Seattle
- Across the state, Spokane hosted Expo '74, the first environmentally themed world's fair, drawing more than 5 million visitors.
- The Kingdome rose over Pioneer Square, increasingly visible on the skyline.
- The Bagley Wright Theatre at Seattle Center opened, becoming home to Seattle Repertory Theatre.
- Boeing 747 production was ramping up as international travel rebounded.
The United States
- President Nixon resigned on August 9 after the "smoking gun" tape; President Ford pardoned him a month later.
- Patty Hearst was kidnapped in February by the Symbionese Liberation Army.
- Hank Aaron broke Babe Ruth's career home-run record on April 8 in Atlanta.
- Stephen King's Carrie was published, his first novel.
- The Ramones started playing CBGB in New York, helping launch American punk.
The World
- Portugal's nearly bloodless Carnation Revolution in April ended a half-century of dictatorship and triggered decolonization across Africa.
- India detonated its first nuclear device, "Smiling Buddha," in May.
- The "Rumble in the Jungle": Muhammad Ali knocked out George Foreman in Zaire (October 30) to reclaim the heavyweight title.
- ABBA won Eurovision with "Waterloo" and went global.
