| Historic Name: |
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Common Name: |
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| Style: |
Queen Anne - Cottage, Vernacular |
Neighborhood: |
Beacon Hill |
| Built By: |
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Year Built: |
1916 |
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| Significance |
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Built in 1916, the building was owned by W. C. Metcalf by 1919 when he added a chicken house to the lot. The property was owned by Inez H. Miller from 1925 to 1936. Sam A. and Regina Fis resided in the house from 1936 to ca 1938. Mr. Fis worked as a shipping clerk at Federated Metals Division American Smelting and Refining Company. By 1941, Lowell K. Rockwell resided in the building, followed by Charles Haynes from ca 1949 to ca 1955. By 1957, Robert Schmidt lived at the house. Leo L Lazetti purchased the building in March of 1958 for $6,365. By 1959, On T. Quan lived in the residence, which included a separate apartment listed at 1312½ rented to Arthur Mtyling. In June of 1960 Charles E. Seely purchased the building $15,500. By 1962, both of the units were vacant. Then ca 1964 Reverend Henry Church moved into 1312 and King Tong Lee into 1312½. Shortly thereafter Milton Mukai moved into 1312 and Francis Pelne into 1312½. Although not previously listed as a resident, the building’s owner, Charles Seely, resided at 1312 by 1968 and Alvin Cormack rented 1312½. Mr. Seely stayed through 1970; 1312½ was vacant. In 1989, the property sold for $27,500.
Beacon Hill is a long north-south tending ridge located southeast of downtown Seattle and stands 350 feet at its highest point. The hill’s steep topography deterred substantial Euro-American settlement through the early 1880s. Then, development of the area was stimulated by the introduction of streetcar lines in the 1890s, its proximity to Seattle’s main industrial area to the west, and the regrading of the hill’s north end in the early 1900s.
Originally acquired by the City in 1898, Jefferson Park was integrated into Seattle’s Olmsted system of parks, and the Olmsted Brothers prepared a plan for the park in 1912. The first public golf course west of the Mississippi opened at Jefferson Park in 1915. Jefferson Park has exerted a profound positive influence on the development of the Beacon Hill neighborhood.
Because of its proximity to the International District, Japanese and Chinese families moved to Beacon Hill starting in the 1920s. World War I and II stimulated a surge in housing development associated with wartime industry. The construction of Interstate 5 in the 1960s and Interstate 90 in the 1980s sliced through the neighborhoods and contributed to Beacon Hill’s relative isolation. Today, Beacon Hill is an ethnically diverse working class community, which has a mixed Asian, Chicano, African American, and Caucasian population.
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| Appearance |
| Built in 1916, this modest, Queen Anne style, single-family cottage stands on a rectangular lot. The building is oriented to Twelfth Avenue South on a flat site at street level. This 874 square foot, one-and-a-half story house with a full daylight basement features a rectangular plan, measuring approximately 38’ by 23’, with a porch wrapping around the front facade. A poured concrete foundation supports the wood frame, clapboard-clad superstructure. Coursed shingles clad the gable ends. Asphalt composition roofing covers the gable roof and shed roof sidewall dormers. Prominent bargeboards with decorative detailing in the gable peaks as well as supporting brackets at the transition to the eaves and moderate eave and gable overhangs define the roofline. Wood sash 1:1 and fixed sash windows provide day lighting with horizontal aluminum sliding window in the front gable end flanked by original diamond shaped windows. A direct flight of stairs leads up to the main entrance. Brick piers carrying wood posts support the exposed framing of the flat porch roof with a railing extending between the piers. A shed roof porch extends from the rear facade. An internal brick chimney services the building. |
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| Status: |
No - Altered |
| Classication: |
Building |
District Status: |
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| Cladding(s): |
Shingle, Wood - Clapboard |
Foundation(s): |
Unknown |
| Roof Type(s): |
Gable |
Roof Material(s): |
Asphalt/Composition |
| Building Type: |
Domestic - Single Family |
Plan: |
Irregular |
| Structural System: |
Balloon Frame/Platform Frame |
No. of Stories: |
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| Unit Theme(s): |
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| Integrity |
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Changes to Windows: |
Moderate |
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Changes to Plan: |
Slight |
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Changes to Original Cladding: |
Intact |
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| Major Bibliographic References |
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City of Seattle DCLU Microfilm Records.
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King County Property Record Card (c. 1938-1972), Washington State Archives.
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Polk's Seattle Directories, 1890-1996.
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City of Seattle. Survey of City-Owned Historic Resources. Prepared by Cathy Wickwire, Seattle, 2001. Forms for Ravenna Park structures.
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Tobin, Caroline. (2004) "Beacon Hill Historic Context Statement."
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