The Aspirational Birth of Washington’s University

The first recorded proposal for a Washington state university can be found in the Olympia newspaper, the Columbian, in 1852. It states: “The people north of the Columbia (River) expect soon to have a territory of their own; (and they) want a university here.”

Governor Isaac I. Stevens picked up the theme and the first Territorial Legislature in 1854 responded by memorializing Congress for necessary land grants.  After much bickering and lobbying, Seattle was chosen as the site for a university in 1860; Olympia got the capitol, and Walla Walla got the penitentiary.

On November 4, 1861, the “University of the Territory of Washington” opened in a handsome, white-pillared building overlooking Elliott Bay.  Its curriculum offered “everything from ABC’s to the classics,” and was in effect a glorified high school.

That first university site was informally known as “Denny’s Knoll.”  Despite the fact that Arthur Denny preferred to have the territorial capitol locate in Seattle, he and Daniel Bagley, the university’s founding president, climbed the hillside above Denny’s claim. According to historian Neal Hines, who wrote the 1980 book, Denny’s Knoll, Denny surveyed the view from a small terrace on the hill and said to Bagley, “I’ll give the Knoll.”

The Legislature had authorized the obtaining of a 10-acre site.  Denny’s Knoll covered approximately 8-and-1/3 acres.  With the cooperation of adjoining landowners Mary Terry and Edward Lander, the 10 acres was acquired.

The Denny-Terry-Lander deeds stipulated that the 10-acre site downtown on University Street was to be dedicated forever to educational purposes.  That stipulation was met. Today, the University tract in downtown Seattle, despite 1890s talk about selling the property, has been a lucrative investment for the University of Washington.

Returning to the story: Daniel Bagley, a Pennsylvanian and Methodist minister, came to Seattle in 1860 via Illinois and Oregon. His zeal sped the preparation of Denny’s Knoll and construction of the first University building. When the University opened its doors in November 1861, two other buildings stood nearby: a simple “President’s House,” (the Bagleys’ home), and a dormitory for male students.

Early records give an interesting picture of the materials and labor used in early construction. Stone came from Port Orchard, fir lumber from Port Madison and Port Gamble, pine from Seabeck on Hood Canal, brick from Whatcom near Bellingham, and hardware from Victoria, B.C.

Upon inspecting the site in December 1861, members of the Territorial Legislature were hailed by Seattleites amidst a brass band, food, and drink. Speeches filled the air, and  unsurprisingly, a favorable report was carried back to Olympia.

The great Seattle Fire of 1889 raged through the waterfront and beyond, sparing the Territorial University high on Denny’s Knoll. That same year, Washington was granted statehood.

These changes, and plans of the Legislature to expand the University, resulted in the formation of a Board of University Commissioners.  The five-member Board, which included Governor Elisha P. Ferry, was authorized to select a new tract “not exceeding 160 acres.”  The result was acquisition of the present UW campus at Montlake and construction of handsome Denny Hall.