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The Origins of Pike Place Market’s Famous Pig
How did a pig become the symbol of a market best known for fish?
This article originally appeared in the July 2016 issue of Seattle magazine.
When you think of Pike Place Market, its fishmongers may come to mind—with their entertaining fish tossing, they tend to attract a lot of attention.
A few feet away, however, is something a little less flashy and a little more sentimental: Rachel the Piggy Bank.
Although plenty of Seattleites and tourists take a moment to ham it up for a photo with the 550-pound bronze pig, they may not realize they’re in the presence of a local hero. In 1986, the nonprofit Pike Place Market Foundation decided a piggy bank was just what was needed to help raise funds to support housing and services for low-income neighbors. The foundation hired Whidbey Island sculptor Georgia Gerber to create the bronze beauty, christened “Rachel” in honor of the 750-pound pig who won first place at the 1985 Island County Fair.
The market’s unofficial mascot has been bringing home the bacon ever since, collecting an average of $10,000 per year to support the community.
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Rearview Mirror: Seahawks Off the Field, Seattle on the Board, and Smoked Oysters
Things I did, saw, ate, learned, or read in the past week (or so).
HOOKED ON KNOCKS Admittedly, I am late to this one. The Seahawks’ first season of Hard Knocks, the HBO series that follows NFL teams through training camp, premiered in August, but until last week, I had never heard of it. To be honest, my football knowledge starts with knowing what a touchdown is and doesn’t…
Studio Sessions: Colleen Louise Barry
Multi-hyphenate artist Colleen Louise Barry on discipline, the arts ecosystem in Seattle, and saving abandoned trampoline from the side of the road.
It’s hard not to smile around artist and writer Colleen Louise Barry. Bubbly and bright, she radiates optimism and cheer that would put most stereotypical Seattleites on edge. I think she is an absolute delight. Originally from Albany, Barry received her MFA from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, before moving to Seattle in 2016. Once here,…
Seasonal Shift: The September/October Issue Arrives
September’s here, and in the Northwest that means a lot of things: back to school for the kiddos, that beautifully golden autumn light that comes with the waning summer, and, perhaps most importantly, the release of the September/October issue of Seattle magazine. Focused on fall arts and travel, it’s full of inspiring places to go,…
Seattle Rock Band Stereo Embers Rekindles for One Night
After four years apart, the quartet reunites for a hometown show.
Bands break up, dissolve, or otherwise drift apart all the time, for all sorts of reasons. No matter what the impetus for the split, though, fans will naturally conjure images of scorched-earth implosions like Fleetwood Mac or Oasis—and optimists will note that even those two bands eventually reunited. In the case of Stereo Embers, their…