| Historic Name: |
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Common Name: |
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| Style: |
American Foursquare |
Neighborhood: |
Beacon Hill |
| Built By: |
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Year Built: |
1906 |
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| Significance |
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Built in 1906, this building had a garage added in December of 1915, followed by a chimney and fireplace in February of 1922. Peter C. and Sara MacRae lived in the building from 1909 through 1941. Peter and his brother, John E., previously lived at 1747 13th Avenue South. Peter and John were building contractors. They operated the MacRae Brothers Fifth and Cherry Garage. In July of 1925, Peter added a bay window on the back façade and enclosed the porch. Peter purchased the building in May of 1939. Mr. Elder purchased the building in March of 1943, and it was sold in April of 1947 to James L. Lee. Then in 1954, Kennth O’Brian purchased the property, and it was sold again to James Lee in February of 1957. Mary Elee lived in the building in 1953, followed by Edward Verneau in 1955 and James L. Lee from 1957 through 1970.
The Chinese were the first group to come to the Northwest. They were recruited to work on railroad construction and in logging camps and canneries starting in the 1860s. During the 1920s and 1930s, Chinese-Americans began to move to areas like Beacon Hill and the Central Area from their initial settlement of Chinatown. Asian families were interested in living in residential neighborhoods, and Beacon Hill was affordable and close to their core area on the southeast edge of downtown. Beacon Hill did not have restrictive covenants found in more exclusive neighborhoods like Mount Baker, which precluded Asians and other minorities from purchasing homes in the area.
About seven Chinese families lived on Beacon Hill during the 1930s, including six Lew families and the Ng family. Many first-generation Chinese women worked in the garment or laundry businesses, including North Rainier Valley operations such as Black Bear Manufacturing Company.
During the internment of the Japanese during World War II, some Chinese-Americans moved to the Beacon Hill area to take over businesses left by the Japanese-Americans. The Asian population and number of Asian-owned businesses on the hill have continued to increase during the last fifty years. Today, there are more Asian Americans than any other single racial/ethnic group on Beacon Hill.
The percentage of Chinese students at Beacon Hill Elementary increased from none in 1910 and less than 1% in 1920 to 22.5% in 1964. Today the combined Asian percentage of students at Beacon Hill Elementary is 50.2%.
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.
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| Appearance |
| Built in 1906, this American Foursquare style, single-family dwelling stands on a rectangular lot. The building is oriented to Thirteenth Avenue South on a level site. This 770 square foot, two-story house with a full daylight basement features a rectangular plan, measuring approximately 24’ by 30’, with 4’ by 8’ and 2’ by 4’ front porches. A poured concrete foundation supports the wood frame, clapboard-clad superstructure. Asphalt composition roofing covers the pyramidal roof. Broad eaves with exposed rafter ends define the roofline. Vinyl windows provide day lighting. Windows feature painted wood trim. Short flights of stairs lead up to the twin entrances. Wood piers support the hipped stoop roofs. A brick chimney services the building. A one-story addition projects off the back facade. |
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| Status: |
Yes - Inventory |
| Classication: |
Building |
District Status: |
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| Cladding(s): |
Wood - Clapboard |
Foundation(s): |
Concrete - Poured |
| Roof Type(s): |
Hip |
Roof Material(s): |
Asphalt/Composition |
| Building Type: |
Domestic - Single Family |
Plan: |
Irregular |
| Structural System: |
Balloon Frame/Platform Frame |
No. of Stories: |
two |
| Unit Theme(s): |
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| Integrity |
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Changes to Windows: |
Slight |
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Changes to Plan: |
Intact |
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Changes to Original Cladding: |
Intact |
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| Major Bibliographic References |
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City of Seattle DCLU Microfilm Records.
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King County Property Record Card (c. 1938-1972), Washington State Archives.
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Polk's Seattle Directories, 1890-1996.
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City of Seattle. Survey of City-Owned Historic Resources. Prepared by Cathy Wickwire, Seattle, 2001. Forms for Ravenna Park structures.
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Tobin, Caroline. (2004) "Beacon Hill Historic Context Statement."
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Chew, Ron, ed. Reflections of Seattle's Chinese Americans, the First 100 Years. Seattle: University of Washington Press and Wing Luke Museum, 1994.
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Chin, Art. "Golden Tassels: A History of the Chinese in Washington, 1857-1977. Seattle: Art Chin, 1977.
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Chin, Doug. Seattle's International District: The making of a pan-Asian American community. Seattle: International Examiner Press, 2001.
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Chin, Doug and Art. Uphill: The Settlement and Diffusion of the Chinese in Seattle. Seattle: Shorey Book Store, 1973.
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