| Historic Name: |
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Common Name: |
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| Style: |
American Foursquare |
Neighborhood: |
Beacon Hill |
| Built By: |
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Year Built: |
1907 |
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| Significance |
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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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Built in 1907, this house's residents were Roy and Julia C. McDonald and Rory from 1937 through 1970. Mr. McDonald worked as a watchman for the American Mail Line. In 1945, building owner, Rory McDonald, repaired fire damage to the residence. These repairs involved adding chimney bracing.
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.
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| Appearance |
| Built in 1907, this substantial, American Foursquare style, single-family dwelling stands on a rectangular corner lot at the intersection of Thirteenth Avenue South and South Atlantic Street. The building is oriented to Thirteenth Avenue South on a flat site 4’ above street level. This 1590 square foot, two-story house with a full daylight basement features a rectangular plan, measuring 53’ by 30’, with an 8’ by 22’ front porch. A poured concrete foundation supports the wood frame, clapboard- (first story) and stucco- (upper stories) clad superstructure. Asphalt composition roofing covers the hip roof. Broad eave overhangs with exposed, decoratively cut rafters and a well-defined fascia define the roofline. Twin wood sash quatre-foil windows flank the main entrance. An elliptical bay window with small overhanging roofline projects from the sidewall. Wood sash 1:1 single hung windows provide day lighting for the rest of the building. A substantial, two-story bay window projects from the building’s northwest corner. Two direct flights of stairs lead to the front porch from the sidewalk. Massive boxed piers with knee braces support the porch roof and former second story balcony. A low, closed railing extends beneath the piers along the porch. |
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| Status: |
Yes - Inventory |
| Classication: |
Building |
District Status: |
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| Cladding(s): |
Stucco, Wood - Clapboard |
Foundation(s): |
Concrete - Poured |
| Roof Type(s): |
Hip |
Roof Material(s): |
Asphalt/Composition |
| Building Type: |
Domestic - Single Family |
Plan: |
Rectangular |
| Structural System: |
Balloon Frame/Platform Frame |
No. of Stories: |
two |
| Unit Theme(s): |
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| Integrity |
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Changes to Plan: |
Intact |
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Changes to Windows: |
Slight |
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Changes to Original Cladding: |
Intact |
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| Major Bibliographic References |
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City of Seattle DCLU Microfilm Records.
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King County Property Record Card (c. 1938-1972), Washington State Archives.
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Polk's Seattle Directories, 1890-1996.
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City of Seattle. Survey of City-Owned Historic Resources. Prepared by Cathy Wickwire, Seattle, 2001. Forms for Ravenna Park structures.
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Tobin, Caroline. (2004) "Beacon Hill Historic Context Statement."
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