Archie Anderson put the elephant in carwash name
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In a city known for gray skies and rain, Archie Anderson's carwash glowed in pink neon.
Mr. Anderson decided an elephant, which uses its long trunk to bathe, would be a good symbol and name for the Elephant Car Wash. But the bright revolving sign that made the Battery Street business a Seattle landmark actually came about by accident, rather than design. Pink neon lights were the sign maker's suggestion, said Mr. Anderson's daughter Lana Weed.
After many years and many cars washed, Mr. Anderson and his brothers often expressed surprise that the sign became a landmark.
Archie Anderson died from pneumonia last Wednesday (May 9) at ManorCare Health Services in Lynnwood. He was 84.
Mr. Anderson was born in Oak Harbor and graduated from Oak Harbor High School in 1935. When he attended the University of Washington, his drive through Lynnwood included just one stoplight on Highway 99. He worked on the family farm and later at a plywood mill in Anacortes. But his brother Eldon wanted to start a carwash business and with brother Dean, the three opened the first Elephant Car Wash on Battery Street in 1956.
Elephant-related promotional ideas abounded. When the circus was in town, Mr. Anderson paraded elephants through for a wash. Once, he stood an elephant on pontoons to create the appearance that it was water-skiing.
To be close to work, Mr. Anderson moved the family from Whidbey Island to Seattle, then to Edmonds where the Andersons have lived for 40 years. The Anderson brothers sold the carwashes on Battery Street and Fourth Avenue South in the late 1980s. The third Elephant Car Wash in Tacoma was sold in 1997.
Elephant-related promotional ideas abounded. When the circus was in town, Mr. Anderson paraded elephants through for a wash. Once, he stood an elephant on pontoons to create the appearance that it was water-skiing.
Outside of his business, Mr. Anderson became a voice for property rights. In the mid-1990s, he was part of a Snohomish County group challenging the state's Growth Management Act, which was designed to limit urban growth. Mr. Anderson said the law would prevent property owners from doing what they liked with their land.
Mr. Anderson loved the outdoors and often went camping throughout the Northwest with his wife, Ellen. They also traveled extensively. .
Mr. Anderson was active in the Edmonds United Methodist Church and the Rotary Club of Edmonds, where he had a 25-year perfect-attendance record. He also enjoyed woodworking, a craft at which he excelled until Parkinson's disease forced him to stop.
Besides his daughter Lana Weed of Lynnwood, Mr. Anderson is survived by his wife of 58 years, Ellen; son Adrian Anderson of Everett; daughters Nola Beeler of Lake Forest Park and Carmen Bolton of Shoreline; brothers Milton, Dean and Delmon Anderson, all of Oak Harbor; sister Arbutus Undlin of Seattle; 10 grandchildren; and seven great-grandchildren.
A memorial service is scheduled for 2 p.m. tomorrow at Edmonds United Methodist Church, 828 Caspers St. Memorials may be sent either to the church or the American Parkinson's Disease Association, c/o the School of Medical Neurology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195.
Frank Vinluan can be reached at 206-464-2291 or fvinluan@seattletimes.com.