| Historic Name: |
Fire Station No. 40 |
Common Name: |
|
| Style: |
Modern |
Neighborhood: |
Maple Leaf |
| Built By: |
|
Year Built: |
1965 |
| |
| Significance |
|
|
|
Completed in 1965, this modern brick fire station located in the Wedgwood neighborhood of northeast Seattle was constructed to fill a gap between stations, which had existed since 1954. In that year, the City of Seattle had completed its annexations of all the unincorporated neighborhoods north to 145th Street. Since 1891, the city’s northern limits had been set at 85th Street between 8th Avenue NW and 15th Avenue NE, then considered a great distance from the center of town in Pioneer Square. Twenty years later, the city had annexed Ballard on the west and portions of Ravenna and Laurelhurst on the east. Over the next thirty years, the city’s population shifted further to the north and to the northeast, pushing into the unincorporated areas. From the early 1940s to the early 1950s, the City of Seattle annexed extensive areas north and northeast of the existing city limits. In northeast Seattle, much of the Wedgwood and the Sand Point neighborhoods were annexed in 1953 while Lake City to the north was not annexed until the following year.
Before the annexations, the small Fire Station No. 38 served the entire northeast area of the city. As part of the annexations, the city acquired the facilities of several King County fire districts in the north end. On January 18, 1954, the Seattle Fire Department opened Fire Station No. 39 in a former county owned facility to serve the newly annexed Lake City district. On the same day, the Fire Department also established Fire Station No. 31 in another former county facility located on North Northgate Way at Interlake Avenue North. However, a large service gap remained in northeast Seattle between the Lake City fire station at NE 127th Street and the Bryant fire station at NE 55th Street. This gap continued for more than ten years until the construction of Fire Station No. 40 in 1965 located on 35th Avenue NE at NE 94th Street.
The Fire Department selected the architecture firm of Bindon & Wright to design their modern new facility. Formed in 1956, the partnership of Leonard W. Bindon and John L. Wright designed a number of prominent modern buildings in Seattle on its own and in collaboration with other firms. Significant projects included the 1956-59 Norton Building and the 1956-59 Downtown Seattle Public Library, as well as a number other public buildings, including the 1967 Fire Station No. 32 and multiple schools for the Seattle, Bellevue, and Ferndale districts. In the later 1960s and 1970s, the firm appears to have concentrated on work for corporate clients. This building is significant for its design and for its associations with the development of the Seattle Fire Department and the northeast Seattle neighborhoods.
|
|
| |
| Appearance |
| Completed in 1965, this large one-story brick building is located on a sloping corner lot at the intersection of NE 94th Street and 35th Avenue NE. A high brick wall, topped by a chain link fence, lines the sidewalk along the higher eastern side of the lot. The gable roof building has a rectangular plan, which measures approximately 86 feet by 65 feet. The wide front gable covers an office in the western third, an engine bay in the taller center portion, and crew quarters in the eastern third. Covered by a shallow gable roof, a large hose tower is situated at the rear of the engine bay. Wide brick piers frame the two overhead entrance doors at the center of the principal south elevation. A column covered with corrugated metal separates the doors. Originally, this projecting engine bay featured a single large opening with one overhead door flanked by the same brick piers. Narrow vertical boards clad the gable end above the entrance doors. The western end of the south elevation has six tall narrow windows and a single entrance door, while the eastern end presents a blank wall.
Heavy rafter beams line the overhanging eaves on the east and west elevations. The west elevation has two sets of three tall, narrow windows. This elevation opens onto a small parking area enclosed by a low brick wall. The east elevation has three long narrow window openings set high on the wall below the roofline, each with three windows. On the rear north elevation, a single overhead entrance door accesses the center engine bay. This opening is located immediately east of the hose tower. The eastern end of the north elevation has a single long narrow window opening with three windows, identical to those on the east elevation. The western end of the elevation is not visible from the public right of way. On each elevation of the hose tower, brick piers frame a recessed center panel, which contains windows separated by spandrels. This well maintained building displays excellent physical integrity. |
|
|
| Status: |
Yes - Inventory |
| Classication: |
Building |
District Status: |
|
| Cladding(s): |
Brick, Metal, Vertical - Boards |
Foundation(s): |
Concrete - Poured |
| Roof Type(s): |
Gable |
Roof Material(s): |
Other |
| Building Type: |
Government - Fire Station |
Plan: |
Rectangular |
| Structural System: |
Unknown |
No. of Stories: |
one |
| Unit Theme(s): |
Architecture/Landscape Architecture, Politics/Government/Law |
| Integrity |
|
Changes to Original Cladding: |
Intact |
|
Changes to Windows: |
Intact |
|
Changes to Plan: |
Intact |
|
| Major Bibliographic References |
|
City of Seattle DCLU Microfilm Records.
|
|
King County Property Record Card (c. 1938-1972), Washington State Archives.
|
|
Seattle Fire Department, Centennial Commemorative, 1889-1989. Portland, OR: Taylor Pub. Co., c1989.
|
|
|
