Seattle Historical Sites

Summary for 4263 Woodland Park AVE / Parcel ID 5694500165 / Inv #

Historic Name: Common Name: Style: Arts & Crafts - Craftsman Neighborhood: Wallingford Built By: Year Built: 1909   Significance This house was erected in 1909. It was designed and built by the owner, William J. Henry, a building contractor, who listed his address as 4265 Woodland Park Avenue N. on the permit application. There is no garage at this site. Charles R. Benson and his wife, Vera, appear to have acquired the property from the William Wagner Investment Company in 1938. Benson, who worked with real estate according to Polk’s Seattle Directory, built an addition for a laundry and utility room in 1939-40. This structure is significant as a somewhat intact and well-maintained example of transitional architecture built in the early years of Wallingford’s first building boom and incorporating elements of both late Queen Anne and early craftsman bungalow design. The small size of the house, the limited number of windows, and the detailing of the porch are somewhat unusual compared with other cottages dating from this period.   Appearance This is a 1-1/2 story, frame residence clad with combed shingles on a concrete foundation over a quarter basement. The combed shingle siding replaces the clapboards that originally clad the structure. The moderate slope of the side gabled roof, the wide barge boards supported by triangular timber knee braces, the unenclosed undersides of the roof overhangs, and the exposed rafter tails are all elements customarily associated with craftsman bungalow design. The detailing of the windows has more the flavor of a Queen Anne era structure. The entry door is located at the south end of the front (east) façade where it is protected by an eastward extension of the main roof. Two diagonal timber braces support the roof extension, one brace either side of the front door. A shed roofed bay with a single large double-hung window projects toward the street from the northern two thirds of the east elevation. The upper sash of the window is divided into diamond and cup shaped lights by curvilinear metal muntins interwoven in a regular pattern. A shed-roofed dormer, almost as wide as the house, is centered over the east façade. A pair of casements is located at each end of the dormer’s face. The casements feature metal muntins that divide each sash into six rectangular lights arranged in a 3 x 2 pattern. A double-hung window is placed off center to the west in the gable at the south elevation. At the main level, three separate windows are located in the western half of the elevation. Two of these are undivided double-hug units of approximately the same size, one near the middle of the façade and the other toward the western end. The third window is a single-sash unit mounted high in the wall between the two double-hung units (its head is aligned with those of the two double-hung windows). This window is divided into diamond and cup shaped lights by curvilinear metal muntins interwoven in a regular pattern similar to that in the upper sash of one of the windows at the front of the house. A door and a small single sash window are situated at the south wall of an apparent addition (or enclosed porch) at the west end of the house. The pitch of the roof of the main house becomes shallower at the west end. The extension of this roof over the addition is shallower still. The north elevation has even fewer windows than the south wall, which itself seems inadequately fenestrated. At the main level toward the front (east) end of the elevation is a single-sash unit mounted high in the wall. This window is divided into diamond and cup shaped lights by curvilinear metal muntins interwoven in a regular pattern similar to that in the upper sash of one of the windows at the front of the house. A slender double-hung window is hidden behind a metal storm window near the west end of the man house. A small square window is situated low in the gable above. As at the south elevation, the pitch of the roof of the main house becomes shallower as it nears the west end. However, the addition (or enclosed porch) appended to the west end of the house has been extended a few feet into the side yard rather than being set back slightly as at the south façade. This extension features a gable roof and its eastern half is notched to provide a back porch with a door facing east. A small double-hung window is located in the western half of the gabled extension and a similar unit opens into the porch from the north wall of the main house. Although the detailing of the addition is consistent with the detailing of the main house, the addition has the look of a structure that has been cobbled together from spare parts. The replacement of the original siding and the alterations to the front deck and entry stairs are noted above. The back end of the house appears to have been remodeled at least twice but is almost impossible to see from the street. No other significant modifications are apparent.

Detail for 4263 Woodland Park AVE / Parcel ID 5694500165 / Inv #

Status: Yes - Inventory Classication: Building District Status: Cladding(s): Shingle - Combed, Wood Foundation(s): Concrete - Poured Roof Type(s): Gable, Shed Roof Material(s): Asphalt/Composition-Shingle Building Type: Domestic - Single Family Plan: Rectangular Structural System: Balloon Frame/Platform Frame No. of Stories: one & ½ Unit Theme(s): Architecture/Landscape Architecture, Community Planning/Development Integrity Changes to Plan: Moderate Changes to Windows: Moderate Changes to Original Cladding: Extensive 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.

Photo collection for 4263 Woodland Park AVE / Parcel ID 5694500165 / Inv #

Photo taken Mar 10, 2004