Seattle.gov Home Page
Link to Seattle Department of Neighborhoods home page

Seattle Historical Sites

New Search

Summary for 1420 BROADWAY / Parcel ID 600300-0025 / Inv # 0

Historic Name: Unknown Common Name: Perkins Glass and Mirror
Style: Commercial Neighborhood: Pike/Pine
Built By: Year Built: 1904
 
Significance
This 1904 building is one of the oldest of a group of similar garage buildings on Broadway at the south edge of Seattle's original Auto Row.  It has been altered and is now in a similar use.  

The Pike/Pine/Broadway vicinity became Seattle’s Auto Row shortly after the first automobile was offered for sale here in 1905.  For the next twenty years virtually all local auto dealers and numerous auto-related businesses were located here.  Nearly every building housed at least one dealership, service garage, parts dealer, paint shop or similar business.  “Auto Row” thrived with the strong economy of the 1920s.   However, the Great Depression of the 1930s led to general stagnation, and the neighborhood changed significantly after World War II.  Broadway High School closed in 1946, replaced by Edison Technical School, a vocational training institution. As the suburbs grew, most auto dealerships moved away from the congested city locations, although many parts dealers and service businesses remained.   The 1980s brought new development, as people returned to live in city neighborhoods.  Seattle Central Community College, the successor to Edison, demolished and replaced most of the old high school buildings in the 1970s.  In the past ten years the Pike/Pine corridor has developed as a residential and entertainment center with numerous apartments and businesses in new and renovated buildings, but many small businesses like this one remain in the garage buildings. 

 
Appearance
This rectangular building of unreinforced masonry is faced with brick painted white.  The first story has a single garage door and a modernized storefront with newer display windows. the second level has four tall windows with newer dark metal sash. The only decorative feature is a corbelled brick cornice along the top of the building.

Detail for 1420 BROADWAY / Parcel ID 600300-0025 / Inv # 0

Status: No - Altered
Classication: Building District Status:
Cladding(s): Brick Foundation(s): Concrete - Poured
Roof Type(s): Flat with Parapet Roof Material(s): Unknown
Building Type: Transportation - Road- Related Plan: Rectangular
Structural System: Masonry - Unreinforced No. of Stories: two
Unit Theme(s): Architecture/Landscape Architecture, Commerce, Transportation
Integrity
Changes to Original Cladding: Intact
Changes to Windows: Extensive
Changes to Plan: Intact
Storefront: Moderate
Major Bibliographic References
Williams, Jacqueline B. The Hill with a Future: Seattle's Capitol Hill 1900-1946. Seattle: CPK Ink, 2001.
King County Tax Assessor's Record Cards (ca. 1932-1972) - Washington State Archives.

Photo collection for 1420 BROADWAY / Parcel ID 600300-0025 / Inv # 0


Photo taken Jul 12, 2010
App v2.0.1.0