loading the ships hauling logs south to San Francisco.  After unloading, the ships needed ballast for their return trip north to Seattle, so the ships were loaded with dirt and gravel from San Francisco and dumped into Elliott Bay, eventually creating additional land to expand the city of Seattle.  Being built on tide flats (and landfill) made the city prone to flooding – especially during high tide. 

In addition, high tide created an unwelcomed occurrence after the introduction of indoor plumbing.  It seemed that during high tide, the pressure placed on the sewer system caused the toilets to become indoor geysers.  As explained by our guide, you didn’t want to be sitting during high tide. Seattle’s streets also were notoriously bad. Local legend has it that a 10-year-old boy once drowned in a giant chuckhole. 

This changed in 1889 when the Great Seattle Fire destroyed nearly 30 blocks of downtown.  Instead of being devastated by the destruction, in true pioneer spirit the city of Seattle embraced the instant urban renewal and within three weeks of the fire passed an ordinance which eventually led to the creation of The Underground.  The ordinance not only required new buildings be built from stone and brick, but also that existing city streets within a 44-block area near the waterfront would be raised between 8 and 35 feet to prevent flooding.

After the fire, building owners quickly rebuilt, ignoring the fact that their new first floor windows and doorways would eventually become basements.  As retaining walls were built to raise the street level, sidewalks were installed to bridge the gap between the new street and the second stories of new buildings becoming the ceilings of the now-underground passageways.   In the late 1800s, pedestrians used the underground corridors to enter establishments, but eventually the spaces below the new street surface became storage areas or were otherwise closed off and finally they were condemned. More than 60 years later, interest in urban renewal, historic preservation and the commitment of local Seattle citizen Bill Speidel led to the Underground opening for tours in 1965.   

Our tour began as we followed our guide into the streets of Pioneer Square.  Before we walked downstairs to our subterranean tour, our guide pointed out the glass block that I noticed earlier.  He explained once sidewalks were built, glass made with manganese was installed to allow light to enter into the underground passages.  The manganese over time turned purple. He then unlocked a door and we went underground. 

The tour itself provided glimpses of old Seattle and lasted just about an hour.  As we walked up and down the stairways, our guide provided many interesting anecdotes about the somewhat seedy history of a town originally built for logging.  I walked past a teller’s cage, (which is reportedly haunted by the ghost of the teller), some of the original doorways to shops that still exist above ground, unique architecture and remnants from old movie and TV sets.  The Underground has been featured in many movies and TV shows, including Frasier and the TV movie, “The Night Strangler.”

Being underground put into perspective what it was like for merchants and citizens of the city of Seattle during its wild and rambunctious beginnings.  But, what truly made the tour worthwhile, was the historical stories that the entertaining and informative guide provided.   For more information on this AAA Gem attraction visit http://www.undergroundtour.com/. 

The AAA GEM® Designation - While AAA does not rate attractions, we do evaluate them for AAA Approval. The inspectors that perform the evaluations may recommend a GEM designation for attractions of exceptional interest that greatly exceed requirements. A AAA GEM® attraction offers a Great Experience for Members. See AAA GEM attraction information in AAA TourBook guides or view a list of AAA GEM attractions by state.