Garfield High School

400 23rd Avenue

Garfield High School north entrance, Seattle, 2020, HistoryLink photo by David Koch
Northwest stairway, Garfield High School, Seattle, 2020, Photo by Thu Minh Kha
Protesters and police with Garfield High School in background, 23rd and Alder, Seattle, May 26, 1969, Courtesy MOHAI (2000.107.153.09.07)
George Foreman with students, Garfield High School, Seattle, 1969, Courtesy MOHAI (2000.107.186.26.01)
Stokely Carmichael, Garfield High School, Seattle, 1967, Courtesy MOHAI (1986.5.21041)
Aerial view, Garfield High School, 1965, Courtesy Seattle Public Schools (017-17)
Garfield High School gymnasium entrance, Seattle, ca. 1964, Courtesy Seattle Municipal Archive (192958)
Garfield High School, Seattle, 1923, Courtesy Seattle Public Schools (014-8)
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400 23rd Avenue

A humble building hosting a class of 282 students opened at this location in 1920. Three years later, after construction of a new building designed by architect Floyd Naramore, Seattle Public Schools established Garfield High School. From the 1930s, Garfield has served a diverse community. It has remained a hub of activism, led by Black students who made up about 50 percent of the student population by the 1950s. In 1968, Black students hosted Stokely Carmichael, then head of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), and were inspired to start one of the first high school Black Student Unions in the state. Garfield is also widely known for its robust performing arts and music programs. Notable attendees and alumni include musicians Macklemore, Jimi Hendrix (honorary diploma), and Quincy Jones; Lynn Shelton (filmmaker and screenwriter), Minoru Yamasaki (architect), and Lindy West (writer).

Continue south on 23rd Avenue.

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