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Summary for this site is under review and the displayed data may not be fully up to date. If you need additional info, please call (206) 684-0464

Historic Name: Burman Residence Common Name:
Style: Tudor Neighborhood: Montlake
Built By: Year Built: 1914
 
Significance

The earliest known owners of this house was T. H. Burman in 1928. It was owned by William E. Burke (District Supervisor, US Internal Revenue Alcohol Tax Unit) and Katherine Burke in 1938. In 1948, the owners were John M. O’Gorman (driver, Meats Inc.) and Arlyne O'Gorman. The owners in 1958 were Wayne A. Berdan (salesman, Carter Servicenter) and Arlyn Berdan.

 

Montlake is generally described as extending from the Washington Park Arboretum west to Portage Bay/15th Avenue E., and from the Montlake Cut on the north to Interlaken Park. The area is a significant and cohesive collection of residential architecture typical of early 20th century Seattle and is eligible as a NRHP historic district under Criterion C.  Construction occurred primarily between 1910 and 1940, with a variety of Craftsman and  revival styles ranging from modest cottages and builder's houses to high-style architect-designed residences, impressive institutional buildings, and notable parks and natural features.  There are few intrusions of newer buildings.  In the early 1960s, construction of SR 520 and the unfinished R.H. Thomson Expressway bisected Montlake, but the neighborhood retains its basic integrity as a pre-World War II Seattle neighborhood. 

Montlake was incorporated into the City of Seattle in 1891.  Although the first  plats (Union City 1st and 2nd additions) were filed by Harvey Pike in 1869-1871, development did not really begin until plats were filed by John Boyer (Interlaken, 1905) and H. S. Turner (1907). Montlake Park (north of SR 520) was platted in 1909 by the developers James Corner and Calvin and William Hagan.  With the 1909 Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition came a streetcar line on 24th Avenue E. and an impetus for development. In 1916, the Lake Washington Ship Canal was completed and the Montlake Bridge linked the neighborhood to the university area in 1925. A small commercial district grew along the car line.

The 1903 Olmsted Parks and Boulevards Plan of 1903 surrounded Montlake with parks.  Montlake Boulevard (then call University Boulevard) connected Lake Washington Boulevard to the A-Y-P grounds.  Washington Park, the eastern boundary, was acquired by the City in 1900 and developed as an arboretum in 1936-41. At the southern edge is steep, forested Interlaken Park and boulevard.

By 1915, the neighborhood had developed enough to require a temporary school building; the permanent structure opened in 1924.Soon afterwards came a playfield and shelter house (1933-36) and a library (1944, replaced 2006). Other noteworthy structures include the Seattle Yacht Club (1920), the NOAA Northwest Fisheries Center (1931), the Museum of History and Industry (1952) and St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church (1962).

References

King County Tax Assessor Records, 1937-2014. 

Becker, Paula.  Seattle Neighborhoods: Montlake--Thumbnail History.  HistoryLink File # 10170, accessed 12/2/2013.

Gould, James W. Montlake History. http://www.scn.org/neighbors/montlake/mcc_history.Jim_Gould.html

Smith, Eugene. Montlake: An Urban Eden, A History of the Montlake Community in Seattle. La Grande OR: Oak Street Press, 2004.

 

 
Appearance
This large two-story residence faces east to East Montlake Park on Union Bay. It has a front gable roof with wide barge boards and knee braces. A large shed roof addition is toward the rear of the south facade and a one story flat roof addition with a roof deck is at the southeast corner. Windows are replacements, and are either 1/1 or fixed plate glass. The first floor is clad in brick with hefty brick piers that extend above the first floor cornice at the corners of the one-story projecting bay and marching along the south facade. A wood balustrade between the brick piers encloses a roof deck above a one story projection. The second floor is clad in stucco with half timbering. A battered river rock chimney dominates the east elevation. Double-hung wood windows flank the chimney on the second floor and large fixed windows flank it on the first floor. The entry is in the addition on the south side elevation. A low brick wall surrounds the site with tall hedges above and tall bricked piers with an arched wrought iron gate at the entry steps and walk. A wood fence attached to the south facade of the garage in the rear obscures views to an arched glass and steel greenhouse behind.

Detail for this site is under review and the displayed data may not be fully up to date. If you need additional info, please call (206) 684-0464

Status: Yes - Inventory
Classication: Building District Status:
Cladding(s): Brick, Stone - River Rock, Stucco Foundation(s): Concrete - Poured
Roof Type(s): Gable, Shed Roof Material(s): Asphalt/Composition-Shingle
Building Type: Domestic - Single Family Plan: Rectangular
Structural System: Balloon Frame/Platform Frame No. of Stories: two
Unit Theme(s): Architecture/Landscape Architecture
Integrity
Changes to Plan: Moderate
Major Bibliographic References

Photo collection for this site is under review and the displayed data may not be fully up to date. If you need additional info, please call (206) 684-0464


Photo taken May 27, 2009
App v2.0.1.0