Washington Iron Works headquarters in Pioneer Square, Seattle; also called Frink Building and Washington Shoe Building
John Melancthon Frink (January 21, 1855 – August 31, 1914) was an early Washington state politician and businessperson.[1][2]
Born in Pennsylvania in 1855, Frink attended Washington College in Topeka, and began a teaching career in Kansas. Arriving in Seattle in 1874, he both taught and served as principal at Seattle's Belltown School. Capitalizing on the city's growth, Frink formed a successful foundry business, Washington Iron Works. He later established the Seattle Electric Company, was a director of the Seattle Savings Bank, and served as a Washington State senator. He lost in the 1900 general election in a bid to unseat John Rankin RogersasGovernor of Washington State, running as a Republican.[3]
Frink in 1891
In 1906 Frink became a member of the Seattle Board of Park Commissioners, and later its president. In 1906 he donated the property that became Frink Park to the City of Seattle.[4][5]
