George Vancouver was the first European to visit Seattle in May 1792 during his 4-year-long expedition to chart the Pacific Northwest.

Seattle’s first economic growth boom was built on the timber industry. Early arriving developers converted a forest of trees more than a 1000 years old and 400 feet high into logs and then milled timber for shipping to San Francisco.

The Klondike gold rush was the most significant boom period for Seattle after gold was discovered in Canada’s Klondike region in August 1896. Seattle established itself as the jumping-off point for transportation to and from Alaska and the goldfields of the Yukon.

The Boeing Company, founded in the Seattle area by William Boeing, was originally a boat company. Mr. Boeing was fascinated with flying and airplanes.

Seattle is the birthplace of Starbucks, the world’s largest coffee chain. You can buy a unique mug (if you collect them) at the original Starbucks in Pike Place Market, first opened in 1971.

When the Space Needle was built in 1962 for the Seattle World’s Fair, it was the tallest building west of the Mississippi River.

Medina is the home of the United States’ wealthiest man, Bill Gates, co-founder and former chairman of Microsoft. Mr. Gates has a net worth of $72 billion, according to the September 2013 Forbes ranking.

As you can witness on the Underground Tour, Seattle was built on top of the old city after the Great Fire of 1889.