| Historic Name: |
Lincoln Park Maintenance Shop |
Common Name: |
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| Style: |
Tudor |
Neighborhood: |
Morgan Junction |
| Built By: |
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Year Built: |
1931 |
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| Significance |
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This modest wood frame building was completed in 1931 a part of a new District Shop and Service Yard at Lincoln Park. West Seattle first gained fame as the landing point of the Denny Party in 1851, however residential and commercial development was slow to come to the area due to its topography and geographic isolation. This problem was partially solved with the establishment of ferry service from Seattle to the east shore of Duwamish Head in 1888. A trolley car line built on trestles replaced the ferry in 1902, and connected with several streetcar lines, which eventually extended service throughout West Seattle. One of the lines extended to the southwest corner of the peninsula following the route of today’s SW Fauntleroy Way and ended south of Point Williams at Endolyne. With improved access, West Seattle developed rapidly and was eventually annexed in 1907.
The 1908 Olmsted Supplemental Plan proposed a "Williams Point Park" as part of the Seattle park system, which would be connected to the rest of the city via an extensive boulevard system. In 1903, the city had hired the Olmsted Brothers to prepare plans for a comprehensive park and boulevard system, including suggestions for improvements to existing parks. This was supplemented by an additional report in 1908 to include the large areas annexed by the city the previous year, including West Seattle. According to the Olmsted Brothers, the proposed "Williams Point Park" should include some 130 acres of comparatively level land between the point and the new electric railway to provide space for athletic fields, lawns, drives, walks, and plantings. The triangular-shaped park would serve both the local neighborhood and the city as a whole. Implementation of the report began almost immediately, however not always as envisioned by the Olmsteds, especially in the outlying areas where there was less residential and commercial development. Land for the park at Point Williams was not acquired by the city until 1922. The new 130-acre park would be called Lincoln Park in honor of President Abraham Lincoln, which forced Lincoln Playfield on Capitol Hill to be renamed Broadway Playfield.
When the city acquired the property for the park, there was an existing house located at the far northern end of the site, which became a residence for the park’s caretaker. This person also served as the Foreman of the West Seattle Maintenance District. As was the case in other city parks, the provision of rent-free housing was considered part of the salary for the caretaker or foreman. Within a few years of the acquisition, the Parks Department had cleared weeds and downed trees and had constructed a comfort station in 1925. In 1931, a District Shop and Service Yard was developed adjacent to the residence, including the construction of this shop building. By the 1960s, the practice of providing an in-park residence had been abandoned, which eventually led to the demolition of the old house. The shop building continues in use as part of the maintenance headquarters for the Southwest Park District. This building is significant for its association with the development of Lincoln Park.
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| Appearance |
| Completed in 1931, this one-story wood frame building occupies a site along the southern margin of a service area located at the northern end of Lincoln Park. The northern side of the service area contains a newer wood frame building built in 1983 and attached concrete block shops. This modest building faces north and displays Tudor Revival stylistic features, including a steeply pitched hip roof with a hip roof dormer on the eastern slope, both with bracketed eaves. The rectangular plan structure also features projecting hip roof bays centered on the north and south elevations. On the principal north elevation, large openings with paneled wood overhead doors flank the center bay, which contains an entrance door between two narrow 4/4 double hung wood windows. The identical east and west elevations each have two 8/8 double hung wood windows. The rear south elevation has two additional double hung windows within the center bay. The western end of the elevation has a single small double hung window at the center, while the eastern end has two large windows. The roof dormer contains a pair of multi-paned casement windows facing east. A brick chimney pierces the southern slope of the hip roof below the ridge at the western end. This modest yet attractive building retains excellent physical integrity. |
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| Status: |
Yes - Inventory |
| Classication: |
Building |
District Status: |
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| Cladding(s): |
Wood - Clapboard |
Foundation(s): |
Concrete - Poured |
| Roof Type(s): |
Hip |
Roof Material(s): |
Metal - Standing Seam |
| Building Type: |
Other |
Plan: |
Rectangular |
| Structural System: |
Balloon Frame/Platform Frame |
No. of Stories: |
one |
| Unit Theme(s): |
Architecture/Landscape Architecture, Community Planning/Development, Conservation |
| Integrity |
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Changes to Plan: |
Intact |
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Changes to Windows: |
Intact |
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Changes to Original Cladding: |
Intact |
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| Major Bibliographic References |
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Sherwood, Don. Seattle Parks Histories, c. 1970-1981, unpublished.
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