| Historic Name: |
|
Common Name: |
|
| Style: |
Arts & Crafts - Craftsman |
Neighborhood: |
Beacon Hill |
| Built By: |
|
Year Built: |
1932 |
| |
| Significance |
|
|
|
Built in 1932, the building was erected on property purchased by Silvio and Oliva Donadel in October of 1931. Mr. Donadel worked as a dumpman for Cities Contracting Company. Previously the couple lived at 1332 16th Avenue South. In January of 1962, Frank K. Kobayashi purchased the property for $13,475. Mr. Kobayashi lived in the building from ca 1962 through 1970. Then in November of 1971, Rolando Visitacion bought the property for $16,500.
A neighborhood of Italian immigrants and their businesses developed in the North Rainier Valley and northeast Beacon Hill. Starting around 1900, Italian immigrants came to Seattle to work in coal mines and as construction laborers and farmers. The Italian immigrants may have settled in this area because of its inexpensive housing, convenient location near downtown, and potential for small farm plots in the North Rainier Valley. This neighborhood, which became known as “Garlic Gulch” or “Little Italy,” centered on South Atlantic Street and Rainier Avenue South. In 1915, about 200 families lived in a 90-square-block area along Rainier Avenue from Lane Street on the north to Mount Baker Park on the south. Many Italian-owned businesses were located in the area, including food imports, Borracchini’s Bakery, Oberto Sausage Company, produce stands, grocery stores, a nursery (Malmo’s), drug stores, and other shops.
Our Lady of Mount Virgin Catholic Church at 1531 Bradner Place South, built in 1913, was the hub of the Italian community and operated a Catholic School that offered Italian lessons. Most of the remaining structures in the Italian neighborhood were razed during construction of I-90 in the 1970s and 1980s.
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.
|
|
| |
| Appearance |
| Built in 1932, this Craftsman-influenced, Arts & Crafts style, single-family dwelling stands on a triangular lot. The building is oriented to Sixteenth Avenue South with a back alley. The level site is on grade. This 1198 square foot, single-story house with a full daylight basement features a rectangular plan, measuring approximately 30’ by 45’, with an 11’ by 4’ recessed front porch. The recessed nature of the front porch set between two front gables imbues a U-shaped form to the building. A poured concrete foundation supports the wood frame superstructure. Remarkable coursed lapped wood siding clads the building. Asphalt composition roofing covers the cross gable roof. Modest eave and gable overhangs with eave returns define the roofline. Original louvers provide cross ventilation for the attic space. Wood sash double hung 3:1 windows as well as fixed three-lite windows provide day lighting to the building. Lead caming provides mullions for the multiple lite windows. Windows feature plain painted wood casings. The recessed front entrance features a central doorway flanked by sidelights. The side entrance features a concrete stoop with a barrel vault roof over the doorway carried on projecting brackets. A brick internal and front gable end chimney service the building. A contemporary deck flanks the south sidewall. Exterior contemporary gutters and downspouts provide drainage. |
|
|
| Status: |
Yes - Inventory |
| Classication: |
Building |
District Status: |
|
| Cladding(s): |
Wood |
Foundation(s): |
Concrete - Poured |
| Roof Type(s): |
Gable |
Roof Material(s): |
Asphalt/Composition |
| Building Type: |
Domestic - Single Family |
Plan: |
Rectangular |
| Structural System: |
Balloon Frame/Platform Frame |
No. of Stories: |
one |
| Unit Theme(s): |
|
| Integrity |
|
Changes to Original Cladding: |
Intact |
|
Changes to Plan: |
Intact |
|
Changes to Windows: |
Slight |
|
| Major Bibliographic References |
|
City of Seattle DCLU Microfilm Records.
|
|
King County Property Record Card (c. 1938-1972), Washington State Archives.
|
|
Polk's Seattle Directories, 1890-1996.
|
|
City of Seattle. Survey of City-Owned Historic Resources. Prepared by Cathy Wickwire, Seattle, 2001. Forms for Ravenna Park structures.
|
|
Tobin, Caroline. (2004) "Beacon Hill Historic Context Statement."
|
|
Nicandri, David L. Italians in Washington State: Emigration 1853-1924. Olympia, WA: Washington State American Revolution Commission, 1978.
|
|
Roe, Nellie Virginia. “The Italian Immigrant in Seattle,” Master of Arts Thesis, University of Washington, 1915.
|
|
|
