The Smith Tower opened in Seattle July 4 in 1914 to fanfare and thousands of people eager to ride the ornate Otis elevator (still in use today) up to the 35th-floor Observatory for a breathtaking view atop Seattle’s first skyscraper. It was the tallest building west of the Mississippi until 1931 and until the Space Needle was erected and became the tallest on the West Coast.
More than 100 years later, the surrounding buildings may have gotten taller, but the Smith Tower remains a beautifully preserved piece of regional history as well as one of the coolest hidden-gem cocktail lounges with that same 35th-floor view.
In honor of its