III 

112TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 431 

Celebrating the 50th anniversary of the 1962 Seattle World’s Fair. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 19, 2012 

Ms. CANTWELL submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 

Committee on the Judiciary 

RESOLUTION 

Celebrating the 50th anniversary of the 1962 Seattle World’s 

Fair. 

Whereas, on April 21, 2012, the City of Seattle will celebrate 

the 50th anniversary of the 1962 Seattle World’s Fair 

(referred to in this preamble as the ‘‘Seattle World’s 

Fair’’), which showcased the optimism, energy, and innovative spirit of Seattle; 

Whereas more than 9,000,000 people visited the Seattle 

World’s Fair, a number that represents roughly 3 times 

the total population of the State of Washington at the 

time; 

Whereas the Seattle World’s Fair brought together the most 

talented architects of the Pacific Northwest to create a 

civic legacy and the treasured Seattle Center public 

space, which includes the Space Needle, the Seattle CenVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:35 Apr 20, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR431.IS SR431

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•SRES 431 IS 

ter Armory, the Pacific Science Center, the Coliseum 

(now known as ‘‘Key Arena’’), Memorial Stadium, the 

International Fountain, and the Opera House; 

Whereas the Seattle World’s Fair facilitated the construction 

of key transportation infrastructure, including the SR 

520 floating bridge, the portion of Interstate 5 that traverses downtown Seattle, and the Monorail; 

Whereas, to officially open the Seattle World’s Fair, President John F. Kennedy used the same historic telegraphic 

key that had been used to open the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific 

Exposition in Seattle 53 years earlier; 

Whereas the attendance of music icon Elvis Presley in Seattle 

during the filming of the movie ‘‘It Happened at the 

World’s Fair’’ further elevated the City of Seattle as an 

international city for the arts; 

Whereas the theme of the Seattle World’s Fair, ‘‘science’’, 

foreshadowed regional innovations in technology and advanced manufacturing that now support world leading 

companies and tens of thousands of high-paying jobs; 

Whereas some of the earliest satellite transmissions of telephone calls and television broadcasts occurred at the Seattle World’s Fair, and the Seattle area is now home to 

global information and communications technology companies; and 

Whereas the Seattle World’s Fair celebrated aviation and the 

new Space Age, and the aerospace industry in the Seattle 

area now employs 82,000 people (including 7,000 engineers), generates a combined annual revenue of 

$32,000,000,000, and includes a cluster of 650 companies: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 


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•SRES 431 IS 

1 (1) celebrates the 50th anniversary of the 1962 

2 Seattle World’s Fair; 

3 (2) commends the City of Seattle for its innova4 tion, growth, and entrepreneurial spirit during the 

5 past 50 years; 

6 (3) supports the ‘‘Next Fifty’’ initiative to de7 velop a blueprint for success in Seattle for the next 

8 half-century; and 

9 (4) requests that the Secretary of the Senate 

10 transmit an enrolled copy of this resolution to the 

11 City of Seattle for appropriate display. 

Æ 


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