Karl arrived in Seattle six months after the great fire of June 1889. Although there was an immediate commitment to rebuild the city after the destruction, it was far from being the vibrant city it is today.

Much of what we associate Seattle with arrived after the World Fair in 1962. I’ve written about these world fairs before, which propelled Chicago’s architecture in 1893. The impetus for the Eiffel Tower and the speed by which it was constructed was in preparation for Paris hosting the World Fair of 1899. These world fairs, expositions, or great exhibitions were the brainchild of Queen Victoria’s husband, Albert. The concept was to focus on trade, advancements in architecture, science and technology, and present any new inventions. In 1901, the international exhibition took place in Glasgow, Scotland.

Fast forward to 1962, when City Councilman Al Rochester proposed hosting a World’s Fair in Seattle, dubbed the 'Century 21 Exposition.' The theme revolved around modern science, space exploration, and the future. A 28-acre site near downtown Seattle was selected as the venue.

Several American business giants, including Ford, General Motors, IBM, Boeing, and Bell Telephone, seized the chance to gain exposure among millions of visitors by sponsoring exhibits in the 'World of Commerce and Industry.' Bell, for instance, introduced futuristic ideas like touch-tone dialling, call waiting, and call forwarding—features that would become commonplace a decade later. A third-grader interviewed by The Seattle Times even predicted we’d carry telephones in our pockets one day! The 'House of the Future' also displayed a home computer capable of ordering groceries. There’s a fun 15-minute movie about the future as imagined in 1962—worth a watch.

True to the futuristic theme, Seattle’s Monorail was built to ferry visitors from downtown to the fairgrounds. The undeniable showpiece was the Space Needle—a 605-foot tower with a revolving restaurant, built for $6.5 million.

The fair opened on April 21, 1962, with a grand ceremony featuring 538 ringing bells, 2,000 balloons, and a dramatic flyover by 10 Air Force F-102 jets. For the next six months, visitors enjoyed a range of exhibits and live entertainment, from orchestras and art displays to comedians and dance troupes. Elvis Presley even arrived to film It Happened at the World’s Fair. Celebrities like Walt Disney, Sammy Davis Jr., Lawrence Welk, John Wayne, Vice President Lyndon Johnson, George Burns, Lassie, and Prince Philip of Great Britain were attendees. By the time the fair closed on October 21, nearly 10 million visitors had come through—an undeniable success.

And while we’re not commuting to work in personal "gyrocopters" just yet, Seattle is now one of the top five tech cities in the United States and ranks tenth globally. The Space Needle remains Seattle’s defining symbol, but with tech giants like Microsoft and Amazon headquartered here, perhaps that dream of gyrocopter commutes isn’t so far off after all.

Enjoy the photos of downtown Seattle and the Space Needle: