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Historic Name: Brotherton Residence Common Name: 31 Payseno Residence
Style: Arts & Crafts - Craftsman Neighborhood: Montlake
Built By: Year Built: 1921
 
Significance
This residence has a partial second-story addition on the rear, but generally retains its original Craftsman characteristics. Built in 1921, it is associated with 1920s-era development in the Montlake area and is a contributing resource to the Montlake NRHP Historic District. The earliest known owners, in 1928,  were William F. Brotherton, a barber, and his wife, Lena. The home was owned by Marie N. Wiggers, a stenographer at Ballou & Wright, in 1948. George W. Neiswang, a counterman at Jen-Cel-Lite, and his wife, Irene owned it in 1958.
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).
Major Bibliographic 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
Polk Directory of Seattle, 1938-1958.
Smith, Eugene. Montlake: An Urban Eden, A History of the Montlake Community in Seattle. La Grande OR: Oak Street Press, 2004.

 
Appearance
This 1-1/2 story clapboard-clad bungalow sits on a relatively flat lot with lawn and foundation bed with trees and shrubs. It has a clipped side-gable roof with a steep slope in the front and a rear addition that interrupts and shortens the north rear gables on the side elevations. A shed roof dormer is centered on the front roof slope; two skylights are on the roof above it. The gabled entry on the west half of the main façade has pointed bargeboards, paired square corner posts, and a concrete porch with brick clad foundation and stair sidewalls, The door has a plain light with a single panel in the lower third flanked by 18-light sidelights, with panel below, in wide wood surround. The window on the east side of the façade is a group of three 2/1 leaded light sash in a wide wood surround. Windows on side elevations are similar.Four similar grouped casement windows are in the shed dormer.     

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:
Classication: Building District Status:
Cladding(s): Wood - Clapboard Foundation(s): Concrete - Poured
Roof Type(s): Gable, Gable, Gable - Clipped Roof Material(s): Asphalt/Composition
Building Type: Domestic - Single Family Plan: Irregular
Structural System: Balloon Frame/Platform Frame No. of Stories: one & ½
Unit Theme(s): Architecture/Landscape Architecture
Integrity
Changes to Plan: Slight
Changes to Interior: Unknown
Changes to Original Cladding: Intact
Changes to Windows: Intact
Major Bibliographic References
King County Assessor Property Characteristics Report, database at http://www5.metrokc.gov/ --parcel locator

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 Jan 31, 2015
App v2.0.1.0