The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1895-03-08
HIS FIFTEEN PUZZLE.
Mr.. Thomson Has Found 1t i'm
Remaining Streets.
SOME HAVE NUMEROUS NAMES.


II accordance ~ssh resolution passed
by the city council some time ago Cisy
Engineer Thomson II getting ready 20
compile a number OF ordinances ohstt@r-
attng so far as rsosstbse duplicate street
names This piece OF work Is prooahiy
one Of the raosf important as @sli as the
most dsffiruIf that has eyer been psarssi
IN the hands OF the city engineer. AR.
Thomson spends Eis evenings In sfndy-
fnF Yaaps and when he goes To sleep ne
dreams aSout them. re Is s2d that no
city on the Pacific coast has ss5ch tan
xied -asp system % street names as seat-
tie and Mr.. Thomson said yrsfer1sy
that. while he was devcffng snfch nrne
10 the particular work assigned hiH ~
the council he had no idea "a TO when
he would be able 20 entirely srraighfen
out tIse faagie II IT. NT. Tnousoas
intenfion 30 properly name the streets
tH one portion Of tIle city and then AK
the council 10 pass an ordinance confirm
Ing what he mad done Then ne VIII de-
vote his time 10 another parf OF the city
and viii keep the work Gp until the city
hrs az least an intelligent system of
street names. lie Is open to receive ssig-
sostions fsoni residents on streets which
have duplicate names.
II have caused 20 be prepared list
OF duplicate street names. said Dir.
Thomson. "ani the following little sx-
tract fran II viii give sou on flea Of
the present system We have three
Adam streets. two Alders. three Ashes.
tse Batteries. three Bays. two Beacons.
two BlsInarckE. tNn Eiaines. Two Eoyi-
st0ns. two Broa1w&ys. three CALIFORNIA;.
two Canals, two Cascades. two Cases,
FIVE Cedars Two Charles. two Chesters.
three Ehastnuts. two Choates. three
ciays, three coinmbias. four crswfores,
fufs. two Divisions. four Easts. two Dc-
wamlshcs, two Eiixabeshg. four Eliiotts,
four EgelIds threa E.verctts. two Ew-
iaga. three Oaks, TWO Phelps. six sizihs.
ard four Seconds
4 find that the labor % eance'ling du-
plieatea il really small portion of my
work ! have discovered that In many
places the same street within length of
one mile viii have. quite number of
different names, For instance Warren
street in North Seattle rejo!ces In the
following names First IL is known as
Warren street. second az Jacobs avenue.
third as Nya street. fourth as Ons9m
street, fifth az Second street. and sixth
az Woodland avenue. There IL a plat
north OF all this. but I forget the name
they give that. Warren streets nearest
neighhor. Poplar street, also has It's
share of names. First II IL called Poplar
street, second Montgomery avenue. third
kaarney street, fourth George street,
fifth Orange street sixth Campus street.
seventh Sunset place. and eighth Anrud
street
PIKE street as II goes eastward be-
comes Choate street. and getting tired
OF Choate takes the name OF Blakeley
street; then II becomes Choate street
again. 4 little farther on Ii is known
rs Johnson avenue. and al last IL plunges
into Lake Washington under the name OF
Michigan street. The street which
fs known az Squire avenue Is also
known by these names: Wiike
street. Twenty-fhird street Twenty-sec-
then Twcnty-second street again, Clara
street. Talbot avenue. Whitney avenue
Park Side and g" street
This awful tangie OF names appears
10 be due to combination OF circum-
stances. You know there was time In
this Western city when 81 man could so
to bed on a lot at night and wake up
In the morning only 10 find that he was
in the midst OF a fiourishing neighbor-
hood. Owners of real estate would lay
out plat. give each of the hah dozen
streets or more I'm IL name and then
so on and have II fled Another man
who owned the plat adjoining the other
fellows wouldn't like the names adopted
by hts neigslbor and when he had his
plat filed II contained a lot OF new
names Later somebody would move into
the peighborhood and buy property.
Then their friends would buy alongside
- them. They would all talk the matter
over and conclude that the name OF the
street on which they lived was too long.
or too short. CIR wasn't fashionable
enough. They would give II new name
and rival neighhor little farther
down the street who didn't ike the COM
View or Lexington avenue. or Park Side
There were other people who would
come into possession OF n plat of land
and they would have IA number OF chill
dren. In order that their names would
never bs erasSe' from the memory Of man
the streets in the plat would be named
after them
Mr.. Thomson has received many sug-
gcstsonx from the owners Of property as
20 what name they would like To have
ksssn their street. Highland avenue
seems 20 he a very popular name. es-
reeiaily among the ladies, out on Queen
Anne hlsi there is a street which has for
Years had tho common namo Of bradley
street. The ladies along the stree; didn't
like that name; IL didn't iook we'll OH
their visiting cards, They urged Mr..
Thomson 40 change the name TO High
land avenue Mr. Thomson though, that
VAS nice name too and agreed 10 favor
the ladies'. Now he has made enemies Of
All the ladies residing on IensS street In
tlsg Rsaton addition. because they grew
tired az thr common name of
Jones ''le these many moons" and
have asked MIR Thomson TO name
their street Highland avenue. They
want that nanae and 40 ether. Council
SAYS. "Mr Thomson. do away with dn-
pllcate names " Mr.. Thomson conldn't
very we'll go contrary 10 what the coun-
eif directs and be can't so back on his
promise To thu ladics who live ou Bradley
street. consequently he must make enc
iales ~ ghc Jones street ladies.
These little tnisforsunes are hound to
GONE 20 a man in public Iife,
Senator Seutrc insists that ~ the name
Of his street. Squire avenue. Is changed.
4, must Do known as Twenty second
street.