Looking Back’s theme for 2025 features Thurston County area photographers, artists, and their subjects. William B. Conser was a photographer for the Olympian who captured many events and people, including an historic series that documented the destruction caused by the 1949 earthquake. Shown here is the elaborate scaffolding and tramway erected to repair the lantern atop the Legislative Building. Photograph selected and captioned by Deborah Ross on behalf of the Olympia Historical Society and Bigelow House Museum, https://olympiahistory.org.
Conser photograph, about 1950, courtesy The Olympian