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Summary for 2809 21st AVE / Parcel ID 7320900190 / Inv #

Historic Name: Common Name:
Style: Vernacular Neighborhood: Beacon Hill
Built By: Year Built: 1914
 
Significance
In the opinion of the survey, this property appears to meet the criteria of the Seattle Landmarks Preservation Ordinance.
Built in 1914, this building was purchased by Edmond T. Charbonnel in January of 1938. By 1939 through 1940, William E. Jefferson resided in the building. Lucien F. McConihe lived in the house by 1943 through 1961. Allen Michael Perry purchased the building in July of 1962 for $12,200 and remained through 1965. In March of 1968, Soo Himg Tom purchased the house for $29,500. 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.
 
Appearance
Built in 1914, this vernacular style, single-family dwelling stands on a rectangular lot. The building is oriented to Twenty-First Avenue South on a flat site 8’ above street level. This 1092 square foot, one-and-a-half story house with a three-quarter basement features a rectangular plan, measuring approximately 26’ by 42’, with a nearly full width porch. A poured concrete foundation supports the wood frame, clapboard-clad superstructure. Asphalt composition roofing covers the gable roof. Modest eave and gable overhangs with exposed rafters and bargeboards define the roofline. Wood sash 1:1 windows with painted wood casings provide day lighting. An interior brick chimney services the building. This building is a good, relatively intact example of a vernacular dwelling within the Beacon Hill neighborhood.

Detail for 2809 21st AVE / Parcel ID 7320900190 / Inv #

Status: Yes - Inventory
Classication: Building District Status:
Cladding(s): Shingle, Wood - Clapboard 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: one & ½
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.
Tobin, Caroline. (2004) "Beacon Hill Historic Context Statement."

Photo collection for 2809 21st AVE / Parcel ID 7320900190 / Inv #


Photo taken Oct 31, 2003

Photo taken Mar 08, 2004

Photo taken Mar 08, 2004

Photo taken Oct 31, 2003
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