Columbia Hall in 1902

The Columbia Hall was built in 1869 on Fourth Avenue near the center of downtown Olympia (the current site of the 4^th Ave Tav). It served a myriad of functions: fire station on the ground floor, city offices above, entertainment hall (it hosted the state’s first inaugural ball in 1889), police headquarters, courthouse, and theater.

1902, Williams Romans photograph, courtesy Washington State Historical Society, catalog 1943.42.1400

Text © Deborah Ross and The Olympian

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