| Historic Name: |
Childrens Orthopedic Hospital |
Common Name: |
Queen Anne Manor |
| Style: |
Italian - Italian Renaissance |
Neighborhood: |
Queen Anne |
| Built By: |
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Year Built: |
1911 |
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| Significance |
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In the opinion of the survey, this property appears to meet the criteria of the National Register of Historic Places. |
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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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In the opinion of the survey, this property is located in a potential historic districe (National and/or local). |
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Children’s Orthopedic Hospital was founded in 1907 by the Women’s Hospital Association to provide medical care to children regardless of their ability to pay. They first opened a ward at Seattle General Hospital on First Hill, but in 1908 they opened the Fresh Air Cottage on this block. They sought a Queen Anne site because it was among the highest points in the city and thus was felt to have the healthiest air. A three-story, 27-bed hospital was built in 1911, designed by Somervell and Cote. A fourth floor was added in 1921, expanding capacity to 78 beds. In 1928 the entire facility was re-designed by A. H. Albertson, with a new wing with glazed terra cotta tile and an arched entrance portico on Warren Avenue North. The original fresh Air Cottage was razed at this time. In 1947 the hospital became affiliated with the new University of Washington medical school, and all the pediatric functions moved to a new facility on Sand Point Way NE in 1953. The building was purchased by King County and served as a Health Department clinic. In 1968 the clinic closed and the building was used for county offices and the morgue until being turned into a retirement home, Queen Anne Manor.
W. Marbury Somervell (1872-1939) and Joseph S. Coté (1874-?) worked as partners from 1906 until 1910, the period when this design was done. Their Beaux-Arts training and East Coast experience made them well suited to provide Seattle with appropriate architectural symbols for civic institutions. Somervell came to Seattle in 1903 to supervise construction of St. James Cathedral for the prominent New York firm of Heins & LaFarge. Born in Washington, D.C., he had studied architecture at Cornell University. Following completion of the cathedral, they quickly gained other commissions, including three libraries (Green Lake, West Seattle, and University, 1908-1910) and Providence Hospital (1907-1912). After the partnership ended, Somervell moved to Vancouver, B. C., but retained a local office. Later local commissions included additional libraries (Queen Anne, Columbia, and Yesler/Douglass-Truth, 1912-1915). He served in the Army during World War I and remained in Europe to work on restoration of damaged monuments. He later practiced in Los Angeles.
Cote accompanied Somervell to Seattle as his assistant. Originally from Quebec, Coté studied architecture at Columbia University. He was the principal designer of the Perry Apartments on First Hill (destroyed), the original Swedish Hospital building (destroyed) and the Sunset Club (1915-15). He returned to Seattle following World War I service, and continued his architectural practice, primarily doing residential commissions.
A. H. Albertson (1872-1964), who redesigned and expanded the building, was one of Seattle’s most prominent architects. He received his architectural training at Columbia University and came to Seattle in 1907 as the representative of Howells & Stokes, a New York firm preparing a development plan for the Metropolitan Tract in downtown Seattle. He later worked with Joseph W. Wilson and Paul D. Richardson, a partnership that continued until 1939. Among Albertson’s best known works are the Northern Life (now Seattle) Tower (1927-29), the downtown YMCA (1929-31) and, on Capitol Hill, St. Joseph’s Church (1929-30) and Cornish School (1920-21). Other work on Queen Anne includes the Mrs. Grant Smith residence at 619 W. Comstock Street (a designated landmark) and St. Anne’s Convent. (1930). In 1939 Albertson joined the state office of the Federal Housing Administration, retiring as its chief architect in 1949. He died in 1964.
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| Appearance |
| This complex consists of two connected buildings. The eastern one has red brick cladding on the first three stories, stucco on the fourth floor and the basement level, and extensive terra cotta ornament. Windows throughout are vinyl one-over-one sash. The original entry, on the east, is now closed off; it has a flat-roofed porch with an arcade of three arches with Corinthian columns, an elaborate arched doorway and terra cotta with dogwood, leaf and butterfly motifs. Between the third and fourth stories is a row of terra cotta plaques in blue and tan, depicting children in the Della Robbia style. The windows are arranged singly; those on the first floor are set in stucco blind arches with terra cotta sills; others have concrete sills. A terra cotta belt course runs below the third floor windows. The porch eaves have terra cotta arched ornament, which is also seen at the top of the building. The south elevation has a two-story sunroom, a traditional feature in older hospitals. The larger wing of the building, which forms an ell on the west side, is simpler and more modern in appearance, with red and gray brick cladding and concrete belt courses. The upper section and cornice are also concrete. Windows are newer one-over-one sash, arranged in pairs, with concrete sills. The entry, in the center of the south elevation, has modern flat roof. A four-story enclosed walkway, clad with stucco, connects the two buildings. The west elevation has a center bay with original fixed windows and bricked-in windows. There is also a one-story addition on the north (rear). |
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| Status: |
Yes - Inventory |
| Classication: |
Building |
District Status: |
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| Cladding(s): |
Brick, Stucco |
Foundation(s): |
Concrete - Poured |
| Roof Type(s): |
Flat |
Roof Material(s): |
Clay Tile |
| Building Type: |
Health Care - Hospital |
Plan: |
L-Shape |
| Structural System: |
Concrete - Poured |
No. of Stories: |
four |
| Unit Theme(s): |
Architecture/Landscape Architecture, Health/Medicine |
| Integrity |
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Changes to Plan: |
Slight |
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Changes to Windows: |
Moderate |
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Changes to Original Cladding: |
Intact |
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| Major Bibliographic References |
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King County Property Record Card (c. 1938-1972), Washington State Archives.
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Ochsner, Jeffrey Karl, ed. Shaping Seattle Architecture, A Historical Guide to the Architects. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1994.
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Reinartz, Kay F. Queen Anne: Community on the Hill. Seattle: Queen Anne Historical Society, 1993.
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