Seattle Historical Sites

Summary for 2200 1st AVE / Parcel ID 1977200681 / Inv #

Historic Name: Alexandria Hotel Common Name: Donald Hotel Style: Commercial Neighborhood: Belltown Built By: Year Built: 1904   Significance In the opinion of the survey, this property appears to meet the criteria of the National Register of Historic Places. In the opinion of the survey, this property appears to meet the criteria of the Seattle Landmarks Preservation Ordinance. Although 1910 is the stated construction date for this simple brick building, it appears on the 1905 Baist's map, making it among the oldest of the workers' hotels in Belltown. This simple brick building was known as the Alexandria Hotel in 1937, when it housed the Clipper lunch counter and cigar store, typical of the businesses that served the largely-male clientele living in the vicinity. Adele Donald purchased the building in 1944, changing the name to the Donald Hotel. Its use was changed from a hotel to 14 apartment units in 1985. The Donald is typical of the workers' hotels that lined First Avenue after Denny Hill was regraded. The hill blocked the city’s northward progress until it was regraded (between 1898 and 1911) and opened up for development. In only twenty years, Seattle’s population had exploded from 80,671 (1900) to 315,312 (1920), creating a critical need for housing. Belltown quickly became a concentrated residential area. Workers’ hotels like this one, often without individual bath and cooking facilities, lined First Avenue. Residents were typically single men, many of whom worked in lumber camps, canneries or ships for part of the year.   Appearance The only ornament on this simple brick building is the deep corbelled brick cornice. Windows are newer replacements with the original one-over-one configuration. The storefront has been updated with a corner entry. The apartment entry is to the north of the storefront.

Detail for 2200 1st AVE / Parcel ID 1977200681 / Inv #

Status: Yes - Hold Classication: Building District Status: Cladding(s): Brick Foundation(s): Concrete - Poured Roof Type(s): Flat with Parapet Roof Material(s): Unknown Building Type: Domestic - Hotel Plan: Rectangular Structural System: Brick No. of Stories: three Unit Theme(s): Architecture/Landscape Architecture, Commerce Integrity Storefront: Slight Changes to Plan: Intact Changes to Original Cladding: Intact Changes to Windows: Slight Major Bibliographic References King County Tax Assessor Records, ca. 1932-1972. City of Seattle, Department of Planning and Development, Microfilm Records. Sheridan, Mimi, “Historic Context Statement, Belltown," 2007.

Photo collection for 2200 1st AVE / Parcel ID 1977200681 / Inv #

Photo taken Jul 04, 2006