The Gum Wall started in the 1990s when local patrons and performers at Unexpected Productions stuck their used gum on the wall. Since those days, the wall has grown piece by piece to cover an enormous expanse of brick and continues to expand down Post Alley.
What is the purpose of the gum wall?
The wall is located in Post Alley adjacent to the box office for the Market Theater, a venue for comedy shows and other small performances. After it became the host of Unexpected Productions’ Theatresports in 1991, the theater’s walls were covered by patrons’ pieces of used gum that had pennies pushed into them.
Do they ever clean the gum wall in Seattle?
It Was Only Cleared Off Once
In November of 2015, the Pike Place Market Preservation and Development Authority stripped all gum from the wall and steam cleaned the brick underneath to help preserve it. The work took 130 hours, and 2,350 pounds of gum old and new were scraped away during the process.
How often do they scrape the gum wall in Seattle?
The wall has only been cleaned just once
They pressure-washed and scraped the wall for the first time in 20 years to remove around 2300 pounds of gum and almost restored it to its original red-brick facade.
How much gum is on the Gum Wall in Seattle?
At 8 feet high and 54 feet wide, there are an estimated over 50 pieces of gum per brick or over 250,000 wads of gum on the wall.
Did the gum wall Melt 2021?
Seattle’s Gum Wall is Steam Cleaned
On Tuesday, cleaners began melting it all off.
How thick was the Gum Wall Seattle?
six inches thick
Today, Bush writes, the Gum Wall has grown to cover much of the brick alleyway at the market. According to estimates, the walls are coated with more than 1 million wads of gum, layered as much as six inches thick.
Why was the gum wall cleaned?
The reason for the cleaning? Preserving the physical wall. Back in 2015, there were an estimated one million pieces of gum stuck on the wall. The weight and sugar from the gum could destroy the wall if left alone.
What is Seattle best known for?
Seattle is famous for Starbucks and overall coffee culture, grunge music scene, the Seahawks, the Space Needle, Pike Place Market, headquarters of a lot of the tech industry (including both Amazon and Microsoft), hiking, kayaking, and general outdoors lifestyle (think REI).
How did Bubblegum Alley start?
Some historians believe that the tradition of the alley started after WWII as a San Luis Obispo High School graduating class event. Others believe it started in the late 1950s, as the rivalry between San Luis Obispo High School and California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly) students.
How do you get to the Gum Wall in Seattle?
Head down a ramp (look for the Market Theater sign) to the left of the main entrance (marked by a large neon “Public Market” sign) to Pike Place Market in downtown Seattle. At the bottom of the ramp, veer left into Post Alley and the Gum Wall will appear on both sides.
Why is it called Post Alley?
The building had good reasons for its name. It housed the Post-Intelligencer newspaper; it was built at the corner of Mill Street and Post Alley; and, for a short time, the post office was in the basement.” The building burned in Seattle’s Great Fire of 1889. -MOHAI.
What movie is the gum wall in?
You may recognize the gum wall from Jennifer Aniston’s film, Love Happens, which was shot at the wall in 2008.
Is the Seattle waterfront open?
The Promenade is Open!
You can walk from the ferry terminal at pier 50 all the way to pier 70 and beyond without crossing a single street!
Is the Gum Wall melting?
Mounds of amalgamated goo are melting off Pike Place Market’s famous gum wall in Seattle. Three workers from Cascadian Building Maintenance started the three-day task of stripping 20 years worth of accumulated chew back down to the brick on Tuesday.
Is Seattle a depressing place to live?
Even in normal times, some people who live in Seattle start to feel down around this time of the year. The gray and drizzle has set in, and we can look forward to six more months of it. But 2020 is anything but normal.
What food is Seattle most famous for?
oysters
Shellfish is a Seattle staple, from the many places to slurp fantastically briny oysters to those that serve up geoduck (pronounced “gooey duck”), an enormous, coveted clam that sometimes catches newcomers off guard with its odd appearance.
Why do they throw fish in Seattle?
A Tourist Attraction Worth Visiting
Pike Place Market in Seattle, Washington, has become a top tourist attraction where fishmongers entertain visitors and shoppers by throwing fish to one another and engaging people in conversations for entertainment and a type of drama not seen in many other places.
Is the gum wall still there?
As the gum droppings kept growing, by 1999 the brick wall was considered a kooky tourist attraction and now the gum remains in place year-round, except for those occasional cleanings.
Who started the Bubble Gum Alley?
The history of Bubble Gum Alley is unclear and highly debated. According to the San Luis Obispo visitor’s bureau, some believe it started in the 1950s with a rivalry between high school students and Cal Poly students. Others believe high school grads started the sticky tradition after World War II.
Why did they build over Seattle?
Seattle, known as the Emerald City and founded in 1851, was metaphorically built on the logging industry and geographically established on marshes at sea level. The first neighborhood settled by the ever-so-humble pioneers came to be called Pioneer Square.