Businessman & Real Estate Developer. For almost 20 years beginning in 1896, Clarence Hillman was one of the most prominent businessmen and real estate developers in Seattle. His aggressive and even fraudulent sales of vacant land laid out communities such as Mountlake Terrace, Hillman City, and Kennydale, but also landed him in jail.
He hailed from a farm near Birmingham, Michigan. He lost his father at age five and his mother at age nine. His formal education ended in the second grade and family tradition had him selling newspapers with his brother in Chicago. He and his brother sought their fortunes in California in 1891. Hillman reportedly overheard a conversation on a passenger train as they passed a house. A businessman commented that he would buy the house for $20,000. Hillman got off the train at the next stop, offered the owner of the house $15,000, tracked down the businessman, and sold him the property for $20,000. C. D. Hillman found his calling in real estate.
He arrived in Seattle in 1896 as the city and the nation struggled out of the Panic of 1893. He platted a subdivision around Green Lake, then many miles north of the city. His timing was excellent. In 1897, the discovery of gold in the Klondike put Seattle on the road to recovery and to boom times.
He hailed from a farm near Birmingham, Michigan. He lost his father at age five and his mother at age nine. His formal education ended in the second grade and family tradition had him selling newspapers with his brother in Chicago. He and his brother sought their fortunes in California in 1891. Hillman reportedly overheard a conversation on a passenger train as they passed a house. A businessman commented that he would buy the house for $20,000. Hillman got off the train at the next stop, offered the owner of the house $15,000, tracked down the businessman, and sold him the property for $20,000. C. D. Hillman found his calling in real estate.
He arrived in Seattle in 1896 as the city and the nation struggled out of the Panic of 1893. He platted a subdivision around Green Lake, then many miles north of the city. His timing was excellent. In 1897, the discovery of gold in the Klondike put Seattle on the road to recovery and to boom times.
Businessman & Real Estate Developer. For almost 20 years beginning in 1896, Clarence Hillman was one of the most prominent businessmen and real estate developers in Seattle. His aggressive and even fraudulent sales of vacant land laid out communities such as Mountlake Terrace, Hillman City, and Kennydale, but also landed him in jail.
He hailed from a farm near Birmingham, Michigan. He lost his father at age five and his mother at age nine. His formal education ended in the second grade and family tradition had him selling newspapers with his brother in Chicago. He and his brother sought their fortunes in California in 1891. Hillman reportedly overheard a conversation on a passenger train as they passed a house. A businessman commented that he would buy the house for $20,000. Hillman got off the train at the next stop, offered the owner of the house $15,000, tracked down the businessman, and sold him the property for $20,000. C. D. Hillman found his calling in real estate.
He arrived in Seattle in 1896 as the city and the nation struggled out of the Panic of 1893. He platted a subdivision around Green Lake, then many miles north of the city. His timing was excellent. In 1897, the discovery of gold in the Klondike put Seattle on the road to recovery and to boom times.
He hailed from a farm near Birmingham, Michigan. He lost his father at age five and his mother at age nine. His formal education ended in the second grade and family tradition had him selling newspapers with his brother in Chicago. He and his brother sought their fortunes in California in 1891. Hillman reportedly overheard a conversation on a passenger train as they passed a house. A businessman commented that he would buy the house for $20,000. Hillman got off the train at the next stop, offered the owner of the house $15,000, tracked down the businessman, and sold him the property for $20,000. C. D. Hillman found his calling in real estate.
He arrived in Seattle in 1896 as the city and the nation struggled out of the Panic of 1893. He platted a subdivision around Green Lake, then many miles north of the city. His timing was excellent. In 1897, the discovery of gold in the Klondike put Seattle on the road to recovery and to boom times.
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