| Historic Name: |
Officers' Row Garage |
Common Name: |
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| Style: |
Vernacular |
Neighborhood: |
Magnolia |
| Built By: |
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Year Built: |
1930 |
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| Significance |
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Fort Lawton is located in Seattle's Magnolia neighborhood, within the area that is now Discovery Park. Established as a U.S. Army post in 1898, the fort had been envisioned by local residents and businessmen as a major regimental post, with the hope that it would enhance the local economy and the city’s status in its ongoing competition with Tacoma to the south. Upon selection of the site, local landowners donated more than 700 acres for the fort. By 1900, construction of the first seven permanent, wood-frame buildings on the site was completed.
While local aspirations for the fort were slow to be realized, initial construction continued through 1910, at which time there was an assembly of 25 buildings set around an oval-shaped parade ground. While Fort Lawton never became as large or influential as Seattle residents had anticipated, during World War II it was the second-largest port of embarkation on the West Coast. After the 1940s, the use of the fort declined again and many of the temporary and wartime buildings were removed. The Army stayed on until 1972, at which time it transferred ownership of a portion of Fort Lawton to the City of Seattle.
A large portion of the post, including its historic core area, with 25 buildings and parade ground, was surplused by the Army and added to Discovery Park in the mid-1970s. The Fort Lawton Historic District was nominated to and listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. The City of Seattle designated Fort Lawton as a local historic district in 1988.
The Fort Lawton Historic District is associated with the development and the history of the City of Seattle; and embodies the characteristics of military interpretations of American architectural styles of the 1890s and early 1900s, based on standard Quartermaster General building designs, as well as its planned site. The period of significance for the Fort Lawton Historic District extends from its inception in 1898 to 1945, based on the development of the post, with additional buildings and site features resulting from the Depression-era public works, and the fort's role in WWII.
Building 641 is one of five remaining garages, built in the 1930s to serve the residents of Officers' Row.
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| Appearance |
| Officers' Row is an arrangement of seven houses located along Washington Avenue, a curved street at the top of the bluff east of and overlooking the parade ground. The siting of officers' quarters above the parade ground was typical of military installations of the period, representative of the hierarchy and command structure of the institution. Located at the highest elevation of the original fort, the houses also have expansive views looking west toward the Olympic Mountains. Oklahoma Avenue runs parallel to Washington Avenue, behind (east of) the houses on Officers' Row. On the east side of the street, facing west, are five garages that were built in the 1930s and serve the residents of Officers' Row.
Building 641 – Garage
(Constructed 1930s)
This four-car garage, located behind (east of) Building 640, is of frame construction on a concrete slab. The side-gabled building is finished with shiplap siding, and the roof is asphalt-shingled. Four wood, single-panel overhead doors on the west side of the building provide vehicle access. On the east side of the building are four fixed, four-light wood windows. There are no openings on the north and south ends of the garage. Trim consists of flat wood cornerboards, bargeboards, and trim at window and door openings. Exposed rafter tails are visible on the east side; on the west they are obscured by a gutter. |
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| Status: |
Yes - Inventory |
| Classication: |
Building |
District Status: |
NR, LR |
| Cladding(s): |
Wood - Shiplap |
Foundation(s): |
Concrete - Poured |
| Roof Type(s): |
Gable |
Roof Material(s): |
Asphalt/Composition-Shingle |
| Building Type: |
Domestic - Secondary structure |
Plan: |
Rectangular |
| Structural System: |
Balloon Frame/Platform Frame |
No. of Stories: |
one |
| Unit Theme(s): |
Architecture/Landscape Architecture, Community Planning/Development, Military |
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| Major Bibliographic References |
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Lentz, Florence, et al. "Historic American Buildings Survey, Fort Lawton." U.S. Dept. of the Interior, National Park Service, Pacific Northwest Region, 1981.
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Kavanaugh, Major Robert E. "Fort Lawton." National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form, January 1978.
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Mann, Millegan, Morse and Ramsey. "Fort Lawton Buildings: A Survey and Report, Prepared for City of Seattle Parks and Recreation." August 15, 1975.
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U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Seattle District. "Context Study of the United States Quartermaster General Standardized Plans 1866-1942." Report prepared for U.S. Army Environmental Ctr, Envir. Compliance Division, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md., Nov. 1997.
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Upchurch Architects, Inc. and SLA Studio Land. "Navy Historic Housing Classifications of the Montana Circle, Washington Ave N & Washington Ave S Homes in Fort Lawton." Prepared for Pacific NW Communities, LLC, Nov. 1, 2006.
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