Believe it or not, although taken more than a half-century apart, the historical scene and the contemporary snapshot show the same buildings.

The front page of the Herald features several wartime stories with a University District angle, including a picture of handsome 25-year-old Marine 1st Lt. Harold P. Logan, a former UW student on temporary leave. Logan, the story explains, was "back from Luzon after blasting Japanese targets in the path of advancing Army ground forces" in the Philippines.

The view looks southeast to the intersection of 42nd Street and "The Ave." All these structures survive, though not uniformly well. In particular, the white corner home for Collegiate Shoe Renewing (downstairs), the photography studio of Dorothea Zeckendorf Aranyi (upstairs) and the simple clapboard storefront next door have been boxed together with a skin that its creators must have thought nifty. Now it is merely dismal.

The Hollywood Dance Studios, right of center, has an advertisement in the Aug. 2, 1945, Herald. It reads, in part, "Children's New Summer Classes, Tap, Ballet and Acrobatic. Under personal supervision of Eugene H. Miller." Schwellenbach Real Estate, far right, also has an ad. It demurely explains: "Don't consult us if you want to make a fortune when selling your home. But should you need sane, intelligent assistance, we would be glad to help." That does not sound familiar.

Paul Dorpat's two-hour videotape on Seattle's early history, "Seattle Chronicle," is $29.95 from Tartu Publications, P.O. Box 85208, Seattle, WA 98145.