Seattle Historical Sites

Summary for 3906 Burke AVE / Parcel ID 4083302775 / Inv #

Historic Name: Common Name: Style: Arts & Crafts - Craftsman Neighborhood: Wallingford Built By: Year Built: 1921   Significance This house was erected in 1921. It was designed and built by the owner, J. S. Richards, whose address is listed as 6232 Woodlawn Avenue on the permit application. In 1930, a contractor added a frame garage to the site for owner Charles Armstrong. (The name of this contractor is rendered as “DeMars Bst Bldg Co” and the contractor’s address is recorded as 6008 Yale Avenue N. in the permit history; however, it appears that this information was mistakenly transcribed. The work was probably completed by DeMars Portable Building Company, located at 1008 Yale according to Polk’s Seattle Directory for 1930.) The house is significant because it maintains a high degree of integrity and exemplifies the use of typical craftsman bungalow planning and detailing strategies to produce a very modest but livable structure in the early years of the Seattle’s second north end building boom.   Appearance This is a one story, shingle and clapboard clad frame residence on a concrete foundation over a half basement. The moderate slope of the roof, the wide bargeboards supported by triangular timber knee braces, the unenclosed soffits at the overhangs, the exposed rafter tails, and the detailing of the porch all exemplify typical components of the craftsman bungalow style The porch projects toward the street at the west elevation of the structure. It is protected by a gabled roof that mimics the detailing of the main west end gable, but is tucked below the main roof in the southernmost half of the street façade. The porch roof is supported by two, large, square built-up piers borne ny capped brick piers that rise from grade to a little above porch rail height. The rebuilt entry stair is center on the axis of the porch gable and framed by the low, concrete or stone capped brick walls that stood either side of the original stair. The porch rail is low and utilizes the simple but heavy wood rail components often associated with craftsman bungalows. The entry door (fully glazed with lights organized in a 4 x 4 pattern) is shifted north off the central axis of the porch. To the right (south) of the entry, three double-hung windows are ganged together, opening the front room to light from the porch. The central unit is wider than the two flanking units and is characterized by a small, transom-like upper sash divided into a single row of six vertical rectangles; the much larger lower sash is undivided. The upper and lower sash of each of the flanking units are equal in size and are each divided into four identical lights organized in a 2 x 2 pattern. Centered in the portion of wall to the north of the entry is a window very similar in size and configuration to the central unit in the group of three to the south of the door. The upper sash of this window is divided into five rather than six lights. A brick chimney rises at the south elevation near the west end of the building. It is flanked by two, small, nearly square fixed windows, each with six lights, placed high in the wall and organized symmetrically either side of the chimney in typical bungalow fashion. East of the chimney, a gable-roofed bay projects from the south façade of the building into the side yard. A group of three separate windows are centered in the south face of this bay. The central unit is a large double-hung window with a small, transom-like upper sash divided into a single row of six vertical rectangles; the much larger lower sash is undivided. The windows to either side each have upper and lower sash of equal size divided into six identical lights organized in a 2 x 3 pattern. The east and west sidewalls of the bay feature fixed windows divided into eight lights in a 4 x 2 pattern. Just east of the bay, two small double-hung windows with equal and undivided upper and lower sash, are ganged together to illuminate what appears to be the kitchen. At the back end of the elevation, a larger double-hung window, similar in configuration to one of the flanking units at the south face of the bay, has been modified to accommodate a window mounted air conditioning unit. At the north elevation, four windows of varying sizes and differing configurations are casually distributed across the façade. The westernmost is a horizontally oriented, rectangular fixed sash unit placed high in the wall and divided into ten lights in a 2 x 5 pattern. The easternmost is a double-hung window with a small, undivided upper sash over a much larger undivided lower sash. The two smaller windows in the middle third of the elevation are undivided single sash units. Two additional windows penetrate the skirting of the building and provide light for the basement. A water table wraps the building at just a little below porch deck height. This projecting sill piece separates the clapboard siding at the body of the house from the wider clapboards of the skirting below. A similar but much more delicate horizontal trim band separates the shingles in the gables from the clapboard siding at the body of the house. The east (rear) elevation of the house cannot be observed from the street. Minor changes to the structure are identified above. No other significant modifications are apparent.

Detail for 3906 Burke AVE / Parcel ID 4083302775 / Inv #

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

Photo collection for 3906 Burke AVE / Parcel ID 4083302775 / Inv #

Photo taken Jul 16, 2004