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Summary for 3300 CASCADIA AVE / Parcel ID 5700003945 / Inv #

Historic Name: Common Name:
Style: Colonial - Georgian Revival Neighborhood: Mount Baker
Built By: Year Built: 1930
 
Significance
In the opinion of the survey, this property appears to meet the criteria of the Seattle Landmarks Preservation Ordinance.
Built in 1930, this building was designed for its owner, M. T. Midland, by Seattle architect, F. Brainerd Hale. Construction began in 1929. The building was valued at $13,000. Emma Moen later purchased the building. Earl B. J. and Viola C. Diller lived in the building by 1930. The Diller’s resided previously at 3216 Dose Terrace. Mr. Diller was president of Earl Diller Finance Company. Earl L. Dempsey bought the building in February of 1941. Mr. Dempsey previously resided at 3327 Cascadia Avenue South. By 1954 through 1958, Irwin S. Neiman lived in the building. S. B. Fein bought the property in October of 1962. Architect F. Brainerd Hale had a Seattle office in 1929 and 1930. The Mount Baker neighborhood comprises two north-south tending ridges located southeast of downtown Seattle along Lake Washington. Initial development of the area occurred relatively late, post-1900, following the construction of the Rainier Avenue Electric Street Railway in the 1890s. York Station on Rainier Avenue and the Dose Addition were developed earlier than the Mount Baker Park Addition, platted in 1907 by the Hunter Tract Improvement Company. The Mount Baker Park Addition represents the core of the neighborhood and is its primary character-defining feature. Mount Baker Park is one of Seattle’s earliest planned residential communities that successfully integrated the natural environment and a relatively exclusive residential neighborhood in its layout of lots, streets, boulevards, and parks. The houses, primarily built between 1905 and 1929, reflect a variety of eclectic and Northwest-based architectural styles, and include designs by many prominent local architects. Other important influences were the streetcar connection with downtown Seattle, the integration of local parks and boulevards into the Olmsted system, the construction of Franklin High School in 1912, and the building of the Mount Baker tunnel and Lacey V. Murrow Floating Bridge to Mercer Island in 1940. Today this middle-to-upper income neighborhood remains predominantly residential, is home to an ethnically diverse population, and retains much of its planned character.
 
Appearance
Built in 1930, this prominent, Tudor Revival style, single-family dwelling stands on a rectangular corner lot. The building is oriented to Cascadia Avenue South on a sloping site 1’ below street level. This 1909 square foot, two-story house with a full daylight basement features an offset rectangular plan, measuring approximately 41’ by 55’, with a recessed front entrance. A poured concrete foundation supports the wood frame, brick-clad superstructure. Asphalt composition roofing covers the side gable roof. Flush gable ends with minimal eave overhangs define the roofline. Wood sash multiple-lite and diamond pane casement windows provide day lighting. A triple arcade supported on decoratively twisted columns with a prominent keystone over the central arch provides access to the building. Brick chimneys service the building. The unusual stylistic elements and remarkable entrance detailing set this building apart as unique within the neighborhood.

Detail for 3300 CASCADIA AVE / Parcel ID 5700003945 / Inv #

Status: Yes - Inventory
Classication: Building District Status:
Cladding(s): Brick - Common Bond Foundation(s): Unknown
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: two
Unit Theme(s):
Integrity
Changes to Windows: Intact
Changes to Original Cladding: Intact
Changes to Plan: Intact
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.
Historic Seattle Preservation and Development Authority. "Mount Baker: An Inventory of Buildings and Urban Design Resources."
Mount Baker Community Club. Flowers We All Love Best in Mount Baker Park, (reprint of 1915 ed.)
Tobin, Caroline. (2004) "Mount Baker Historic Context Statement."
Dietz, Duane, “Architects and Landscape Architects of Seattle, 1876 to 1959 and Beyond,” unpublished paper. University of Washington Libraries, July 1993.

Photo collection for 3300 CASCADIA AVE / Parcel ID 5700003945 / Inv #


Photo taken

Photo taken Mar 15, 2004

Photo taken Mar 15, 2004

Photo taken Oct 30, 2003
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