volume one IN THE D U D L E Y C L A R K - Ohio Vine Tours

ackfired and Georgetown became even more popular for
revelers, gamblers, fornicators and drunks.
Nothing good, however, lasts forever. Soon enough, the
stalwart, straight-laced citizenry of Georgetown—wearied of
vice, violence and public micturation—succeeded in annexing
their little community to the glowering one to the north so that,
in 1910, Georgetown—formerly the “Cesspool of Seattle”—
became just another Seattle neighborhood.
The beginning of the century before this was a time of great
public works. With an arrogance attributable only to Man, rivers
were being re-routed to benefit commerce, and mountains were
being carved to resemble men. Even the lazy, twisty Duwamish
was tamed in a way Xerxes would have found appealing—
straightened and deepened and renamed a Canal.
Parts of Georgetown that had once been riverine now found
themselves half-a-mile or more from water. Appropriately
enough, from the resulting foul-smelling mud flats, industry
arose. For now the new, improved Duwamish Canal could
accommodate ocean-going vessels and product-laden barges.
Then came Boeing, then came WWII, then came housing
projects, then came poverty.
Industrial development and warehouses engulfed Georgetown.
In ’48 the library closed. In ’52 the movie theater was shuttered.
In ’62 the I-5 opened, ending any reason to pass along SR-99
through Georgetown, effectively closing most businesses there.
The Georgetown schoolhouse, opened in 1898, closed in 1970.
By 1998 there were only 1,500 residents remaining in
Georgetown, over a quarter of which lived below poverty level.
The once famous Hat ‘n’ Boots gas station closed after the I-5
opened, and years later became a cheap, weathered backdrop for
indie motion pictures.
Thus Georgetown in the Twenty-first Century—a down-atheels
home for spray-paint artists, drug dealers, tattoo parlors,
biker bars, and homeless strays like Roy.
Located about 4 miles south of downtown Seattle, Georgetown is a
real place and is easily accessible. From I-5 take either the Corson Ave/
ROY ROGERS IN THE 21ST CENTURY