In 1914 the Seattle, Port Angeles and Western Railway went through Sequim instead of Dungeness and Sequim became the agricultural marketing center of the Peninsula. Conceding to Sequim, Charles Franklin Seal, a leading merchant in Dungeness, built his two-story Sequim Trading Company on the corner opposite the Sinclair Hotel. He sold everything anyone would want for housekeeping or farming. If he didn't have it, he promised to get it. With the advent of the automobile, when State Highway 9 came through town he moved the building back approximately fifteen feet and installed a gas pump in front. He was hailed as the premier pioneer businessman of the community when he died in 1943.
Although the automobile and improved highways wooed travelers from the rail line, the railroad, which had been bought out by the Milwaukee Line, continued to offer freight service until 1986 when the tracks were removed. Today the Sequim Bypass (SR101) follows part of the rail line through town and the Olympic Discovery Trail utilizes much of the former right-of-way.