| Historic Name: |
William & Mary Crawford House |
Common Name: |
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| Style: |
Colonial - Dutch Colonial |
Neighborhood: |
Fremont |
| Built By: |
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Year Built: |
1905 |
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| Significance |
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In the opinion of the survey, this property appears to meet the criteria of the Seattle Landmarks Preservation Ordinance. |
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This distinctive and generally intact house is a good example of popular Dutch Colonial residential design; it appears to be a planbook residential design, such plans were prevalently used by home builders during this era. [A virtually identical house (built c. 1904) is located at 4253 Whitman Avenue – ID #5694500319.] This house was constructed in 1905 for William and Mary Crawford, who had settled in the Salmon Bay/Ross area by ca.1880. It is located on Tract 1 in the William Crawford Tracts, which was platted by David Eastman of The Eastman Company in April 1905; thus, this house was constructed very shortly after the 9.2 acre plat – the former Crawford homestead - was opened for residential development. This was the last large plat to be recorded in the Fremont area whereas the great majority of plats were recorded between 1887 and 1890. William Crawford is know to have taken up a homestead claim at Ross ca.1880; he and his wife Mary and their five children were enumerated in the 1880 U.S. Census as living in the Salmon Bay area very near the home of John and Mary Ross, the earliest know settlers of the area. By the early 1880s the Ross family, which included seven children, moved to the north side of the Outlet near Third Avenue NW and NW 41st Street. By then at least eleven families and many school-age children lived in the Salmon Bay area; this included William and Mary Crawford and their five children. Crawford was a shoemaker working in Seattle whereas almost all of the other male residents of the area, including John Ross, were farmers. The geographic area became known as Ross and eventually included a station of the Seattle Lake Shore & Eastern Railway line. After relocating to the north, John and Mary Ross donated land for the construction of a two-room schoolhouse built at Third Ave. NW and NW 43rd Street. This schoolhouse was eventually replaced in 1902-3 by a new eight-room, wood-frame model plan school building that served the community until 1940. The site is now known as Ross Playfield. William Crawford was an Irish immigrant who initially resided in New York before settling in Seattle 1877. He was a shoemaker and for many years was an employee and shop foreman for the well-known shoemaker and dealer Lewis A. Treen (Treen, Raymond & Co. located at 705 Front Street). In 1898, he was elected to the Seattle City Council as a Populist representing the Ninth Ward. By that time his (then) home in Ross was described as “beautiful and charming” [Seattle Post Intelligencer, March 11, 1898, p.5, col. 2]. At the time of his election, his three eldest sons were reported to be in the Klondike. He served for two years. It is unclear where the Crawford family lived prior to the construction of the subject house; the 1880 U.S. Census listed the family as living in “Salmon Bay”; the 1887 Polk’s Seattle City Directory listed Crawford as residing near “Salmon Bay”; the 1889 Polk’s Seattle City Directory listed Crawford as residing near “Ross Station SLS&E Ry”; the 1900 U.S. Census listed the family as living in “Ross west of illegible and north of Kilbourne.” Third Avenue NW is identified on historic maps as “Crawford Street.” It is presumed that the original Crawford family home was on Crawford Street and located within the 9.2-acre land area that became the William Crawford Tracts. William Crawford appears to have sold the homestead property to David Eastman of The Eastman Company ca.1905 and retained Tract 1 for the construction of a new home, the subject property. A group of existing and new houses was illustrated in the real estate section of the Seattle Post Intelligencer on May 27, 1906; entitled “Group of Residences between Green Lake and Ballard” it included a photograph of the subject residence identified as “Residence of Wm. Crawford, 4022 (sic) Third Avenue Northwest.” Mary and William Crawford (and possibly one of their adult sons) resided here from 1905 until 1910. Mrs. Mary Crawford was born in New York and migrated to Seattle with her husband in 1877. When she died at this home in January 1910, she was survived by her husband and six of her nine children. [Seattle Post Intelligencer, January 7, 1910, p.4, col. 5.]. After his wife’s death, William Crawford appears to have moved and resided in a downtown hotel. By 1922, the property was owned by Otto H. Pohl. King County property tax records indicate that the house was remodeled in 1925; the extent of that work (possibly interior) has not been identified.
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| Appearance |
| Located SE corner of the intersection of Third Avenue NW and NW 42nd Street with façade oriented to the west. Two story, wood-frame, single family residence on a comparatively large lot that includes mature landscape materials and an intact historic single-car garage. Exhibits distinctive Dutch Colonial design character and appears to be based on a plan book design source. Residence measures approx. 26’x 45’ with concrete foundation and full basement level. Front-gable gambrel roof form with full-width cutaway entry porch. One-story bay windows located at north and south elevations. Gambrel dormers located at north & south elevations. Original narrow horizontal cedar siding appears to remain in place at base and dormer walls. Dormers include original staggered shingles within upper gable. Original double-hung wooden windows appear to remain in place with the exception of modern aluminum sash installed at main front gable. Original ornate cottage type window at porch also appears to have been replaced. Porch distinguished by original wooden columns on solid rail. Original heavy wooden stair rails have been replaced with simple wood rails. Design of this house appears to be from a popular planbook source. Site includes generally intact one-car garage (12’ x18’), which clad with narrow horizontal cedar siding and retains original bi-fold glazed and paneled doors. |
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| Status: |
Yes - Inventory |
| Classication: |
Building |
District Status: |
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| Cladding(s): |
Shingle, Wood - Clapboard |
Foundation(s): |
Concrete - Poured |
| Roof Type(s): |
Gambrel |
Roof Material(s): |
Asphalt/Composition-Shingle |
| Building Type: |
Domestic - Single Family |
Plan: |
Rectangular |
| Structural System: |
Balloon Frame/Platform Frame |
No. of Stories: |
one & ½ |
| Unit Theme(s): |
Architecture/Landscape Architecture, Community Planning/Development |
| Integrity |
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Changes to Plan: |
Intact |
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Changes to Windows: |
Moderate |
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Changes to Original Cladding: |
Intact |
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Changes to Interior: |
Unknown |
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| Major Bibliographic References |
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U.S. Census Records (1880-1920)
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Seattle Public Library – Biographical Index File
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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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King County Tax Assessment Rolls, Washington State Archives.
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Baist Map of 1905, 1908 and 1912
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Sanborn (Insurance) Map Company, Seattle, Washington, 1904.
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