16 Feb Unpublished Bill Speidel Stories to be Released

On February 11, 2012, the day that would be Bill Speidel’s 100th birthday, a fittingly unique tribute commemorated Speidel, famed historian, preservationist and founder of the Underground Tour, who died in 1988.

Bill Speidel Enterprises Inc. will release a series of audio recordings from the Speidel family archives.

In the recordings, Bill Speidel recounts tales of life as he saw it in Seattle, circa 1920 to 1970, told in his inimitable style, with humor and affection, and a predilection for ruffling the feathers of the powers-that-be.

Included in the series is a rare interview with Joshua Greene, Seattle pioneer, banker and one of a handful of businessmen who operated the “Mosquito Fleet,” steamers that transported people throughout Puget Sound before the establishment of the Washington State Ferries.

This is the first time any of these recordings have been made public. They are available through the Underground Tour’s YouTube channel and on the company’s Facebook page.

Bill Speidel was known to many as author of the popular Seattle history book, “Sons of the Profits.” He was also a leader in the 1960s movement to preserve Pioneer Square, which became one of the nation’s earliest designated historic districts.

A byproduct of his activism is the now-famous Underground Tour, exploring the original sidewalks and storefronts of Seattle that were covered over when the city rebuilt itself after the “Great Seattle Fire” of 1889. Forty-seven years after Speidel started the tour in 1965, it remains one of the city’s most popular attractions.