Pier 57, pier on Central Waterfront in Seattle

Pier 57, also called Miner's Landing, is a pier at the foot of University Street in downtown Seattle. Built in 1902 and renovated after the city bought it in 1971, it now holds gift shops, seafood restaurants, an arcade and an early 20th-century carousel. The Seattle Great Wheel, a 175-foot Ferris wheel with 42 enclosed gondolas, opened on the pier in June 2012.

The pier was built in 1902 by Miller and Geske and initially served as a shipping and transportation hub for railroads and international vessels. Over the decades, its use shifted from commerce and fish processing to recreation, and the City of Seattle purchased it in 1971 to preserve and later restore it as a public attraction.

The name Miner's Landing is a commercial branding of the pier's shops and restaurants, not a reference to gold-rush history; the pier's actual trading past lies in shipping. Its 1902 timber structure was repeatedly modified for tenants such as the Milwaukee Road and the McCormick Steamship Line, and the deck was later cut with holes for recreational fishing.

Pier 57 sits at the foot of University Street on Seattle's central waterfront, next to the Seattle Great Wheel and a short walk from Pike Place Market. The pier deck is flat and reached on foot from downtown; the 175-foot wheel has 42 enclosed gondolas holding up to six riders each. Expect cool breeze off Elliott Bay and changeable weather.

The pier's pilings were retrofitted as part of the Seattle Great Wheel project, which opened in June 2012. The 175-foot wheel has 42 climate-controlled gondolas holding up to six passengers each. Owner Hal Griffith had envisioned a Ferris wheel on Elliott Bay for nearly 30 years before it was built.