Photo courtesy Washington State Archives

1968 was an unforgettable year: Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy were assassinated in a two-month span; the Vietnam War dominated the news and sparked bitter debate and protests, especially on college campuses; Woodstock took place (oops, that was in 1969); and astronauts flew around the moon at Christmastime (the lunar landing took place the following July).

That year also was notable because it was when Republican Richard Nixon defeated Democrat Hubert Humphrey in a close race for U.S. president that November.

This photo, from the State Library Photograph Collection, shows Nixon on Sept. 24, 1968, during a campaign event at the Olympic Hotel in Seattle. Standing next to Nixon is Gov. Dan Evans. Second from left is Seattle Mayor James Braman, who in 1969 was appointed by Nixon to a newly created federal position, Assistant Secretary of Transportation for Urban Systems and Environment.