The Polynesia, Seattle, WA (restaurant)

Been digging around for awhile trying to find a good shot of the Polynesia sign that was by Alaska Way without any luck. What I've found is very interesting to me. The original sign was oval and on a pole that flared at the top and this pole may have been painted with a decorative pattern. Beside the sign pole is what looks like a carved log pole (a tiki maybe?).

This is from Dustys, Ye Olde Curiosity Shop postcard guessing the 60's.

This next shot is from 1965 when Skagit Belle sternwheeler sank beside the pier.

Lastly from the 70's the original sign and pole is gone replaced by a rectangular one but the carved pole is still there in the background.

Any help would be welcome, my wife is going to try to get the web source photo data to try to clear up the pictures, until then...

aloha, tikicoma

[ Edited by: tikicoma 2015-03-21 00:52 ]

From the other side of Surfside fish n' chips with the Polynesia pole and sign in the background.

finally a good enough shot to pull up some detail!

This is from around 1970 with the second sign, no idea if the pole is still the original though.

aloha, tikicoma

Just saw this. Very cool photo archeology! The post is based on New Caledonian door panel designs:

Just spent 2 hours looking at images of Kanak door post and panel carvings, cool stuff! You nailed it again Sven. But see what you miss when you waste your time filming movies and putting together shows at museums? Knock it off and get back to enlightening us plodders.

aloha, tikicoma

[ Edited by: tikicoma 2015-09-04 01:16 ]

I rescued this Tiki in Edmonton, Canada which came from the Beachcomber. I am sure it was carved by the same artist.
The eyes are a bit different but such a stunning likeness to Polynesia's Tiki.

Kilaueakyd, I've always assumed that their large Ku came from the Philippines because some of the small ones at the Polynesia matched with ones from there. That being said they do look a lot alike though, as you said, the eyes and also the nose look a bit different.

(Dave Cohn on left with the out going president of the restaurant association)

On 2018-01-31 23:57, tikicoma wrote:
That being said they do look a lot alike though, as you said, the eyes and also the nose look a bit different.

Are you talking about the tikis or the lads themselves?!? :lol:

What a wonderful thread to read. Thank you Hamo for bringing it to our attention. Wendy

tikicoma what info can you shed that makes you think they came from the Phillipines? Another Tikiphile thought they were carved by the designers of the Polynesia. I have no idea but trying to find out. Perhaps what kind of wood was used. They did have a few other Tiki's two of which were similar in style.

And this is the storage locker they were found in.

Kilaueakyd a couple things. Most importantly from Woofmutts first post that started this thread where he quotes the Seattle Times from 10/3/61 "A life-size Tiki figure, in the hallway, was carved in Manila of monkey pod."

Also this smaller tiki at the Polynesia...

That matches this one...

That was in front of the Philippines handicraft exhibit the next spring at the 1062 Seattle Worlds Fair shows that at least some of their tikis were carved in the Philippines.

On 2018-02-11 13:42, Kilaueakyd wrote:
And this is the storage locker they were found in.

:o What I wouldn't give to find a storage locker like that here in Texas! :o

Tikicoma your research is really great. Big Mahalo to You and all the other contributors to this thread. I still wonder what kind of wood? Maybe Monkeypod? Does monkeypod get big enough to carve a 400 lb Tiki? More info on my storage locker finds can be found on FB page "Tiki Night in Canada"

Kilaueakyd it says that it's monkeypod and yes it does grow that large.

[ Edited by: tikicoma 2018-03-09 00:03 ]

Some new from the beginning and end of the Poly.

First up Donald Keys inspecting the installation of the beams he carved (or at least carved along with Ingalls).
Though he was a carver before WWII he was inspired by what he saw in the Pacific during the war.
It turns out he's the third carver involved in tiki or decor for a polynesian restaurant to come out of Tacoma along with Gale Haner and Art McKellips.

January 25th, 1982 was moving day.

It just amazing to see it dangling above the barge. I wonder if went all the way to the Duwamish like this?

Looking closer you can see the tiki mask carvings still on the Polynesian. We know one was later found in Elliot Bay and recovered but I wonder if it fell off during this trip or later when it was destroyed while on the Waterway?

(edit: the photo of Keys was found at HistoryLink.org and those of the Polynesia being lifted were from Mohai.org.)

[ Edited by: tikicoma 2018-03-09 00:13 ]

I had a guy contact me last week, wondering if I would be interested in a huge tiki mask from the Polynesia in Seattle. The mask hung on his house when he bought it I believe he said 20 years ago. He told me he found out it was Witco by searching online about the restaurant. He had also found out that Mr Westenhaver was my grandfather in-law and he and his wife would like it to go back to the family as he was sure Bill had something to do with the design and maybe carving of the mask. He told me the original homeowner had bought the mask at an auction for the Polynesia restaurant in 1981 for $10.00. The mask has been hanging from 1981 until 2015 when the couple remodeled their home and it did not fit the area anymore. The house it hung on was known as the Tiki house and was located on Lake Tapps in Pierce County, Washington. Thanks to the very kind people it is now in our hands where it will be brought back to it's old Witco glory days. When I am finished refinishing and weatherizing it will hang on our house for many years to come. At some point the mask was cut down a bit. It now measures 10' tall by 4'8" wide. Over all the mask is very solid for its age and so much Washington weather. Sorry about my terrible story telling and punctuation.

pleasanttiki.com

[ Edited by: keigs20 2018-03-17 16:51 ]

[ Edited by: keigs20 2018-03-17 16:52 ]

[ Edited by: keigs20 2018-03-17 18:13 ]

Exactly where that incredible piece belongs. Congrats Ken.

Nice story, glad its back to where it should be. Looking forward to seeing it all finished.

Yay! Great news! Love it when Tiki things come full circle ! :)

Did anyone ever find out how a fairly close likeness of this mask ended up on items from "Moultray's Polynesian" at the 1965 New York World's Fair?:

http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=19276&forum=1&start=30

...including a font much like the "Polynesia"?

Well the Moultray's must have "borrowed" it when took their biz to the NY worlds fair.

Bill and Chris Moultray had the Four Winds restaurants in Seattle and Yakima WA the Seattle one since '55. They were a New Orleans/Pirate themed restaurant with drinks like the cannonball and waitresses in pirate outfits.

The Polynesia opened in '61 then at the '62 Seattle Worlds Fair the Moultray's opened a couple booths at the food circus at the fair. It must have been successful for them because 2 years later they opened Moultray's Polynesian at the New York fair using the Witco mask design. They repeated opening restaurants at two more worlds fairs selling the Seattle Four Winds by the mid 60's.

...so all they had to do to come up with this design would be to walk about 10 blocks from their restaurant to pier 51 to see it on the Polynesia.

Great story. I love it when the stars align and these pieces are saved when they could be so easily lost. I’m looking forward to seeing the big guy returned too his former glory. These kind of stories are what keep me returning to TC.

Another shot from the early 60's of the Polynesia shown above Ye Olde Curiosity Shoppe...

zooming in...

Color ad from 1969 with a nice shot of the beams with a Fay Chong transparency...

And sugar wonderful sugar!

Any updates on the progress of restoring the mask?