This line is a fragment of the original Seattle, Lake Shore and Eastern main line. Before the GN filled in the marshy land at Interbay for their yard, the SLS&E line from the Seattle waterfront skirted the east margin of Interbay. Later purchased by the Northern Pacific (1890). This line crossed the small creek between Salmon Bay and Lake Union heading for University, Lake Washington, Bothell, and Woodinville wye.

When the Lake Washington Ship Canal was built, 1914-1916, the NP built a long curved trestle above part of the existing line on the ground, which curved to the north and crossed the head of (the impounded) Salmon Bay with a large bascule bridge (scrapped about 1977). On the "north shore" there was a wye with a leg going west to Ballard (now Ballard Terminal RR) and a leg going east to connect with the existing (in 1916) line to Woodinville. All of the latter right of way is now the Burke-Gilman trail.

The "lead" to the pre-1917 creek crossing became a short spur, 1-2 cars, at the west edge of the Seattle Pacific Univ. campus used for maintenance of way. This line continued under the Fremont Bridge to the numerous sawmills along the western shore of Lake Union and on up Terry Ave. to a yard and freight station. Some trackage with in-street crossovers remains in Terry. Some of the track in Fairview Ave. is now being torn up for that idiotic streetcar line to nowhere. I seem to recall that the Terry Ave. line was built about 1907.