Seattle Pergola Hit by Truck and Smashed
An ornate cast-iron canopy that was one of Seattle’s landmarks was accidentally knocked down by a truck and smashed to pieces Monday.
The rear of the truck clipped a corner of the 91-year-old pergola before daybreak, police spokesman Sean O’Donnell said. No injuries were reported.
“I’m a tour guide down here,” said Keith Perry, manager of Casual Cabs. “Now what am I going to show people?”
Mayor Paul Schell said restoration experts would examine the wreckage to decide whether it can be salvaged or will have to be rebuilt from scratch.
The Victorian-style iron-and-glass structure, 60 feet long and 16 feet high, was built in 1909 as a cable car stop and a grand entrance to a lavish underground restroom. The cable car tracks are long gone and the marble and brass restroom has been abandoned for decades, but the Pergola, designed by architect Julian Everett, has become one of Seattle’s most famous meeting spots. It was designated a national landmark in 1977, along with the nearby Tlingit totem pole and the Pioneer Building.
The truck driver, Pete Benard, 56, of Greensburg, Pa., was cited for driving on the sidewalk, police said. He was making a delivery.
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