Then and Now: Old Ballard meets the 21st Century

In the past few years, Ballard has turned into a neighborhood known for its bars and night scene. But go back just a decade or two and you'll find it was only recently known as the sleepy Norwegian neighborhood where local comedy shows joked about fining "speeding" grannys on the sidewalk.

So yeah, even though "Old Ballard" still makes up much of the architecture of Ballard, the neighborhood has evolved over the years.

That rapid growth isn't exactly something Ballard is a stranger to. After becoming the final stop on the local railroad, Ballard saw notoriety (as a spot for lumber mills) and a rapid population growth. After the area decided to incorporate in 1889, the population grew from about 1,500 to more than 4,500 by 1900.

RELATED: The Ballard Bridge's history

Ballard would continue to grow as a neighborhood but, like many of Seattle's surrounding locales, was plagued by water problems. Access to clean and safe water became the primary reason that Ballard residents opted to annex to Seattle.

The population is and remains relatively divided on the matter (if more tongue-in-cheek now than they were in 1907: "Keep Ballard Weird" stickers still float around the city; on the day they became part of Seattle, Ballard citizens flew the flag at half-mast and draped their city hall with black crepe.

MORE THEN AND NOW: 

The University District through the ages

Seattle's Belltown: What's changed, what's stayed the same

Though the Ballard City Hall isn't around anymore, plenty of classic Ballard establishments still stand tall.

Take the building at the corner of Ballard Avenue Northwest and Northwest Vernon Place was originally home to the American Scandinavian Bank; the building, built in 1902, became a hotel in 1920, mainly housing the seasonal fisherman who came to the neighborhood.

It's been a hotel ever since then:

Ballard Stationary and C. Don Filer Insurance, meanwhile, have given way to  an event space called Cathedral and a tattoo parlor (even though they're pictured here in 1975):

And while Ballard Avenue Northwest may now be known as the home to many a hot spot for brunch or the Sunset Tavern, it didn't always look like that:

Back then it was the Ballard Savings and Loan Association building (pictured here in October 1925).

Of course that's just some of how Ballard has changed as a neighborhood. Click through the slideshow above to see more then and now shots of Ballard.