Joshua Green

1869 - 1975

Photographed by Col. James F. Jamison, USMC (Ret), May 31, 2018

1. Joshua Greene Marker

Inscription. Purser, mate, trader, Shipowner, venturer, Joshua Green began his waterfront career on Puget Sound in 1888 when steamboating was in its infancy. He founded the LA Conner Trading and Transportation Company, operating freight and passenger steamers, and eventually became president of the Pugent Sound Navigation Company, preeminent water carrier of the sound. His ownership of vessels ranged from early paddle-wheelers to swift passenger vessels, including shares in the unique six-master barkentine Everett G. Griggs. His legacy to the Northwest maritime industry is the modern Washington State Ferry System.

Erected 1975 by Yukon Club and Propeller Club of Seattle.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Settlements & Settlers • Waterways & Vessels. A significant historical year for this entry is 1869.

Location. Marker has been permanently removed. It was located near 47° 36.423′ N, 122° 20.536′ W. Marker was in Seattle, Washington, in King County. It could be reached from Alaskan Way. Marker faces the Bay inside Waterfront Park. Touch for map. Marker was at or near

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this postal address: 1401 Alaskan Way, Seattle WA 98101, United States of America.

We have been informed that this marker is no longer there and will not be replaced. This page is an archival view of what was.

Regionally, this marker was in Washington’s Puget Sound Region.

It was also on the American Pacific Coast,

in the Pacific Northwest,

and in the Lewis & Clark Corridor.

Globally, it was in North America,

in the Cascade Range,

in the Inside Passage,

on the Ring of Fire,

in the Pacific Rim,

in the Western Hemisphere,

in the Western World,

and in the Anglosphere.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this location: "This Market Is Yours" (about 700 feet away); First Avenue (about 800 feet away); Developing the Market (approx. 0.2 miles away); Elliott Bay (approx. 0.2 miles away); “Great White Fleet” (approx. ¼ mile away); a different marker also named Welcome to The Public Market (approx. ¼ mile away); Colonial Hotel (approx. ¼ mile away); Seattle Union Record (approx. ¼ mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Seattle.

Other markers no longer nearby. The Visit of President Theodore Roosevelt’s “Great White Fleet”

The Joshua Greene marker is located in Seattle's Waterfront Park. image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Col. James F. Jamison, USMC (Ret), May 31, 2018

2. The Joshua Greene marker is located in Seattle's Waterfront Park.

(was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed); "Ton of Gold" (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed); Waterfront History (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been permanently removed); ‘Miike Maru’ (was about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line but has been permanently removed); Welcome to The Public Market (was approx. 0.2 miles away but has been replaced with another marker now near it).

More about this marker. This marker, along with a number of other historical markers, were removed during the major "Waterfront Seattle" reconstruction project, which included replacing the Alaskan Way Viaduct and seawall with a new park. The project began in 2013 with the seawall construction and tunnel boring. While significant portions opened throughout the early 2020s, the main, comprehensive transformation wasn't officially completed until 2025. It is not known if any of the removed markers were relocated elsewhere or will remain permanently removed.

The area where this marker existed is currently a large, family-friendly playground.

Also see . . . Green, Joshua (1869-1975).

Missing marker location image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Douglass Halvorsen, February 20, 2026

3. Missing marker location

Panoramic view of the area where the marker once existed, which is currently a large playground.

Joshua Green was an innovator and leader in Seattle’s nascent shipping and ferry industries for 40 years before launching a second career – banking – where he remained for the next 40 years. Born in Jackson, Mississippi, in 1869, Green traveled to Washington with his family in 1886. His first job was on a railroad survey crew before he signed on as a purser on a sternwheeler. Realizing there was money to be made in shipping, as a teenager he convinced three shipmates to buy a vessel together. By 1898 La Conner Trading and Transportation Company had the largest fleet of any inland steamboat company on Puget Sound. It merged in 1903 with Puget Sound Navigation, the area’s largest steamship company, and Green became company president. In 1917, he purchased the Port Townsend Southern Railroad, which he owned for 27 years. In 1926 he sold his shares in Puget Sound Navigation and made the transition to banking. With $200,000, he bought a controlling interest in the failing Peoples Savings Bank, which prospered under his stewardship. Green stayed engaged in banking for the next four decades, coming to the office regularly until he was 102.
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He died in 1975 at the age of 105, just 24 days after the death of his wife of 73 years, Laura Moore Turner Green.

(Submitted on February 23, 2026, by Douglass Halvorsen of Klamath Falls, Oregon.)

Credits. This page was last revised on February 24, 2026. It was originally submitted on June 1, 2018, by Col. James F. Jamison, USMC (Ret) of Coronado, California. This page has been viewed 498 times since then and 51 times this year. Last updated on February 23, 2026, by Douglass Halvorsen of Klamath Falls, Oregon. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on June 1, 2018, by Col. James F. Jamison, USMC (Ret) of Coronado, California. 3. submitted on February 23, 2026, by Douglass Halvorsen of Klamath Falls, Oregon. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.