Seattle: 1900-1920 -From Boomtown, Through Urban Turbulence ...

130 Part FourPart FourWar Time: Preparedness to BelligerencyBy 1917 shipyards were running at capacity and the harbor’s ability to handle all theshipping was stretched. All but three shipyards recognized the unions: Seattle Constructionand Dry Dock Company, Ames Shipbuilding Company, and Duthie Shipyards. The relativelyhigh wages drew workers from other occupations, which caused shortages elsewhere. Twothousand men were hired by the Seattle Construction and Dry Dock Company in March.Ames’s yard landed a contract with Cunard of Great Britain for nine ships; his workforceexpanded from 500 men to 3,000. The day that the United States declared war, 6 April1917, Skinner and Eddy Shipyards executed one of the largest real estate deals in the city’shistory, purchasing fifteen acres on the waterfront for $1.5 million. In June it bought theadjacent Centennial Flour Mill property for $600,000. Skinner and Eddy would soon buySeattle Construction and Dry Dock. The Lake Washington Ship Canal was dedicated on 4July to the cheering of one hundred thousand spectators.Opening day of the LakeWashington Ship Canal,July 4, 1917.Top: A mid-way inauguralprocession scene looksnorth across the canaland into Fremont.Bottom: The SS Rooseveltenters MontlakeCut (before the bridge)to soon bring to an endthe day’s procession ofboats through the lengthof the new canal and intoLake Washington.