| Historic Name: |
Fairmont |
Common Name: |
Fairmont |
| Style: |
Colonial - Dutch Colonial |
Neighborhood: |
Capitol Hill |
| Built By: |
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Year Built: |
1920 |
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| Significance |
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In the opinion of the survey, this property appears to meet the criteria of the National Register of Historic Places. |
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In the opinion of the survey, this property appears to meet the criteria of the Seattle Landmarks Preservation Ordinance. |
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In the opinion of the survey, this property is located in a potential historic districe (National and/or local). |
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This small condominium was designed by J. G. Scott for Charles A. D. Young and his wife Mae, who operated a real estate business, Young & Young. It was built in 1920 at a cost of $40,000, and a garage to the rear was built soon afterward for $11,000. It is particularly significant for its highly-detailed residential style, very suitable for its elite residential neighborhood adjoining Volunteer Park. Its gambrel roof and Colonial Revival detailing make it appear essentially like a large single family home, although it has seven units. It originally had six 7-room apartments as well as six maids' rooms and storage in the basement. The extensive assessor records note the high quality of the construction, saying that each flat had two bathrooms and two fireplaces, with all hardwood floors and interior finish of ivory white--"Every feature of these apartments id of the highest grade." The report also gives the measurements of each room: living rooms, 19x25 feet; dining rooms 14x16 feet; a sunroom; and three 12x14 foot bedrooms. The rent was given as $200 per month (in 1938), with applicants waiting.
The building is highly intact, except that the original arched portico at the entry has been removed.
This is one of a cluster of luxury apartment buildings that were built in Seattle in the first quarter of the 20th century. Nearby on 11th Avenue East are the Park Court, the Washington Arms, and the Highland, located in a tranquil setting near the southwest corner of Volunteer Park to take advantage of the amenities of Seattle’s finest park, which had been designed by the Olmsted Brothers in 1909 and was largely completed within a few years. The location is also convenient to shopping on Broadway and the streetcar lines to downtown. These building were designed to fit in with surrounding large single family homes. These apartments served people who had the money to live in either a house or a residential hotel, but who preferred the greater freedom and privacy of an apartment. As in more urban cities, these wealthier people wanted amenities they would expect in a house, such as spacious rooms, fireplaces, separate dining rooms and sunrooms and quarters for a maid.
The Washington Arms has fifteen units (now condominiums), averaging 1200 square feet, unusually large for Seattle. The 1937 assessor records indicate 15 five-room apartments with 14 sleeping rooms with baths in the basement. These were most likely to accommodate servants. Other original features were oak floors, terrazzo kitchen floors, house phones and dumb waiters.
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| Appearance |
| This Dutch Colonial Revival apartment building has a gambrel roof clad with prominent flat brackets and wood shakes, which are also found in the gable ends. The primary cladding is red brick with quoins. The main (east) façade is symmetrical, with central entry. The entry is typical of the style, with a fanlight and sidelights. Above is a broken san pediment with an 18-light window flanked by two nine-light windows. A gable with a semi-circular window tops the entry bay. The first floor has six three-part windows, each with an eight-over-one sash flanked by narrow four-over-one sash. The second floor has six pairs of eight-over-one windows. The third floor, in the gambrel roof, has six gabled dormers each with a pair of eight-over-one windows. The side elevations are unusually detailed, with arched windows in the gable ends, groups of four 16-light sash and a small wood balcony on each upper floor ( a very unusual feature). There are two large brick chimneys. The formal landscaping has extensive hedges and shrubs. |
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