Seattle Historical Sites

In the opinion of the survey, this property appears to meet the criteria of the Seattle Landmarks Preservation Ordinance.

In the opinion of the survey, this property appears to meet the registration requirements established in the National Register of Historic Places Multiple Property Listed, Seattle Apartment Buildings, 1900–1957, for a low-rise apartment block.

This Tudor Revival style multiple-family building is in the Uptown neighborhood; it was known historically as the Wedgewood Court Apartments and currently as the Inn at Queen Anne.

The permits to erect the north and south portions of the building were issued in 1930, permits 292014 and 290224. Architect George M. Rasque of Spokane designed the building. The original drawings are on file with the City Department of Construction and Inspections and dated September 17, 1929. The Polk directories listed the building as the Wedgewood Court Apartments from 1931 through 1975. The Wedgewood Company owned the building through the 1940s. Joe E. Wickstrom owned the building by 1945, followed by Jorals Incorporated by 1961. In 1962 the building converted to hotel use. Hilda F. Kane owned the building by 1965. By 1972 the Wedgewood Inn owned the building.

Born in 1891 in Boscobel, Wisconsin, Rasque spent two years at the Bradley Polytechnic Institute in Peoria Illinois before moving to Spokane in 1922. He worked as a draftsman for the National Builders Bureau and then as a detailer for the Spokane Sash and Door Company before working as a draftsman for architect G. A. Pehrson (1924–1925). Rasque gained his state architectural license in 1924 and went on to establish his own firm; over the course of his career he designed over 60 school buildings in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana. This multi-family building stands out as a notable example of his commercial work during his early career. Rasque passed away in 1977.

The building retains moderate integrity and is a good example of a Tudor Revival style multiple-family building in the neighborhood.

References:

City of Seattle DCLU Microfilm Records.

Jeffrey Karl Ochsner, ed., Shaping Seattle Architecture: A Guide to the Architects (Seattle, University of Washington Press: 2014), 2nd edition.

King County Property Record Card (c. 1938–1972), Washington State Archives.

Polk's Seattle Directories, 1890–1996.

Washington State Department of Archaeology and Historic Places. Architect Biographies. “George M. Rasque.” Accessed July 19, 2018. https://dahp.wa.gov/historic-preservation/research-and-technical-preservation-guidance/architect-biographies/bio-for-george-m-rasque

Constructed in 1930, the three-story building with a daylight basement stands at the northwest corner of Republican Street and First Avenue N. The building faces east, fronting First Avenue N. The building features an H-shaped plan, comprised of two rectangular volumes with an open connecting hyphen. The parallel volumes create a center garden court between the buildings, which is landscaped with lawn and low ornamental shrubs and trees. An alley abuts the west side. Multiple small trees grow along the base of the building as foundation plantings. A concrete block screen wall extends along the sidewalk at the southeast corner of the site.

A flat roof with parapets and clad in rolled roofing shelters interior spaces. Sheet metal flashing caps the parapet.

A parged concrete foundation supports the building’s platform frame structure and provides a projecting water table. Tan and dark brown colored brick veneer with a raked face clad the upper stories. Cast stone quoins highlight the outer building corners. A brick soldier course marks the third story transition to the parapet and serves as a continuous header for third story windows.

Windows feature flat soldier course headers with rowlock brick sills and brick moldings and are arranged mostly as paired units separated by a wood mullion, along with some smaller single units. The north building features 1:1 double hung wood sash windows on the east and north facades. These have stile extensions on the upper sash to reinforce the meeting rail joint. Some of the original windows feature textured yellow privacy glass.

The main entrances are located within the garden court with a central raised walkway, flanked by railings, spanning between them. Each features a cast stone surround with a cast stone cartouche at the parapet above the entry.

The south entrance consists of a concrete stairway descending from the sidewalk to the basement entry. Metal pipe railings flank the stairway. An awning projects over the doorway.

The west entrances exit from each building and consist of a concrete stoop with a flight of stairs parallel to the building. These open onto the alley.

Alterations include the growth of vines on the east facade of the building. Previous work replaced most windows with metal sash units and added metal security grilles at the basement level windows. Added awnings project above windows on the east facade and the south entrance. An added cell tower enclosure projects above the parapets on the east facade of the north building. In 1930, interior alterations were made, designed by architect Meyers G. Telander. In 1944 additional, unspecified, alterations were made; (permit 362941). In 1945 a basement apartment was added in the southeast corner of the south building (permit 368037), designed by architect James M. Taylor Jr. and Associates. In 1962 the building was converted to hotel use (permit 494588) and a sign added (permit 497332). In 1974 work was completed to repair fire damage (permit 551574).