| Historic Name: |
Double NCO Quarters |
Common Name: |
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| Style: |
Colonial - Colonial Revival |
Neighborhood: |
Magnolia |
| Built By: |
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Year Built: |
1904 |
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| Significance |
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Fort Lawton is located in Seattle's Magnolia neighborhood, within the area that is now Discovery Park. Established as a U.S. Army post in 1898, the fort had been envisioned by local residents and businessmen as a major regimental post, with the hope that it would enhance the local economy and the city’s status in its ongoing competition with Tacoma to the south. Upon selection of the site, local landowners donated more than 700 acres for the fort. By 1900, construction of the first seven permanent, wood-frame buildings on the site was completed.
While local aspirations for the fort were slow to be realized, initial construction continued through 1910, at which time there was an assembly of 25 buildings set around an oval-shaped parade ground. While Fort Lawton never became as large or influential as Seattle residents had anticipated, during World War II it was the second-largest port of embarkation on the West Coast. After the 1940s, the use of the fort declined again and many of the temporary and wartime buildings were removed. The Army stayed on until 1972, at which time it transferred ownership of a portion of Fort Lawton to the City of Seattle.
A large portion of the post, including its historic core area, with 25 buildings and parade ground, was surplused by the Army and added to Discovery Park in the mid-1970s. The Fort Lawton Historic District was nominated to and listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. The City of Seattle designated Fort Lawton as a local historic district in 1988.
The Fort Lawton Historic District is associated with the development and the history of the City of Seattle; and embodies the characteristics of military interpretations of American architectural styles of the 1890s and early 1900s, based on standard Quartermaster General building designs, as well as its planned site. The period of significance for the Fort Lawton Historic District extends from its inception in 1898 to 1945, based on the development of the post, with additional buildings and site features resulting from the Depression-era public works, and the fort's role in WWII.
Building 909 was constructed in 1904 as NCO housing. It is located near the north end of Montana Circle and is identical in plan to Building 903.
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| Appearance |
| Non-commissioned officers' (NCO) housing was constructed on Montana Circle, which is a one-way, U-shaped street located northwest of the parade ground and at the northwest portion of the Historic District. The area is bounded by Kansas Avenue on the west, Utah Street on the south, and the secondary or service portion of Montana Circle on the east. The topography slopes down severely around the northern edge of the Montana Circle area.
Constructed from standard quartermaster general plans, the houses on Montana Circle exhibit military interpretations of the architectural style of the period (turn of the 20th century), with Colonial Revival influence. The original color scheme for the post building exteriors appears to have been a barn red with red-brown trim, which is shown on several hand-colored post card images. However, as photos dating from 1907 and later indicate, a consistent, two-tone lighter color palette soon replaced it as the customary combination. Buildings 901 and 902 were built later, in the 1930s, and are brick rather than wood-clad. Nonetheless they are in keeping with the Colonial Revival style of the earlier dwellings in this area.
This complex of residential buildings includes the encircling paved roadway, Montana Circle; concrete walks that lead up to the front entries of the dwellings; the mature Maple, Lombardy Poplars, and several flowering trees in front of and between the dwellings; and a portion of Idaho Avenue on the east with a grove of mature Giant Sequoia near its intersection with Utah Street.
Building 909 – Double NCO Quarters
(Completed March 31, 1904)
This duplex is located at the north end of Montana Circle on the east side of the street, facing west. The two-story building with basement is of frame construction on a sandstone and brick foundation. Walls are clad with lapped cedar siding. The cross-gabled roof, originally slate-shingled, is finished with composition shingles. The main mass of the house measures 38' by 27', with a 10' by 38' kitchen wing across the rear (east) side of the building. (The existing kitchen wing was converted from open back porches ca. 1937.)
A full-width front porch with Tuscan columns and pipe rails is accessed by two sets of concrete steps, aligned with the two duplex entries. Fenestration consists of eight-over-eight and six-over-six, double-hung wood sash windows. Exterior trim includes wide window trim, corner boards, a frieze band, and cornice returns.
Interior configuration and finishes are described in the 1981 HABS report and 2006 conditions report. The mirror image duplex has a side hall plan, with living room, dining room, and kitchen at the first floor and two bedrooms and a bathroom upstairs. Flooring is maple in the living and dining rooms; kitchen flooring is vinyl. Upstairs hallways and bedrooms have been carpeted.
This duplex is identical in plan to Building 903. |
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| Status: |
Yes - Inventory |
| Classication: |
Building |
District Status: |
NR, LR |
| Cladding(s): |
Wood - Clapboard |
Foundation(s): |
Brick, Stone |
| Roof Type(s): |
Gable |
Roof Material(s): |
Asphalt/Composition-Shingle |
| Building Type: |
Domestic - Multiple Family |
Plan: |
Rectangular |
| Structural System: |
Balloon Frame/Platform Frame |
No. of Stories: |
two |
| Unit Theme(s): |
Architecture/Landscape Architecture, Community Planning/Development, Military |
| Integrity |
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Changes to Interior: |
Slight |
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| Major Bibliographic References |
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Lentz, Florence, et al. "Historic American Buildings Survey, Fort Lawton." U.S. Dept. of the Interior, National Park Service, Pacific Northwest Region, 1981.
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Kavanaugh, Major Robert E. "Fort Lawton." National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form, January 1978.
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Mann, Millegan, Morse and Ramsey. "Fort Lawton Buildings: A Survey and Report, Prepared for City of Seattle Parks and Recreation." August 15, 1975.
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U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Seattle District. "Context Study of the United States Quartermaster General Standardized Plans 1866-1942." Report prepared for U.S. Army Environmental Ctr, Envir. Compliance Division, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md., Nov. 1997.
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Upchurch Architects, Inc. and SLA Studio Land. "Navy Historic Housing Classifications of the Montana Circle, Washington Ave N & Washington Ave S Homes in Fort Lawton." Prepared for Pacific NW Communities, LLC, Nov. 1, 2006.
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