FELIKS BANEL -- NORTHWEST HISTORIAN HEARD ON SEATTLE'S MORNING NEWS

MyNorthwest History

Image: Bill Wixey was, is and always will be a Rose Hill Royal. And look at that hair! (Photo: 1981...
Feliks Banel

All Over The Map: KIRO Newsradio’s junior high/middle school fight song challenge

We're on a mission to collect recordings of as many Puget Sound area junior high school fight songs as possible to celebrate our alma maters.
5 days ago
Image: Young Fresh Fellows' co-founder Scott McCaughey (left) and drummer John Perrin stand in the ...
Feliks Banel

Young Fresh Fellows celebrate 40 years since ‘Fabulous’ vinyl debut

The Young Fresh Fellows are marking the 40th anniversary, and new remix reissue, of their album "Fabulous Sounds of the Pacific Northwest."
6 days ago
The Ryan House in Sumner was built in the 1870s and 1880s before Washington became a state, and is ...
Feliks Banel

Sumner City Council vote on whether to save the Ryan House postponed

The Sumner City Council vote on a resolution that may determine the fate of a historic structure has been postponed.
8 days ago
Tech City Bowl...
Feliks Banel

Final frame was Saturday night for Kirkland’s Tech City Bowl – aka Totem Bowl

After more than six decades in business on the Eastside, Tech City Bowl on Rose Hill will shut down permanently later this year.
10 days ago
Image: On May 17, 1980, Carolyn Driedger examines a piece of measuring equipment at Coldwater2, the...
Feliks Banel

‘We got a real gut punch from it:’ Scientist recalls deadly Mount St. Helens eruption

This weekend is the 44th anniversary of the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens, a major event for those who remember it or know the history.
11 days ago
Image:Matt McCauley, vice president of Kirkland Heritage Society, will lead the annual history tour...
Feliks Banel

Kirkland’s rich history comes to life in the annual cemetery tour

The Eastside city's origin story will come up a lot during this year's annual history tour of Kirkland Cemetery.
11 days ago
Photo: Parkland residents gathered on the steps of the 1908 Parkland School Friday morning to celeb...
Feliks Banel

Exclusive: Grassroots preservation campaign saves Parkland School

Members of the Parkland Community Association announced Friday that the group has officially assumed ownership of historic Parkland School.
18 days ago
Image: Captain George Vancouver is buried in a churchyard in Petersham Village, west of London....
Feliks Banel

Visiting Captain Vancouver’s grave in a tiny village near London

Captain George Vancouver will be commemorated as he is every year at the churchyard near London where he was buried more than 225 years ago.
20 days ago
Photo: The "little red barn" - aka "the mystery cottage" at Fisk Family Park in Kirkland....
Feliks Banel

History only deepens community love for Kirkland’s ‘mystery cottage’

A former neighbor shared some additional history and backstory of the "mystery cottage" in Kirkland's newest public park.
25 days ago
tacoma holy rosary church...
Feliks Banel

Vatican decides in favor of Tacoma’s Holy Rosary Church

The Vatican has reportedly found in favor of a community group working to save the Tacoma Holy Rosary Catholic Church from the wrecking ball.
28 days ago
The Seattle Hotel was damaged by the April 13, 1949 earthquake; the steeply tilted parking garage w...
Feliks Banel

Darth Vader, Ban Roll-On, Sinking Ship and other Seattle building nicknames

They rarely make it onto maps or on the fancy signage out front, but Seattle has its fair share of buildings with well-known nicknames.
1 month ago
Lakes of Washington is a nearly forgotten two-volume set of books first published by the State of W...
Feliks Banel

Going deep on forgotten ‘Lakes of Washington’ books

With trout season opening on Washington’s lowland lakes this Saturday, April 27, the timing was perfect to go fishing around on the history bookshelf to share a prized catch – a forgotten encyclopedia of Washington lakes first published more than 60 years ago. “Lakes of Washington” is a two-volume set of books published by the […]
1 month ago
eastside rail sound transit...
Feliks Banel

Echoes of Eastside rail history with Sound Transit preparing to get underway

As Sound Transit inaugurates commuter trains between Bellevue and Redmond, when was the last time passenger rail service was offered on the Eastside?
1 month ago
"Street Trees of Seattle" author Taha Ebrahimi (RIGHT) bumped into Alec Duxbury, her high school En...
Feliks Banel

Layers of history revealed by ‘Street Trees of Seattle’

This new book is “Street Trees of Seattle: An Illustrated Walking Guide” by writer and artist Taha Ebrahimi.
1 month ago
Image: This is a vintage magazine ad for the type of Cold War air raid siren which stood in a Seatt...
Feliks Banel

Update: Cold War air raid siren remains in private hands

A vintage magazine ad for the type of Cold War air-raid siren which stood in a Seattle park for more than 70 years, and which now belongs to Binford Metals in Kent. (Public domain)
2 months ago
Brakeman Bill...
Feliks Banel

Local TV legend “Brakeman Bill” McLain passes away at age 96

Brakeman Bill McLain, longtime beloved kids' TV show host, has passed away, according to a message from his family posted on social media.
2 months ago
Northacres Park siren...
Feliks Banel

City of Seattle sends Cold War artifact to the dump

A Cold War tower and siren disappeared from its perch in a park in North Seattle last month. People want to know where they went.
2 months ago
Image: "Seattle's Legendary Scarecrow Video," which has been nominated for an Emmy in 2024, is a sh...
KIRO Newsradio staff

Feliks Banel’s ‘Scarecrow Video’ documentary nominated for Emmy Award

The academy's northwest chapter revealed its 2023 Emmy nominations and Feliks Banel is on the list for "Seattle's Legendary Scarecrow Video."
2 months ago
The Seattle Pilots played a single season of Major League Baseball in 1969 before going bankrupt an...
Feliks Banel

History means it’s Seattle vs. Seattle this weekend in Milwaukee

Everybody knows that the Milwaukee Brewers team is really the Seattle Pilots in disguise.
2 months ago
Image: Neighbors in the Pierce County community of Parkland are leading a grassroots effort to pres...
Feliks Banel

Parkland School catalyzes neighbors to support South Sound community

Neighbors in Parkland, south of Tacoma, have been working for two years to save the historic Parkland School.
2 months ago
Space Needle April Fool's Day...
Feliks Banel

When ‘Almost Live!’ knocked down the Space Needle for April Fool’s Day

A look back at the story of the April Fool’s 1989 Space Needle collapse hoax, as told in “Almost Live!” host John Keister’s own words.
2 months ago
boeing not going...
Feliks Banel

Boeing slogan – if it’s not history, it’s a mystery

It’s also a slogan that’s been twisted around lately to express a meaning which is the opposite of what its original iteration had proudly proclaimed.
2 months ago
Image: Everett Parks & Facilities is seeking permission from the Everett Historical Commission to d...
Feliks Banel

Historical commission hits pause on razing Everett’s Clark Park gazebo

At a meeting, the Everett Historical Commission once again weighed a request from the city for permission to demolish a historic gazebo.
2 months ago
Facebook Seattle Vintage...
Feliks Banel

Local history buffs beat hackers and regain control of Seattle Vintage

The popular local history Facebook group Seattle Vintage was hacked and taken over by malicious actors two weeks ago.
2 months ago