Old Ballard Tour Preview

As all my dedicated readers will know, I'm kind of into walking tours.  In fact, I'm starting my own walking tour of Old Ballard (really!)

Part of why I've slowed down blogging is because I've been working on content for the tour.  Here' s a sneak preview:

Even though some old-timers might complain, there being a ton of bars on Ballard Ave is not a new thing. At one time Ballard boasted having the most drinking-establishments per linear foot of sidewalk west of the Mississippi. And it was no wonder since just down the street there were no less than 10 lumber and shingle mills employing hundreds of men.  Mill work was notoriously underpaid and dangerous, and it seems most workers took refuge in drinking.

Now if you’ve talked to a Ballard old-timer enough to get past complaining about the new bars, you might have heard that back when Ballard was its own city there was an ordinance that there be a church built for every bar to keep the perfect balance of vice and virtue in the city.  Some UW students looked into this a few years ago and couldn't find a trace of this ordinance, but when they looked deeper they found something even stranger. They counted the number of liquor licenses in the city and counted the churches on old maps and found that in 1904 there were exactly 10 bars and 10 churches, in 1905 there were 16 bars and 16 churches, and in 1907 there were 22 and 22.  It seems that even though there was no law, Ballardites just partied hard and prayed hard.  

They also found that when they counted the number of bars and churches within the old city limits, in 2001 when they were doing their research, there were exactly 17 of each.  By my count there are around 30 now, but with places opening and closing and the fine line between restaurant and bar, it’s hard to know exactly – I challenge you all to count!